Newfoundland exploration surge

Largely bypassed in recent years, the Province of Newfoundland is witnessing quite an exploration boom these days, The Northern Miner gathers.

Three years ago saw less than $10 million spent on mineral exploration. Last year the figure rose to around $31 million while this year will see at least $40 million spent. And with the tempo rising, 1989 could see exploration expenditures in excess of $50 million.

One of the biggest players is Noranda Exploration, which has 15 diamond dril ls at work, an on-site staff of 90 and a 1988 budget of $15-16 million.

There are believed to be over 200 individual active claim holders, currently employing at least another 15 diamond drills. These include Falconbridge, Lacana (Corona), Esso Minerals, BP Canada, Inco Gold, Rio Algom, Teck Corp., Dolphin Explorations, Equity Silver and Bitech Energy Resources.