Wolfden cuts high grade at East Bay

Vancouver — The first four holes of an ongoing, 10,000-metre drill program on the East Bay property in northwestern Ontario have returned encouraging values.

Partners Wolfden Resources (YWO-V) and Placer Dome (PDG-T) have completed 23 holes, 19 of which targeted the Gaz altered zone over a strike length of 350 metres. The best values came from holes 3 and 4, which yielded 11.61 grams gold over 6.7 metres and 15.32 grams gold over 11 metres, respectively.

The second hole was collared 50 metres east of hole 4 and 100 metres east of hole 3, yielding up to 9.17 gram gold over 1.4 metre, whereas the first hole was drilled west of the zone and failed to return any significant values.

The prospect forms part of the East Bay deformation zone, which hosts ultramafic rocks similar to those that host the producing Campbell and Red Lake mines. Mineralization consists of pyrite, pyrrhotite, arsenopyrite and native gold in a zone marked by pervasive silicification and biotite-chlorite alteration.

Wolfden can earn a half-interest in the property by spending $2 million over three years.

Placer has also elected to pick up where Australian miner AurionGold left off on Fronteer Development Group‘s (FRG-V) Balmer, Portage and Sandy Point properties in the Red Lake-Birch Uchi belt of northwestern Ontario.

Under the existing joint-venture agreement with AurionGold (now a subsidiary of Placer), the major has exercised its option to earn a 65% interest in the properties by spending $2.5 million. Placer can pick up an additional 10% by completing a bankable feasibility study, arranging project debt financing and providing a loan to Fronteer for project financing.

At the Monument Bay property in Manitoba, Wolfden’s partner, Bema Gold (BGO-T), has cut 180.7 grams gold over 1 metre at the recently discovered Twin Lakes West zone. So far, 12 holes have been drilled, and results for eight have been received. Highlights include the following:

r Hole 101 — 11.01 grams gold over 1.3 metres at a down-hole depth of 311.2 metres.

r Hole 105 — 180.7 grams gold over 1 metre from 288.2 metres down-hole.

r Hole 106 — 18.8 grams gold over 1.3 metres from 435.6 metres down-hole.

r Hole 107 — 23.6 grams gold over 1.6 metres from 265.6 metres down-hole.

r Hole 108 — 8.45 grams gold over 1.4 metres from 266.4 metres down-hole.

Based on the latest results, the Twin Lakes West C zone ore shoot extends for 170 metres along strike to a vertical depth of 50-130 metres and remains open. Drilling on the Twin Lake West zone continues as crews further define the C zone.

The three horizons that host the A, B and C zones have been outlined over a strike length of 3.5 km. Previous work identified a high-grade resource of 300,000 oz. gold with an average grade of 18.5 grams gold at the Twin Lake zone.

Monument Bay was first explored by Noranda (NRD-T) in the late 1980s; it was then shuffled off to various companies before winding up in Wolfden’s hands. Bema joined the project last year and can earn up to a 70% stake by spending $6 million on exploration over three years, paying $225,000 and issuing 150,000 shares.

Bema can recoup 35% of the money spent on exploration (to a maximum of $400,000 annually) in northeastern Manitoba via the provincial government’s Mineral Exploration Assistance Program. The deal with Bema was signed as the Canadian exploration arm of Newmont Mining (NEM-N) cancelled a back-in right at Monument Bay. The back-in right was inherited via Newmont’s takeover of Battle Mountain Gold, one of the previous owners.

In return for the cancellation, a unit of Newmont will be paid $500,000 if a feasibility study is tabled and $500,000 more if commercial production follows. It also retains a net smelter return royalty.

Gold mineralization is associated with narrow quartz veins and zones of alteration in the 30-km-long Twin Lakes-Monument Bay deformation zone. The structure cuts through a sequence of overturned volcanic and sedimentary rocks of the Stull Lake greenstone belt. Noranda, the original discoverer and only other company besides Wolfden to sink holes on the property, outlined four zones of mineralization. Results from both companies are variable, running as high as 107 grams per tonne over a few metres.

Bema has completed its obligations to earn a 51% interest in the property and notified Wolfden that it has exercised the option to earn another 19% interest by spending $3 million.

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