JUNIOR MINING — Base metal search in New Brunswick

Mineral exploration in New Brunswick will be dominated by major companies in 1993 and will be almost exclusively directed towards discovery of base metals.

Noranda Exploration, Brunswick Mining and Smelting (TSE), BHP International, Teck Exploration, Kennecott and Phelps Dodge have all been active during the early part of the year.

Junior mining companies active in the province include NovaGold Resources (TSE), Freewest Resources (TSE), PGE Resource (ASE), Stratabound Minerals (ASE), Breakwater Resources (TSE), Arimetco International (TSE), Heron Mines and Key Anacon Mines (TSE).

Noranda and Brunswick will be evaluating numerous targets throughout the province, with emphasis on volcanogenic massive sulphides (VMS) in the Bathurst camp and evaluation of several copper prospects in the porphyry skarn environment in northwestern New Brunswick.

Activity in 1993 has concentrated on the delineation drill program at the Halfmile Lake deposit where two drills were active through the winter until breakup.

Exploration by the Noranda and Brunswick is expected to proceed at planned levels with expenditures similar to 1992 even though temporary shutdowns have been announced at the Brunswick No. 12 and Heath Steele mines because of the glut on the zinc market.

NovaGold has joined forces with Arimetco and Breakwater to drill off a high-grade copper reserve within the Murray Brook deposit in the northern Bathurst camp. The reported reserves are 480,000 tonnes grading 2.9% copper which under the current plan would be processed at the Caribou Mill. NovaGold also completed a drill program at its Sears Lake property in partnership with Kennecott.

Rio Algom (TSE) continued deep stratigraphic drilling through the winter on the Key Anacon prospect, which they have under option from Key Anacon Mines. Rio reported two ore-grade intersections about 250 metres below the old workings on the property late in 1992.

BHP has optioned the Mechanic Settlement and Bills Lake properties from PGE Resource. The Mechanic Settlement target is a layered ultramafic complex in which elevated platinum group metal values have been identified in several areas. The Bills Lake property occurs in the southern part of the Bathurst camp and is a VMS target.

PGE generated excitement with a new high-grade gold discovery on its Devils Pike property early in the year. Subsequent trenching by Brunswick indicated the mineralization was narrow and discontinuous.

Teck is continuing work on claims it optioned from Stratabound encompassing the Captain and Captain North Extension deposits in the Bathurst camp. In addition, Teck recently staked claims on part of the Chester deposit in the southern Bathurst camp, which tie onto its large claim holdings in that area. Freewest has indicated that it intends to conduct a followup program in the Forty Four Mile Brook area where it discovered angular blocks of semi-massive chalcopyrite in chloritic argillite late in 1992. Grab samples of this material assayed as high as 6.1% and 13.6% copper.

Freewest has also staked part of the Orvan Brook deposit in the northern Bathurst Camp. About 915 metres continuous strike length of narrow, massive sulphide occurs on these claims and diamond drill testing is generally less than 125 metres vertical. In addition, Freewest recently staked part of the massive sulphide deposit at Chester.

Phelps Dodge conducted a drill program in the area of the Turgeon deposit, on a property under option from Heron. It is also evaluating the Gravel Hill prospect for Kuroko-type massive sulphide potential and has drilled on the Nashwaak property which is optioned from Falconbridge. Both properties are about 30 km northwest of Fredericton.

Access to risk capital remains a major issue for junior companies in eastern Canada, where they have been unable to take advantage of the current popularity of diamond exploration. Juniors have been successful, however, in attracting major companies as partners in the province.

— David Gower is president of the New Brunswick Prospectors and Developers Association.