U.S. REPORT Amax suspends deep drilling at Robertson

Unable to find the deep-seated gold deposits it had hoped to intersect at the Robertson property in northern Nevada, Amax Gold (NYSE) has suspended its deep drilling program in favor of shallow drilling. Amax, while earning a 70% interest in the property from partner Coral Gold (TSE), will now focus on extending the heap leach potential of the once-productive gold mine. Since shifting to shallow drilling, Amax says it has completed 20 holes containing widespread mineralization grading 0.01-0.02 oz. gold per ton. Drilling will continue with the intent of finding pockets of higher-grade mineralization, the company says.

Coral suspended mining operations at the Robertson property in 1989 due to lower than expected grades, high stripping ratios and other problems. To revive the mine, Amax has agreed to spend US$11.5 million on a 4-phase exploration and development program, in exchange for a controlling interest.