Cathedral Gold’s properties previously held by Imperial

Several advanced-stage gold projects formerly held by Imperial Metals have been spun off into a separate company called Cathedral Gold Corp. (N.M., Aug 3/87).

The new precious metals entity is now trading on the Toronto Stock Exchange after completing a $1.5- million equity offering at $3 per share. Imperial currently has a 24.5% equity interest in Cathedral.

Besides that offering, Cathedral raised $2.3 million in flow-through funds from mvp Exploration (1987) at $4.50 per share. Ian McAvity, president of mvp Capital Corp. is on Cathedral’s board. Cathedral President Pierre Lebel says additional flow-through funding will be considered depending on the premium offered.

Major programs are planned on several properties this year including the Cunningham Creek project near Barkerville, B.C. A 7,000-ft diamond drilling program is expected to begin this month, says Cathedral. Three gold-bearing veins were outlined by previous exploration work and reserves in one of these, the Shasta vein, total 36,450 tons grading 0.36 oz gold and 0.48 oz silver above the 200-ft level.

The vein has been tested to a depth of 600 ft and the adjacent 605 vein returned drill results up to 0.8 oz gold over 7.5 ft. The Cariboo- Hudson vein, although partially mined out, is thought to extend below the old workings.

Drilling is under way at the Takla Rainbow project 90 miles northeast of Smithers, B.C. Road access has been completed and over 11,000 ft of diamond drilling. The various ore structures are still open to depth and have been traced for 2,600 ft along strike. Deeper drilling is under way to assess the depth potential.

Past programs have established an average grade of 0.31 oz gold across 5.0 ft. The original budget for 13,000 ft of drilling will be expanded to include another 5,000 ft. “The results justify future drilling to further test this large anomalous trend,” says Cathedral which has a 100% interest in the project.

Lord River Gold Mines, a Teck affiliate, has commenced an underground program at the Pellaire project 120 miles north of Vancouver which is 50% owned by Cathedral. The program’s objective is to develop additional reserves at the 7,300-ft level about 150 ft downdip from the No 4 vein where an oreshoot averaged 1.5 oz gold across 4.3 ft along a strike length of 194 ft.

Cathedral is operator for the Axelgold property in north-central, B.C., which falls under an option agreement with Equinox Resources. An 8-hole, 2,385-ft drill program was completed this year on several gold geochemical anomalies associated with a large pyritic syenite intrusive which has a strike length of over a mile. The main intrusive body was tested over a strike length of 2,000 ft and gold values were noted in stockwork type veins. A number of conductors were explained by graphitic intersections.

The company has optioned its Addington gold property northwest of Kingston, Ont., to Sands Minerals Corp. The latter has committed to spend $500,000 on the property by March 1, 1988, and a further $1.5 million the following year. Sands can ultimately earn a 49% interest for $4 million plus a feasibility study and the company will be operator during the option period.

Past work has indicated geological reserves of 785,000 tons grading 0.13 oz gold per ton along a major geological contact. The joint venture feels there is good potential for a large- tonnage deposit grading between 0.15 and 0.17 oz gold per ton.