Atna drops Palmer base metal project

Atna Resources (ATN-T) has elected to back away from the Palmer base metal project in southeastern Alaska.

The project was a joint venture with Rubicon Minerals (RMX-V). The two companies recently completed a US$500,000 program of geological mapping, rock sampling, ground geophysics and preliminary diamond drilling.

Atna had the option of earning a half-interest in the project by spending US$2 million on exploration by the fall of 2001. The property consists of 340 claims and lies 56 km northwest of Haines, a deep-water port at the northern end of the Alaskan Marine Highway.

“While we liked the geology, the exploration situation was such that it didn’t look as if it was going to be a quick discovery,” says Atna’s president, Peter DeLancey. He adds that the steep terrain would make it difficult and expensive to delineate an orebody, if one were discovered.

Diamond drilling this season totalled 3,256 ft. in four holes and was focused on establishing continuity between mineralized units. Results are as follows:

* Hole 1 intersected 296.9 ft. averaging 0.09% zinc 0.01% copper and 0.02% lead, as well as 0.11 gram gold and 31.3 grams silver per tonne.

* Hole 2 hit 14.5 ft. grading 0.24% zinc, 0.03% copper, 0.18% lead, 0.45 gram gold and 18.2 grams silver. The hole was drilled into the Main zone, which is interpreted to be an upper exhalite horizon. The mineralization was associated with massive barite.

* Hole 3, which was also drilled into the Main zone, cut 36.5 ft. of 0.02% zinc, 0.01% copper, 0.76% lead, 0.45 gram gold and 64.1 grams silver. The mineralization was associated with massive barite and chert.

* Hole 4 returned 0.3 ft. averaging 4.23% zinc, 0.03% copper, 0.02% lead, 0.1 gram gold and 5 grams silver. The hole was drilled into the 737 target, east of the Main zone, and is believed to represent feeder-type, semi-massive mineralization in altered mafic volcanics.

Core recovery was less than 50% in the Main zone, and Rubicon says metal contents may be “under-reported” in the assays.

Poor weather conditions prevented the company from drill-testing the Little Jarvis target, surface chip samples from which ran 10.8% zinc over a 10-ft. interval and 8.45% copper and 4.9 oz. silver over a 3-ft. interval.

Rubicon is planning a follow-up program for 1999.