Melville yields diamonds for Northern Empire, Stornoway

Vancouver — The cloak of secrecy under which Northern Empire Minerals (NEM-V) and Stornoway Ventures (SWV-V) acquired more than 5,200 sq. km in Nunavut has proved efficacious: the partners have discovered two diamond-bearing kimberlites on the Melville Peninsula.

On the back of these first confirmed diamond discoveries in the region, the companies have tied up an additional 22,257 sq. km in the area. Dubbed Aviat, the land package is now seven times bigger than Charles Fipke’s original Ekati block, which produced Canada’s first diamond mine.

“The additional permits awarded to us by the Nunavut government have enabled us to secure in excess of seven million acres in total, representing one of the largest land positions assembled for diamond exploration in Canada,” says Stornoway CEO Eira Thomas.

Northern Empire and Stornoway optioned the initial properties in 2001 from a non-arm’s-length private company, Hunter Exploration Group. The two Northair Group companies can each earn a 35% interest in the Aviat North and South properties by spending a total of $2 million on exploration before Oct. 1, 2005. The Hunter Group retains a 30% interest, including a 10% carried interest through to production.

In addition, Northern Empire and Stornoway agreed to reimburse Hunter for $135,000 in out-of-pocket costs, issue 50,000 shares each, and pay a total of $125,000.

The two companies were attracted to the Aviat project, situated 850 km northwest of the territorial capital of Iqaluit, because of its regional kimberlite indicator mineral chemistry and favourable geology. Last year, a sampling program identified a diamond-bearing kimberlite in the heart of the property, as well as a second diamond-bearing kimberlite occurrence 2 km to the southwest.

The AV-1 kimberlite occurrence covers an 8-by-40-metre outcrop, where a 186.1-kg sample yielded 228 diamonds, including 12 microdiamonds caught by a 0.6 mm sieve. The largest stone measures 2.2 by 1.86 by 1.32 mm.

“We are pleased to have discovered diamonds at this early stage of Aviat’s assessment, and are confident that geochemistry, geophysics and remote sensing techniques will result in additional discoveries,” says Thomas.

Petrographic and indicator mineral analysis by Mineral Services Canada indicate that the AV-1 kimberlite material is promising for a diamond host based on a “compelling eclogitic garnet signature combined with evidence from peridotitic garnet that suggests sampling of deep lithospheric material on a possible cratonic geotherm.”

The second find comprises a series of angular boulders up to 50 cm in diameter. A 46-kg sample collected from the boulders yielded 92 diamonds, with the largest stone measuring 1.02 by 0.62 by 0.52 mm.

Some 300 till samples were collected over the property, and so far several indicator mineral anomalies have been identified, including two samples that contained kimberlite fragments.

“Our acquisition of such a large land package surrounding this exciting discovery has provided Northern Empire and Stornoway with the potential to secure an entire kimberlite field,” says Northern Empire President John Robins.

The prospectivity of the region for hosting an economic diamond-bearing kimberlite is further verified by the presence of the world’s largest diamond miner, De Beers. Last year, the Canadian exploration division of the major tied up more than 28,000 sq. km in prospecting permits across northern Baffin Island — its biggest-yet exploration permit in the country.

Despite being separated by several hundred kilometres of water known as the Foxe Basin, the Aviat and De Beers land packages were likely attached at one time and probably represent the same cratonic setting.

De Beers has not published any results from its Baffin Island project.