Abacus hits sulphides at Niblack

Drilling in the historic Niblack mine area has intersected massive sulphide mineralization.

Abacus Minerals (VSE) holds an option to acquire the Niblack project, situated on tidewater at the southern tip of the Alaskan panhandle, 20 miles southwest of Ketchikan.

A new zone of high-grade, chalcopyrite-pyrite, massive sulphide mineralization was uncovered by trenching, 60 ft. from the old Niblack mine shaft. The horizon returned 15.1 ft. grading 4.2% copper and 0.26% zinc, as well as 0.07 oz. gold and 1.93 oz. silver per ton. The zone is reported to trend parallel to the mine workings.

Historic production at Niblack is recorded at 20,000 tons grading 4.9% copper, plus 0.067 oz. gold and 1 oz. silver, although it is estimated that as much as 160,000 tons of similar-grade material may have been taken out.

Holes 64 and 65 were spotted from the same collar, in the vicinity of trench TR95-1, and were drilled in a northeasterly direction with dips of minus 45! and minus 60!, respectively. Hole 64 intersected two zones of stringer mineralization, returning 9.5 ft. from a depth of 77.5-87 ft. grading 1.28% copper and 0.1% zinc, as well as 0.013 oz. gold and 0.14 oz. silver, plus 8 ft. from 147 to 155 ft. grading 3.3% copper and 0.32% zinc, as well as 0.011 oz. gold and 0.52 oz. silver.

Hole 65 intersected three massive sulphide horizons separated by disseminated copper-zinc mineralization for a total intersection of 54.5 ft., from 62 to 116.5 ft. grading 3.69% copper and 2.23% zinc, plus 0.071 oz. gold and 1.22 oz. silver.

The next fan of holes was collared 400 ft. to the northeast and drilled back towards holes 64 and 65 in a southwesterly direction. Hole 66 is reported to have intersected three massive chalcopyrite-pyrite-sphalerite horizons separated by substantial chalcopyrite-pyrite stringer mineralization over a 200-ft. interval. The intersection lies 325 ft. downdip of hole 65.

Hole 67 was drilled from the same pad as hole 66 but swung out to intersect the mineralization 75 ft. along strike to the southeast. A 65-ft.-long intercept of stringer mineralization, including 16 ft. of copper-rich massive sulphide mineralization, was encountered 150 ft. downdip from hole 66. Abacus attributes the downdrop of mineralization to faulting.

Hole 68 is being drilled and has swung out the opposite way from hole 67 to test the northwesterly strike extension. Assay results for holes 66 and 67 are pending.

The mine site area lies within a 2,100-ft.-long induced-polarization anomaly that extends 1,100 ft. to the Edit M adit area and at least 1,000 ft to the northwest.

In its initial program at Niblack, Abacus has carried out more than 9,500 ft. of drilling to date. President Steven Todoruk expects to extend the exploratory drilling beyond the initially planned 10,000 ft.

Abacus has 10.1 million shares outstanding.