Fortress Cuts High-Grade At Svetloye

Vancouver–Fortress Minerals (FST-V, FTMNF-o) has pulled a long and tantalizingly high-grade gold intercept from the Amy zone at its Svetloye property, 220 km southwest of Okhotsk, in Russia’s Far East.

Starting from surface, hole 236 returned 111 metres grading an uncut 19.39 grams gold per tonne. Using an upper cutoff grade of 30 grams gold within the intercept, however, reduced the grade to a still notable 3.33 grams gold over the same length.

Other significant results included 62.5 metres of 1.32 grams gold starting from surface in hole 233 and 118 metres of 1.61 grams gold in hole 234, also starting from surface. The cut grade in hole 233 was the same as the uncut, while the uncut grade in hole 234 was 1.99 grams gold.

The market responded positively to the results, giving Fortress’s share price a 4¢ boost to 23¢.

Fortress picked up an initial option to buy an 80% interest in Svetloye from Phelps Dodge (since acquired by Freeport-McMoRan Copper & Gold [FCX-n]) in 2005. By 2008, Fortress had increased its interest to 100% for a total price of around $14 million.

Then in April, Fortress entered into an option agreement giving the Russian bank Gazprombank a 51% interest in Svetloye.

To complete its commitments for the interest, Gazprombank agreed to pay around US$48 million (for project-related costs), reimburse Fortress for 51% of all costs incurred at Svetloye since the end of April and potentially issue a bonus to Fortress if the project reaches the prefeasibility stage.

Fortress says the third part of the agreement is contingent on the mineral resource in the prefeasibility study.

So far, Fortress has calculated inferred resource estimates for three zones within a few kilometres of each other on the 86-sq.-km Svetloye property.

The Elena zone, where Fortress has concentrated most of its drilling, makes up the bulk of the estimate. It holds 12.2 million tonnes grading 2.1 grams gold.

Amy is next at 2.1 million tonnes of 2.1 grams gold and the Tamara zone follows with 1.9 million tonnes at 2.22 grams gold.

Combined, these weigh in at around 1.1 million contained ounces gold. Fortress is a Lundin Group company.