Engineering & Mining Journal

APR 2013

Engineering and Mining Journal - Whether the market is copper, gold, nickel, iron ore, lead/zinc, PGM, diamonds or other commodities, E&MJ takes the lead in projecting trends, following development and reporting on the most efficient operating pr

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REGIONAL NEWS - EXPLORATION ROUNDUP Hochschild Commits to Major Exploration Program in Mexico Solitario Exploration & Royalty Corp. has signed a binding letter of intent (LoI) with Minera Hochschild México, a 100%owned subsidiary of Hochschild Mining plc, on Solitario's 100%-owned Pachuca Norte silver-gold project in central Mexico. The Pachuca Norte project encompasses approximately 19,000 ha of mineral rights in and around the historic Pachuca silvergold mining district. Historic production from the district totals approximately 1.4 billion oz of silver and more than 7 million oz of gold, making it one of the largest silver-gold districts in the world. Per the terms of the binding LoI, Hochschild can earn a 51% interest in the project by spending a total of $10 million on exploration over a five-year period. The initial 12-month work program of $1.5 million is a firm commitment. Later optional commitments are $500,000 18 months from signing, $3 million 36 months from signing, and $5 million 60 months from signing. Hochschild will have the right to earn an additional 19% (total 70%) by completing a positive feasibility study for the project. Upon signing a definitive agreement, expected in early April 2013, Hochschild will become project manager and will have the right to terminate the agreement at any time following its firm initial work commitment. Newmont, from 2006–2008, and Buenaventura, from 2010–2011, conducted exploration programs on the Pachuca Norte property. Newmont identified 38 high-quality drill targets consisting of high-grade silver-gold veins that are distributed over a geographic area measuring 20 km by 10 km. Newmont drilled 19 holes totaling 7,873 m. Buenaventura expanded on Newmont's work and drilled 38 holes totaling 13,489 m. Hochschild has indicated that its initial 12-month work program will be focused upon testing a number of these already well-defined drill targets. (www.solitarioresources.com) Exploration Briefs Osisko Mining reports that new drilling at its Upper Beaver gold project in Kirkland Lake, Ontario, has led to the discovery of two new gold-copper zones. Osisko 38 E&MJ; • APRIL 2013 acquired the Upper Beaver project when in acquired Queenston mining in a transaction that was completed in December 2012. Step-out exploration drilling in the first quarter of 2013 intersected the two new discoveries, the East Basalt zone and the North Q zone, both occurring in mafic volcanic rocks adjacent to the Upper Beaver igneous complex. Four holes drilled in the East Basalt zone approximately 700 m north-east of the established Upper Beaver deposit intersected new copper-gold mineralization starting at 75 m below surface. The most significant result was from a hole that intersected an 18.1-m-thick continuous zone of gold and copper mineralization that assayed 9.3 g/mt gold and 1.7% copper, including an 11.1-m interval assaying 13.1 g/mt gold and 2.8% copper. In the North Q zone approximately 400 m northwest of the Upper Beaver deposit, two holes intersected multiple stringers of gold and copper mineralization approximately 200 m below surface. Significant intervals included 8 m of 3.2 g/mt gold and 0.6% copper, including 2 m of 11 g/mt gold and 1.6% copper; and 14 m of 1.84 g/mt gold and 0.3% copper, including 4 m of 4.4 g/mt gold and 0.75% copper over 4 m. Osisko's focus at Upper Beaver for 2013–2014 will be on the development of the 1,300-m exploration shaft, including engineering, design, and fabrication of the head frame and hoisting facilities budgeted at $70 million. The shaft collar has been established to a depth of 26 m, and exploration on the deposit continues with six drills. (www.osisko.com) Renaissance Minerals has announced a new, independent, JORC-compliant, indicated and inferred resource estimate of 15.6 million mt grading 2.4 g/mt gold, for 1.2 million oz of contained gold, for its 100%-owned Okvau gold deposit in eastern Cambodia. Approximately 93% of the resource is classified as indicated. The indicated component of the resource is above 300 m below surface, with a gold cut-off of 0.65 g/mt. The depth and geometry of the deposit make it amenable to open-pit mining. The Okvau resource estimate covers approximately 500 m of strike and 250 m of width of the mineralized vein system. The resource estimate is based on data from 90 diamond drill holes totaling 28,156 m. The deposit remains open to the northeast, southeast and at depth, with scope for further resource expansion. Renaissance has a goal of establishing a multi-million-oz gold project at Okvau and is currently undertaking a 25,000-m reverse circulation drilling program targeting high-priority prospects within close proximity of the deposit. The company currently has two reverse circulation rigs active and has recently completed a highly successful surface geochemical sampling program that generated multiple targets to drill test during the 2013 exploration field season. All of these targets are situated within 15 km of the Okvau gold deposit. (www.renaissanceminerals.com.au) North American Nickel is planning a 2013 summer drill campaign at its 100%-owned Maniitsoq nickel-copper-cobalt-platinum group metals project in southwest Greenland, where modeling of airborne and downhole EM data collected in 2012 has identified two particularly high-conductance targets. Fieldwork will begin in May, and drilling is scheduled to begin in June. A minimum of 3,000 m of drilling is planned. The P-63 target is located in the southern part of the 75-km-long by 15-km-wide Greenland norite belt along and near the southwest coast of Greenland, which is pack-ice-free year round. Modeling for P63 done by Condor Consulting of Denver, Colorado, USA, indicates that the conductor tops out 73 m below surface, is 14 m thick, has an initial strike length of 58 m, and dips to the northwest for 1,057 m. After completion of the first phase of drilling at P-63, the rig will be moved about 45 km to the northeast to continue delineation drilling at the adjacent Imiak Hill/Spotty Hill targets. Initial drilling at Imiak Hill will target a highly conductive, stepresponse-type EM anomaly detected in a hole drilled by North American Nickel in 2012. The 2013 drilling program will begin by testing this anomaly and then continue testing the mineralized trend on 25- to 50-m centers. www.e-mj.com

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