Exploration drilling at the Roros zinc project in central Norway has returned mixed results for
The Vancouver-based company sank 21 shallow holes totalling 1,788 metres in three targets: Tjonnvollmyran, Klinkenberg and Rosjoen. All were discovered last year during geophysical and soil geochemical surveys.
At Tjonnvollmyran, six widely spaced holes revealed 3-to-13-metre-thick sections of semi-massive sulphides over a strike length of 800 metres and a downdip depth of 400 metres. However, the highest grade topped a mere 2.8% zinc-equivalent over 1.4 metres.
Despite the low-grade results, Crew is encouraged by the zoned nature of mineralization as this is typical of massive sulphide deposits.
In the Klinkenberg area, near a historic copper mine, Crew drilled nine holes. Here, grades were high, but over narrow widths: hole 3 averaged 14.6% zinc and 0.6% copper, plus 30 grams silver per tonne, over 0.8 metre, starting at a down-hole depth of 13.8 metres, whereas hole 5 averaged 2.2% zinc, 1.3% copper from 44.2 to 44.7 metres, 6.6% zinc and 1.7% copper from 45.5 to 46 metres and 9.2% zinc, 0.9% copper, 31 grams silver and 0.6 gram gold from 47.2 to 47.4 metres. Additionally, a copper-rich interval running 5% of the red metal, plus 0.6% zinc, was intersected above the silver zone.
The high-grade zinc mineralization outcrops at surface over a strike length of 200 metres before disappearing below overburden for another 270 metres. Some of the hidden portion can be followed in old workings; the rest, by drilling.
The remaining holes of the program cut several zones of disseminated zinc and copper sulphides in the Rosjoen area. The mineralization is hosted by greenschists and averaged about 2 metres in thickness. Assays are pending.
Crew has also outlined 40 new targets through mapping, soil geochemistry and ground geophysics. The most promising area lies north of the Killingdal trend, which is named after the historic mine at its southern end. The mine cranked out 3 million tonnes of zinc-copper ore before shutting down in 1977; it was the last to operate in the district.
Copper has been mined in the Roros district for more than three centuries. Although zinc-rich portions were known to occur in the mines, they were avoided ostensibly on account of poor flotation methods.
Exploration will start again in the 2002 field season.
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