Dynacor Mines sees depth potential at Siscoe

Drilling by Dynacor Mines (DYN-M) has uncovered gold mineralization at depth at the company’s Siscoe project in Quebec’s Val d’Or camp.

The $1.2-million, 13,000-metre drill program, which was launched last September, has targeted zones beneath, and adjacent to, the past-producing Siscoe gold mine, which was previously mined to a maximum depth of 755 metres.

So far, the most significant results are in hole 9, collared some 450 metres northwest of the old mine shaft along the western extension of the Siscoe stock. Hole 9 intersected 1.3 metres (from 819 metres) grading 50.35 grams gold per tonne in a shear vein, 3.5 metres (from 863.9 metres) of 5.01 grams gold in quartz-chlorite veins and 0.7 metre (from 876 metres) of 17.52 grams gold in a shear vein.

The quartz-diorite Siscoe stock is about 1,000 metres wide from east to west, about 650 metres wide from north to south, and plunges strongly to the west. The 886,000 oz. gold mined at Siscoe from 1929 to 1949 was contained in quartz-tourmaline veins.

Meanwhile, in the Ayacucho department of southwestern Peru, Dynacor’s Acari processing plant recorded its first gold pour in February. The company expects to produce at least 5,000 oz. gold in 1998 and plans to expand the plant’s 60-ton-per-day capacity over the next several years.

Some 75% of the ore processed at the plant is bought from outside sources while the remainder is derived from bulk samples taken from an exploration program being carried out by Dynacor on gold-bearing veins at the Acari property.

Dynacor has acquired a 60% net profits interest in Acari from local vendors by spending US$352,000 building a mill. Dynacor has paid US$470,000 for a 25% interest in the Acari mill and in one of five mining concessions. The company can earn a 25% interest in four of the five mining concessions by paying US$500,000, after which a joint venture will be formed between Dynacor and the local vendors. Dynacor will then have the right to boost its stake, in stages, up to 80% by increasing both Acari’s mill capacity and the project’s proven reserves.

For the year ended Dec. 31, Dynacor posted a net loss of $2.3 million (or 16 cents per share) on no revenue, compared with a net loss of $2.1 million (18 cents per share) on no revenue during 1996. At year-end, the company had a deficit of $18.4 million (including deferred exploration expenditures).