Coxheath underground on Nova Scotia gold property

An Alberta-listed junior mining company, Coxheath Gold Holdings, made an important tactical move in 1986.

Early in the year, the company’s technical advisory committee recommended they concentrate their efforts on one of their 16 gold properties scattered throughout Nova Scotia. That decision could pay off this year by putting the company in a position to make a decision to go into production early ne xt year.

The Tangier property, located just off the main highway that snakes its way along the eastern shore, 85 km northeast of Halifax — reportedly the site of the first gold mining activity in the province with a production history stretching from 1862 to 1917 — was chosen by management as a focus of attention, probably because of its history.

By the time the last reported production from a 183-m shaft on the property was hoisted in 1917, production totalled 91.8 kg of the yellow metal from 44,487 tonnes of ore for an average grade of 18.2 g per tonne (0.53 oz gold per ton). But mining did not stop from any lack of ore.

The property was acquired last April from local geologist Dr Dennis Forgeron (who is now a director of Coxheath) subject to a 5% net smelter royalty and 200,000 shares. An additional 12 claims were picked up by staking.

“If the Nugget vein (one of 50 parallel leads identified on the property to date within a 400-ft width) proves to be mineralized along its entire 3,000-m strike length, the Tangier property has potential ore reserves of 5,500 tonnes of ore per vertical metre over a 1-m width,” President Michael Riddell tells The Northern Miner. The deepest hole to date intersected mineralization at a depth of 1,200 ft.

“But we’re not prepared to give a reserve figure until we have a 4,000-tonne bulk sample,” Mr Riddell says. Since the decision to go underground was made in November, Canadian Mine Development, the mining contractors on the project, have advanced 200 m, cutting through the Nugget vein at right angles then turning to drift along the Twin Leads Vein. Chip samples taken from the drift walls are out for assay but Mr Riddell says he expects grades to be in the 0.35 to 0.40 oz range.

Drift rounds taken in the mineralized zones are being prepared in a small 3,000-lb-per-day preparation facility on site and samples are being assayed by Bondar-Clegg.

Coxheath has one diamond drill underground and two drills working on surface.

Coxheath intends to spend $1.6 million by the end of this month. Some 3,000 m of drilling will be done from surface and another 2,000 m from underground.

The company has budgeted $2.5 million for work on the property for the balance of 1987. In addition, $2.5 million has been budgeted for work on the company’s other gold properties, including ground surrounding the Beaver Dam property being developed by Seabright Resources.

The company has also filed an application to have its shares listed on the Toronto Stock Exchange. In Calgary, the issue traded this week at $1.15.