TSX Venture pulls back, Sept. 26-30

The S&P/TSX Venture Composite Index shed 10.66 points over the period close at 800.23, as gold prices slipped on a stronger U.S. dollar. The spot gold price lost US$21.69 before finishing at US$1,315.87 per oz., while Comex’s three-month copper rates remained steady at US$2.21 per pound.

Shares of Diamcor Mining gained 25¢ to $1.38 after the company announced second-quarter results of rough diamonds delivered, tendered and sold from the company’s Krone-Endora alluvial deposits at its Venetia project in South Africa, as part of the company’s ongoing mine commissioning. During the three months ended Sept. 30, Diamcor had gross proceeds of US$1.2 million from 8,274 carats recovered, up 171% from the comparable quarter last year. The company has a long-term alliance and first right of refusal with jewellery giant Tiffany & Co. to buy up to 100% of any production from the mine.

CanAlaska Uranium fell 37¢ to 50¢ per share after the company reported its partner De Beers failed to intercept kimberlite in seven of the 11 targets outlined in this year’s drill program at CanAlaska’s West Athabasca diamond project in Saskatchewan. The targets are described as circular magnetic anomalies in geophysical surveys that could be consistent with kimberlite intrusive bodies cutting through the magnetic-neutral Athabasca sandstones. CanAlaska says drilling the four remaining targets has been deferred until the Canadian winter, when ice would make them more accessible. The company also states De Beers is analyzing physical property data from the last hole to better understand the overburden’s physical properties and geophysical response. The partners are exploring the 174 sq. km land package, which covers 75 potential kimberlite-style geophysical anomalies, under a staged $20.4-million agreement signed in May this year.

Graphite explorer Zenyatta Ventures has begun a metallurgical program in preparation for a prefeasibility study of its Albany graphite project in northern Ontario. The company also announced it could receive up to $350,000 in cash, along with technical advisory services, from the National Research Council of Canada’s Industrial Research Assistance Program. Shares of the company were up 19¢ to $1.28.

Mason Graphite gained 19¢ to $1.45 per share after it closed a $28-million bought-deal financing. The company issued 26.2 million shares at $1.10 per share, with Ressources Québec, a subsidiary of Investissement Québec, subscribing for 9.1 million shares. The proceeds will fund development of Mason’s Lac Guéret graphite mine project in northeastern Quebec, in addition to payments for the mining claims, and another equity investment in Group NanoXplore, a privately held research and development provider of graphene technology.