Esso Minerals Canada for sale

The assets of Esso Minerals Canada, recently put up for sale by parent Imperial Oil (N.M., Sept 26/88) include several interesting gold prospects.

In the Toodoggone area of northern British Columbia, Esso has an option to earn a 73% interest in a promising gold-silver property held by International Shasta Resources (VSE). Previous exploration on this property outlined reserves of 500,000 tons averaging 0.172 oz gold.

Drilling in 1987 by Esso returned several good results including a 30.8 ft intersection which graded 0.137 gold and 8.32 oz silver. A $625,000 exploration budget was earmarked by Esso Minerals for exploration work on the property during 1988.

Esso also holds a 50% interest in a joint venture with Tenajon Resources (VSE) on the Silver Butte property, located 25 km northwest of Stewart, B.C. Tenajon is the operator of a $1.8 million underground exploration program currently under way on the property.

A recent crosscut there intersected 33 ft grading 0.88 oz gold per ton (uncut). The current exploration program is expected to be complete by November.

Tenajon President Donald McLeod said that the decision by Imperial Oil to divest itself of Esso Minerals has no bearing in any way on the development program at the SB property. The joint venture agreement between the two companies remains in full force and all obligations must be adhered to by any new owners.

In northern Ontario, Esso’s holdings include a large block of land held jointly with Noranda (TSE) in the west Casa-Berardi area. The company’s main Ontario asset is probably its 24% interest in the Musselwhite gold property north of Pickle Lake. Reserves of six million tons grading 0.20 oz gold have been outlined there. Whether all of Esso Minerals’ assets will go to a single buyer or be sold in a piecemeal fashion is still uncertain. But one company already expressing an interest in acquiring Esso’s properties is Agip Resources Ltd, a wholly- owned affiliate of AGIP SpA of Italy. BP Canada Inc, which holds right of first refusal on Esso’s main asset, a 35% interest in the Selbaie Mine, cannot be ruled out as a potential buyer either.