VANCOUVER– Looking to increase resources at its Hackett River project near Bathurst Inlet, Nunavut, Sabina Silver (SBB-V, SBBFF-O) has been drilling the Jo zone and getting strong results.
The best of the batch, hole 19, cut 9 metres grading 26.2% zinc, 457 grams silver per tonne, 0.13% copper, 2.51% lead and 0.12 gram gold starting 62 metres down-hole. Two other holes, 6 and 25, also returned decent mineralization.
Hole 6, for example, hit 8.57% zinc, 436 grams silver, 0.26% copper, 1.41% lead and 0.44 gram gold starting at a down-hole depth of 25 metres.
All told, Sabina drilled 28 holes or 5,408 metres at winter-only drill targets. Sabina only included results from the three holes in its press release.
The significance of the results to the Hackett River project, Sabina says, is that they show Jo’s high-grade potential in an area that has thus far not been included in a resource estimate.
Sabina pegs Hackett River at 43.4 million indicated tonnes grading 144 grams silver, 4.65% zinc, 0.42% copper, 0.64% lead and 0.3 gram gold.
In a 2007 scoping study, Sabina proposed a 10,000-tonne-per-day mine that would cost $911 million to build. Based on US$8.69-peroz. silver, US72¢-per-lb. zinc, US$1.35-per-lb. copper, US39¢- per-lb. lead and US$522.50-per-oz. gold, the project returned a net present value of $345 million, discounted at 8% and an internal rate of return of 20.6%.
The project would entail simultaneous open-pit and underground mining. Given the project’s remoteness, the plan considered construction of a 105-km road from the property to Bathurst Inlet and a port facility there.
Concentrate would be shipped to facilities in Europe during the ice-free Arctic summer.
On news of the drill results, Sabina gained 6¢ to close at 99¢.
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