Maude Lake earns its half of Comtois ground

Montreal-based Maude Lake Exploration (MAU-V) has acquired a half-interest in 130 claims owned by Cameco (CCO-T) at the 185-claim Comtois gold property, west of Lebel-sur-Quevillon, Que.

The deal was reached after Maude Lake completed two holes at Colline de l’ouest, 1 km west of Comtois. The work brought the company’s expenditures on the Cameco option to $1.3 million. The holes are part of a 6,000-metre drill program that is expected to last until the end of January.

Hole 80 cut 12.9 metres (from 144.2 metres below surface) running 3 grams gold per tonne, including 3.7 metres (from 150.2 metres) grading 7.8 grams. Hole 81 returned 1.5 metres (from 47.4 metres) of 9 grams gold.

Channel sampling at Colline de l’ouest earlier in the summer returned 1-metre intervals of between 4.5 and 26.7 grams gold.

Last winter, a 5,000-metre drill program by Maude Lake developed an indicated resource of 695,485 tonnes grading 9.05 grams gold at a cutoff grade of 4 grams gold. At a 1-gram cutoff, indicated resources rise to 1.8 million tonnes of 4.5 grams gold.

Gold mineralization has been delineated within a 1.2-km corridor of felsic volcanic rocks that remains open both to the east and west.

Metallurgical tests on the Comtois material indicate gold can be recovered using conventional cyanidation methods, and recovery rates above 95% are anticipated.

Cameco had an option to reacquire a 10% interest in the property by completing $500,000 in exploration work, but did not take the option. It did however reject an all-share bid by Maude Lake for its 50% interest in the project.

Meanwhile, Maude has completed the first nine holes of a 6,000-metre drill program under way at an adjoining property to the north.

Gold values varied from 2.6 to 4.6 grams over mineralized sections 1.5-3 metres long and situated 47-223 metres down-hole. Each of holes 9 and 12 returned 4.6 grams over 1.5 metres, starting at 97.5 and 47 metres, respectively. The latter also cut 3 metres of 2.6 grams between 54.5 and 57.5 metres. The program should be done by February.

Maude Lake can acquire a 95% interest in the 15 claims from Newmont Mining (NEM-N). To earn its interest, it must spend $200,000 on exploration before February 2005. Government-owned Societe de developpement de la Baie James holds the remaining 5%.