TSX Venture falls, May 27-31: Great Bear, GoldON, ML Gold

A high-grade gold discovery called the Bear–Rimini zone at Great Bear Resources’ wholly owned Dixie project in the Red Lake district of Ontario drove up the company’s shares 91¢ to $3.84. Drill hole 11 returned 194.21 grams gold per tonne over 2 metres, including 759.38 grams gold over 1 metre starting from 58 metres downhole, and 12.33 grams gold over 14 metres, including 30.90 grams gold over 5 metres from 75 metres downhole. The Bear–Rimini zone is 2.5 km northwest of the project’s Hinge zone. The company has confirmed gold mineralization at the Dixie project along a 2.3 km strike of a 10 km target. Mining executive Rob McEwen owns 14% of the junior.

GoldON Resources signed an option agreement to earn an initial 60% interest and subsequent 100% interest in Great Bear Resources’ West Madsen gold property in Ontario’s Red Lake district. The property is made up of two contiguous claim blocks — blocks A and B — each 6 by 3 km for a total of 38.6 square kilometres. Block A is contiguous with Pure Gold’s Madsen project, which hosts two historic gold mines: Madsen and Starratt Olsen. Great Bear will keep a 2.5% net smelter return royalty after GoldOn finishes the initial 60% earn-in, and GoldOn has the right to buy back 1% of the royalty for $500,000 before any production decision. In other news, the junior arranged a non-brokered private placement of 700,000 common shares at 45¢ per share and 400,000 flow-through common shares at 50¢ per share with qualified investors to raise $515,000, which will help fund exploration and development work. GoldON’s shares jumped 24¢ to 60¢ apiece.

Shares of ML Gold climbed 15¢ to 75¢ on news that the company plans to update a 2013 preliminary economic assessment of its Block 103 iron ore project in the Labrador Trough of Newfoundland and Labrador. “Given the positive outlook and price of iron ore, and the attractive currency exchange rate for Canadian producers, the company is currently communicating with engineering firms” to update the study, the company said. The 2013 study was based on a resource estimate of 7.2 billion tonnes at 29.2% total iron, and premium iron ore pellet production. Metallurgical test results showed a 69.5% iron concentrate, 67% premium pellet product and a low strip ratio of 0.4 to 1. About $38 million has been invested in the project to date. Block 103 is 30 km northwest of Schefferville, Quebec.