Altavista looks for gold in northwestern Quebec

Having raised $1.5 million through an initial public offering, newly listed Altavista Mines (ME) is ready to explore and develop two gold properties in northwestern Quebec.

The junior can acquire a 90% interest in the 47-claim Santa Anna gold project, 15 km southwest of La Sarre. The ground was originally worked in the 1930s when a 700-lb. bulk sample assayed 1.44 oz. gold and 2.92 oz. silver per ton.

However, as this mineralization was found within a granitic batholith, the property was little-explored thereafter. (At the time, batholiths were believed to be unprospective for gold mineralization; later, however, with the discovery of the Belmoral and Silidor mines in the same region, this opinion changed.)

In 1981, Newmont (NYSE) compiled historical data from the Santa Anna which indicated that three veins on the property assayed up to 2.04 oz. gold. The veins ranged up to 2.6 ft. in width and had a strike length of up to 270 ft.

A 10,000-ton bulk sample will enable Altavista to evaluate the grade of mineralization within a zone measuring 1,600 ft. long by 160 ft. deep. The company hopes to bring the property into production as an open-pit mine.

The second property to be explored by Altavista is the 7-claim package known as Montbray. Situated 30 km west of Rouyn-Noranda, the project is believed to have good potential for hosting gold-bearing, silicified zones or quartz veins within a batholith.

Altavista has 3.1 million shares and 706,250 purchase warrants outstanding. Each warrant entitles the holder to buy a common share for 60 cents until Dec. 1, 1996. The company is headed by Guy Hebert, previously with Audrey Resources.