Navigator, Chapleau identify tantalum target

Vancouver — Juniors Chapleau Resources (CHL-V) and Navigator Exploration (NVR-V) have discovered a third tantalum drill target at their jointly held Kougarok project in Alaska.

The 55-sq.-km property is in the north-central Seward Peninsula, 112 km northeast of Nome. Geologically, the property hosts a large magmatic-hydrothermal system that contains tantalum- and tin-mineralized greisens in a fluorine-lithium granite. The main mineralized system, dubbed the Main Plug, has been defined geologically and geochemically over a surface area measuring 1.2 by 1 km. Previous drill results suggest it is a flat-lying body of granite measuring 100-150 metres thick and that it lies 200-400 metres below surface.

This past summer, Navigator and Chapleau identified a tantalum prospect known as the Hill Top area, 500 metres east of the Main Plug. More recently, company geologists discovered an intrusive centre 3 km south of the Main Plug. It occupies the most elevated sector of the Kougarok Mountain Ridge and has been named the Real Top area. The prospect measures 1.5 by 1.5 km and, on surface, the partners have outlined numerous albite-zinnwaldite granitic dykes and plugs which intrude into local country rocks.

These dykes radiate away from the top of Kougarok Mountain, which could be an indication of fracturing above the granitic intrusive body. The dykes can be traced for several hundred metres along strike, though, owing to the snow cover, their precise dimensions could not be determined. The dykes are similar to the intrusions found at the Main Plug and Hill Top sites that host tantalum-tin mineralization. Chapleau has collected several samples which will be submitted for analysis.

If geochemical analysis of the samples are positive, the partners hope to begin drilling in January.

In the early 1980s, Anaconda Mineral Co. explored the Kougarok property for its tin potential. The company spent US$5.5 million on exploration, including 1,100 metres of bulldozer trenching and about 10,000 metres of diamond drilling. The effort was discontinued in the mid-1980s as a result of low tin prices. Previous trenching and diamond drilling suggest a resource of 217,000 tonnes grading 1.4% tin and 99,000 tonnes grading 2.3% tin.

Chapleau stands to earn a half-interest in the Kougarok property by spending US$1 million on or before Dec. 1, 2003. Chapleau can increase its stake to 60% by spending an additional US$500,000 by 2004. The underlying vendor is entitled to receive a 5% net smelter return royalty at the start of commercial production.