Nunavut project examined for ‘Witwatersrand’ potential

Vancouver — Geological terranes with potential to rival South Africa’s famous Witwatersrand basin are rarely found, which explains why Newmont Mining (NMC-T, NEM-N) is gearing up for a 2006 drilling program after identifying gold-bearing conglomerate zones at the Matrix gold project west of Arviat, in southern Nunavut.

The senior gold producer can earn an initial 60% interest in the project from Kaminak Gold (KAM-V) and Pacific Ridge Exploration (PEX-V, PFREF-O) by spending $4 million on exploration and making payments totalling $400,000 in stages before the end of 2007.

Newmont can elect to increase its interest to 70% by spending a further $10 million on exploration, at which stage Kaminak and Pacific Ridge would share the remaining 30% interest.

Previous exploration efforts were focused on evaluating the lower conglomeratic units of the Paleoproterozoic Hurwitz group, which outcrops over several hundred square kilometres and is believed to be comparable in size to the Witwatersrand basin.

These exploration programs identified three gold-bearing pyritic conglomerate zones. One was described as a 3-km-long trend of quartz pebble conglomerates that contains stratiform horizons with up to 20% pyrite pebbles. Grab samples along a 200-metre portion of this trend are reported to have yielded assays from 1 to 16 grams gold.

Geophysical surveys over the three exposed zones of gold-bearing pyritic conglomerate also successfully traced the favourable horizons at depth. The program included magnetics, radiometrics, electromagnetics, and induced-polarization (IP) techniques.

This year’s expanded exploration program will include diamond drilling to test the Matrix project for its potential to host “Witwatersrand-style” gold deposits. The geological endowment of the world-famous Wits Basin in South Africa is estimated at 1 billion oz. gold.