BHP to drill in Manitoba

Vancouver — A unit of BHP Billiton (BHP-N) will drill-test the Stephens Lake nickel property, 100 km east of Gillam, Man. The property is held jointly by Cream Minerals (CMA-V), Sultan Minerals (SUL-V) and ValGold Resources (VAL-V).

The 1,000-metre program will test four airborne geophysical targets on the 1,700-sq.-km property and should be completed by the end of March.

BHP will also test two targets on ValGold’s adjacent Big Claim property, with at least 500 metres of drilling.

The properties of interest overlie a stratigraphic package believed to be an extension of the Thompson nickel belt, one of the major nickel-producing regions of the world, with production plus reserves exceeding 170 million tonnes at a grade of more than 2% nickel-equivalent. Recent geophysical campaigns have identified several targets of interest within the favourable stratigraphic package.

BHP Billiton can earn up to a 70% interest in the Stephens Lake property from Cream, Sultan and ValGold by spending $1 million on exploration and completing a feasibility study.