Canadian Royalties expands zone at Expo-Ungava

Vancouver — Despite failing to replicate the spectacular grades cut in the discovery hole, Canadian Royalties (CZZ-V) has extended the high-grade nickel-copper-platinum-palladium-gold mineralization at the Expo-Ungava property in northern Quebec.

The latest drill results extend the Mesamax Discovery zone at least 60 metres along strike.

Three of the holes were drilled from the same site, some 35 metres east of the discovery hole, which yielded 49.3 metres grading 3.32% nickel, 4.01% copper and 0.13% cobalt, plus 0.26 gram gold, 1.52 grams platinum and 30.3 grams palladium per tonne (T.N.M., Nov 18-24/02).

Hole 23, drilled in a southwesterly direction and inclined at 45, returned 31.8 metres grading 1.92% nickel, 2.34% copper, 0.07% cobalt, 0.38 gram gold, 0.79 gram platinum and 4.89 grams palladium at a down-hole depth of 7 metres.

Intersecting the mineralized horizon on the same section but slightly deeper, hole 24 cut 26.4 metres grading 2.91% nickel, 2.57% copper, 0.11% cobalt, 0.2 gram gold, 1.09 gram platinum and 2.59 grams palladium at 23.5 metres down-hole.

Hole 25, which was drilled vertically and cut the zone at 27.9 metres down-hole, returned the best results: 3.23% nickel, 3.93% copper, 0.11% cobalt, 1.01 grams gold, 0.75 gram platinum and 1.64 grams palladium over 21.2 metres.

Moving 60 metres east of the discovery holes, hole 26 was drilled at 45 and intersected 17.7 metres of 1.23% nickel, 1% copper, 0.05% cobalt, 0.1 gram gold, 0.64 gram platinum and 3.13 grams palladium at 19 metres down-hole.

On the same section, hole 27 was drilled at 65 and returned 25.1 metres averaging 1.42% nickel, 1.95% copper, 0.06% cobalt, 0.06 gram gold, 0.89 gram platinum and 3.71 grams palladium at 17.6 metres down-hole.

Hole 28 was drilled vertically and cut 27.1 metre grading 1.1% nickel, 2.1% copper, 0.05% cobalt, 0.09 gram gold, 0.64 gram platinum and 6.61 grams palladium at 18.9 metres down-hole.

Fifteen metres farther east, holes 20 and 21 appear to mark the eastern limits of the zone, returning significantly lower values. Hole 20 returned 11.4 metres grading 0.76% nickel, 0.94% copper, 0.04% cobalt, 0.42% platinum, 1.88 grams palladium and 0.04 gram gold, whereas hole 21 yielded 12.2 metres of 0.71% nickel, 0.58% copper, 0.03% cobalt, 0.5 gram platinum, 1.87 grams palladium and 0.03 gram gold.

Moving 120 metres southwest of the discovery hole, holes 15 and 16 seem to mark the western limits of the discovery area. Drilled on the same site, the holes returned, respectively, 8.3 metres grading 0.47% nickel, 0.45% copper, 0.02% cobalt, 0.2 gram platinum, 1.01 grams palladium and 0.2 gram gold, and 9.2 metres of 0.43% nickel, 0.72% copper, 0.02% cobalt, 0.41 gram platinum, 1.77 grams palladium and 0.04 gram gold.

Results to date indicate that the high-grade pod consists of a broad zone of disseminated, net-textured and massive sulphides consisting of pyrrhotite, pentlandite and chalcopyrite in, or adjacent to, a pyroxenite. The zone is believed to be less than 180 metres long.

Canadian Royalties has earned a 70% interest in the property by spending $1.75 million over four years. It can increase this to 80% by completing a bankable feasibility study.

The property is 15 km south of Falconbridge‘s (FL-T) Raglan nickel-copper mine and hosts three mineralized structures: Expo, Cominga and Mesamax, all of which were discovered in the 1960s. Resources at Expo-Ungava are pegged at 17 million tonnes grading 0.6% nickel and 0.8% copper. Included is a higher-grade core of some 3 million tonnes grading 1% nickel and 1% copper.

Canadian Royalties intends to carry out definition diamond drilling on the Mesamax Discovery zone in 2003.