Investors bid up junior golds

Vancouver — Santa Claus brought early Christmas presents to Canada’s junior exchange over the holiday-shortened report period ended Dec. 20 as investors placed bets that 2003 will be a good year for gold explorers. The S&P-TSX Venture Exchange composite index surged 9.69 points, or 0.96%, and closed at 1,010.49.

Catching the eye of investors, Goldminco closed at 14, up 5, with more than 6.2 million shares changing hands. The Ian Finch-led junior reported that certain shareholders arranged for the sale of 4.3 million shares in order to participate in a new financing. The latest non-brokered private placement consisted of 6 million units priced at 10 each. A full unit holds one share and one warrant, which is exercisable at 20 for two years. The funds are earmarked for drilling at the junior’s Balabag gold-silver property in the Philippines. The company and a subsidiary of Placer Dome have also agreed to extend their property agreement until December 2003. The agreement grants the junior the right to negotiate to acquire interests in all of the Placer Dome group’s gold projects in Southeast Asia (including Australia) of which it intends to divest itself or from which it intends to withdraw.

Pan Asia Mining continued to trade heavily on news that WSAS Capital has agreed to lend Pan Asia US$1.5 million to complete the purchase of a half-interest in the Mengyin VVS1 Diamond Co., which owns the Changma diamond mine in China. Shares in the junior lost 1 to close at 16 on a volume of nearly 2.9 million.

American Bonanza Gold Mining ended the period unchanged at 20 on a volume of two million shares. The company has a rig turning on its Pamlico project, in the Walker Lane gold trend of Nevada. The 8-hole program is aimed at confirming and expanding the mineralization in the central mine area and at the northwestern end of the Main zone.

Investors snapped up shares in Radius Explorations following news of drill results from the Holly gold property in eastern Guatemala. Hole 4 cut 6 metres grading 43.56 grams gold and 1,617 grams silver. Stock in the Simon Ridgway-led company added 15 to close at 52 on just over 1.1 million shares.

TNR Resources climbed 2 to close at 21 on just over 1.5 million shares. The junior reported new results from ongoing exploration at the Rock Creek gold deposit near Nome, Alaska. Drill results include up to 18.89 grams gold over 2 metres at the Albion zone.

Giving back a portion of its recent gains, QGX dropped 2 to close at $1.23 on a volume of 1.4 million shares. The junior tabled the remaining results from a 7-hole drill program into the Central Valley zone on the Golden Hill prospect in Mongolia. Hole 4 tested the depth extension of the mineralization cut in hole 1 (48 metres grading 3.79 grams gold per tonne) hitting 1.04 grams gold over 11 metres. Moving 80 metres east, hole 3 intersected two zones grading 1.79 grams gold over 7.9 metres and 1.4 grams gold over 7 metres, respectively. Hole 7 was drilled a further 100 metres east and returned 24 metres grading 1.37 grams gold. Hole 5 tested for mineralization below a trench (2.84 grams gold over 5 metres) some 220 metres west of the first holes. This hole returned 1.47 grams gold over 10 metres at a down-hole depth of 38 metres.

Surging to a new 52-week high, Desert Sun Mining added 8 to close at 78, on a volume of 1.27 million shares. The company is drilling the Jacobina gold property in Brazil and recently identified extensions of favourable rock units immediately north of its extensive Jacobina holdings.