North Atlantic renews drilling in western Mali

Drilling by North Atlantic Nickel (NAC-T) is testing the limits of three gold prospects at the Kantela gold project in western Mali.

The program will entail 4,340 metres in 60 reverse-circulation holes. None of the holes will be longer than 100 metres, and a third will be collared over geochemical anomalies outlined along strike and outside of Zones 1, 2 and 3.

Previous drilling at Zone 1 returned up to 6.51 grams gold per tonne over 6 metres, whereas up to 0.62 gram over 38 metres was yielded from Zone 2. Drilling at Zone 3 cut upwards of 10 metres running 1.78 grams.

Once the program is complete, the rig will be moved 10 km to the southeast to test the adjoining Diokeba property. A total of 3,000 metres in 60 air-core holes is planned, none of which will extend greater than 50 metres in length.

The holes will be collared on three continuous fences to test two areas in which anomalous gold has been assayed in soil and termite mounds. Artisanal workings are noted.

The Kantela property adjoins the Sadiola permit, home to the open-pit gold mine of the same name. Ownership in Sadiola is divided among Anglogold (AU-N), with 38%, Iamgold (IMG-T), with 38%, the Malian government, with 18%, and the International Finance Corp., with 6%.

North Atlantic also has properties in the southern part of Mali’s Birimian shield, an area that is seeing considerable work. At one property, Sinzeni, 50 km south of Morila, a southwest-trending magnetic anomaly has been interpreted as being a splay from the regional shear zone that hosts the producing Morila gold deposit of Anglogold and Randgold Resources (GOLD-Q), each of which own a 40% stake. The remaining interest is held by the government.