Rubicon extends Red Lake drilling to 80,000 metres at $25m

After intersecting mineralization on a number of stepout holes on its Phoenix gold project on Red Lake, Ont., Rubicon Minerals (RMX-T, RBY-X) is substantially expanding its exploration program. Phoenix is 7 km northwest of Goldcorp‘s (G-T, GG-N) Red Lake mine complex.

Scheduled to last 12 months, the expanded program is anticipated to comprise 80,000 metres of drilling, both underground and from surface. Drilling from surface is done by 1-2 rigs, which would drill 20,000 metres. Underground drilling is anticipated to start with two rigs, with another two rigs joining later. The four underground rigs would drill 60,000 metres.

The gold discovery on Phoenix is named the F2 zone (T.N.M., Mar. 2-8/09). The project hosts a shaft, named the Phoenix shaft, at a distance of 450 metres from the F2 zone. The 142-metre shaft is being dewatered and extended to a depth of 350 metres. Once this work is completed, the company is planning to carry out 200-400 metres of drifting from the shaft toward F2.

At a budget of $25 million, the program is one of the largest in Canada. The original program was anticipated to comprise 40,000 metres of drilling at $15 million.

The mineralization consists of a vein system with some parallel veins. It starts at depths around 100 metres, ending at 1,100 metres, although it is not continuous over the entire 1,000 metre of vertical distance. Typical vein widths are 2-4 metres.

The F2 core zone has a strike length of 170 metres, which has been drilled extensively. Two stepout mineralized zones have been defined by Rubicon: a 190-metre zone northeast of the F2 core zone, and a 220-metre zone southeast of the F2 core zone. If Rubicon could prove continuity of the mineralization over these two stepout zones, the strike length would grow to 580-metre.

But it seems that the expanded program is more ambitious. Rubicon is now planning to drill a 1,200-metre-long target area along strike. The company plans to use surface drilling to test for mineralization, and then follow up with more detailed underground drilling.

Rubicon highlights a number of stepout holes drilled recently. Hole 44 cut 2.5 metres of 174 grams gold per tonne from a depth of 39 metres. Hole 41 intersected 0.5 metre grading 43 grams gold at 43 metres depth, and 0.5 metre of 261 grams gold from 53 metres depth. Hole 42 cut 0.5 metre of 120 grams gold from 672 metres depth. High gold grades were also intersected in other stepout holes drilled recently, including holes 47, 57, 54, and 56.

In early March Rubicon closed a $40 million private placement. Financial statements filed in November show that on September 30 Rubicon had 10.7 million warrants outstanding, with an exercise price of $1.50, which were to expire on May 21.

The company has 181.4 million shares issued. At presstime, the shares were trading at $1.96. The shares have been trading in a 90¢-$2 range over the past 12 months.