De Beers expands Ontario search

De Beers Canada Exploration has signed an exploration agreement with Spider Resources (SPQ-V) and partner KWG Resources on a piece of ground covering 13,000 sq. km in the James Bay Lowlands of northern Ontario.

The area, known as the Spider 3 project, was explored for its diamond potential by Spider Resources and KWG from 1995 to 1997. The pair spent $1.4 million on a regional program of mapping, sampling and aeromagnetic geophysical surveying.

De Beers Canada, a subsidiary of De Beers Consolidated Mines (DBRSY-Q), signed a confidentiality agreement with the two juniors in April 2000 and undertook a due diligence investigation that revealed 20 high-priority targets. The three parties then proceeded to stake those targets jointly.

De Beers can earn an initial half-interest in the claims by spending $1.5 million on exploration over two years. The major can boost its interest to 60% if it elects to spend an additional $4 million over the following four years.

Separate from the De Beers joint venture, Spider and KWG have staked 55 claims (3,488 sq. km) that cover a nickel-copper-platinum group metal target.

In the meantime, Spider and KWG are continuing their winter 2001 drilling program on the Kyle Lake 3 kimberlite, 120 km west of the Victor pipe, the site of an extensive bulk-sampling program undertaken by De Beers.

The drilling is targeting the kimberlite’s westernmost extremity and entails five of six holes totalling about 1,500 metres. Since its initial discovery in 1995, Spider and KWG have tested the Kyle Lake 3 body with a total of 12 holes, representing 2,400 metres of drilling. To date, the kimberlite has yielded 1,189 microdiamonds and 67 macros from a total of 1.74 tonnes of sample material. (A macro is defined as exceeding 0.5 mm in at least one dimension.)

The Kyle Lake 3 body is believed to be a complex, multi-phased diatreme intrusion, with numerous dykes emanating from all directions. One particular east-west dyke has been shown to have an elevated diamond count, containing 40% of the total macros. It extends 450 metres along strike and is 4-6 metres thick.

Kyle Lake 3 is one of five deep-lying intrusive bodies, known as the Kyle Lake series, that occur west of the Winisk River fault in the James Bay Lowlands area. The bodies are estimated to be Proterozoic in age, or 1.1 billion years old.

Recent studies by De Beers on a small representative sample of 111 macros recovered from Kyle Lake 1 indicated a wide variation in colour, morphology, resorption and nitrogen content. The results support the theory that Kyle Lake 1 is a multi-phase kimberlite.

The diamonds that were tested ranged in size from 0.8 mm to more than 2 mm. They are dominantly octahedral in morphology, with minor resorption. About 64% of the diamonds are colourless, while a smaller portion are yellow-brown stones. Very-low-nitrogen and nitrogen-free diamonds are most common. The abundance of these two types is consistent with a peridotitic mantle source, with minor sampling of eclogitic material.

The Kyle Lake 1 body, situated 100 km southwest of the Attawapiskat cluster of kimberlites, was discovered in 1994. The discovery was based on data derived from aeromagnetic surveys and structural analysis. Kyle Lake 1 is covered by up to 135 metres of Paleozoic sediments and overburden. Spider and KWG estimate that Kyle Lake 1 has a surface area of 2.6 ha and contains some 14.5 million tonnes of kimberlite to the 510-metre level, based on 18 drill holes. In all, 6.2 tonnes of sampled core yielded 3,602 micros and 793 macros for a combined total weight of 3.71 carats.

Spider holds a 48.82% interest in the Kyle Lake project, with 51.18% held by KWG.

Another area of focus for diamond exploration in Ontario is Wawa. Pele Mountain Resources (YPN-V) recently released results from mini-bulk sampling on the Destiny showing at its Festival property, 25 km north of the town.

A 7.5-tonne sample of weathered and fresh xenolith-bearing lamprophyre yielded just 55 macros ranging in size from 0.51 to 2.65 mm. The largest recovered stone measured 2.65 by 2.39 by 2.09 mm. Kennecott Canada Exploration, a division of Rio Tinto (RTP-N), agreed to pay the $25,000 cost of processing the bulk sample at Lakefield Research in return for the exclusive 60-day right to negotiate a joint venture partnership.

The Destiny showing occurs along an east-west-striking linear fault that is projected to continue for 1 km along strike. Previous sampling of weathered residue from the outcrop area yielded 95 micros and 10 macros from 695 kg of material. A fresh hard-rock sample weighing 53 kg returned a single micro.

To date, Pele has discovered three diamond-bearing lamprophyre zones at the Festival property.

A new discovery area on the GC property, north of Wawa, has returned encouraging diamond counts for Band-Ore Resources (BAN-T). Three new samples were collected from an area where an angular boulder of diatreme breccia yielded 128 micros in a 16-kg grab sample. The new samples, each of which weighed 16 kg, returned a total of 823 micros and 25 macros weighing 0.044 carat. The largest stone recovered was a clear-yellow fragment measuring 1.04 by 0.86 by 0.62 mm.

Two of the samples reportedly came from large angular boulders consisting of diatreme breccia. The diatreme breccia is 20-40% xenolith fragments set in a fine-grained dark green matrix. One boulder sample contained 474 micros and 13 macros, whereas the other boulder sample had 309 micros and 11 macros. The third sample, consisting of weathered outcrop, yielded 40 micros and a single macro.

The outcrop sample and boulders lie within 150 metres of each other and are situated 3 km from the original GQ discovery. The junior has identified five major zones of heterolithic breccia in outcropping areas. Two of the breccia zones have been traced for more than 1.6 km in length, with widths varying from 1.5 to more than 50 metres.

During the summer and fall of last year, Band-Ore sampled more than 100 surface showings to collect 177 samples weighing a total of 5.3 tonnes. Results from 52 of the samples have been received, and diamonds have been found in 30 of these. Two of the more significant results included the recovery of 75 micros and three macros from a 24-kg sample of heterolithic breccia taken 600 metres north of the original discovery area. A second 24-kg sample, collected 1,200 metres northwest of the original discovery, returned 123 micros and three macros. Although most of these stones were white, two of the macros and 16 of the micros were described as pink. Another 40 of the stones were rose, amber, green or yellow.

The original discovery showing yielded 35 micros and l0 macros from a 63.4-kg sample. Band-Ore will be back in the field in early spring to follow-up on sampling results.

Dumont Nickel (DNI-V), which is exploring for diamonds in Torngat, Que., and in the Wawa area, acquired 20 claims covering 13.6 sq. km near Attawapiskat, Ont. They were selected to cover magnetic anomalies near De Beers’ Victor pipe.

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