The Cranbrook, B.C.-based company holds a 100% interest in more than 20 base and precious metal properties in western Canada. Several of these properties are under option to other companies, including Kennecott Canada Exploration (a division of London-based
In southeastern British Columbia, Eagle Plains has optioned its Greenland Creek property to Kennecott Canada, which stands to earn a 60% interest by spending $2,000,000 on exploration and making cash payments of $310,000 to Eagle Plains over four years.
The Greenland Creek property consists of 247 claims covering 15,000 acres in an area 30 km north of Kimberly in southeastern British Columbia. Initial drilling was carried out in 1996 by the Eagle Plains/ Miner River joint-venture (the two companies have since merged) and consisted of five holes totalling 550 metres. Drilling in November 1997 consisted of seven shallow holes comprising 600 metres. All seven holes encountered base metal mineralization and alteration assemblages associated with sedimentary exhalitive deposits. Numerous thin stratabound sulphide bands were intersected. The mineralization remains open downdip and along strike.
In 1998, Eagle Plains completed a $70,000 soil geochemical survey over a portion of the property, with encouraging results. After signing the option agreement in 1999, Kennecott completed a $225,000 program of mapping and soil geochemics; more recently, it kicked off a 600-metre diamond drilling campaign, the purpose of which is to test a widespread zinc-in-soil geochemical anomaly in a 3,000-by-1,000-metre area. The anomaly hosts values in excess of 700 parts per million zinc.
Eagle Plains recently acquired the Acacia property, 45 km northeast of Kamloops, B.C. The 4,800-ha claim group covers a stratigraphic package hosting several past-producing base and precious metal mines. Previous work indicates that the Acacia property hosts volcanogenic massive sulphide (VMS) mineralization in a metasedimetnary and metavolcanic package. Mineralization is believed to be the strike extension of the past-producing Rea Gold deposit, about 1 km north of the northern claim boundary. The Rea deposit had a reserve of 376,000 tonnes grading 6.1 grams gold and 69.4 grams silver per tonne, plus 0.33% copper, 2.2% lead and 2.3% zinc, hosted in two VMS lenses.
Diamond drilling on the Acacia property by Esso Minerals in 1987 intersected massive-sulphide-type mineralization, including a 2.4-metre intersection assaying 10.6 grams gold, 335.3 grams silver, 3.13% zinc and 0.55% copper.
Mineralization on the Acacia property occurs in two tabular, barite-rich horizons hosted in quartz-talc-sericite schists. The southern part of the property covers eight known mineral occurrences, including the historic Acacia showing. Mineralization includes stratiform massive sulphides and remobilized epigenetic sulphide veins. Grab samples of massive sulphides in the area of the Acacia showing returned values of up to 19.2% zinc.
The last work program performed on the showing was performed in 1989 by Esso Minerals. The company carried out a soil geochemical program, as well as a very-low-frequency electromagnetic (EM) survey. The showing was never drill-tested. Eagle Plains intends to perform an initial program of geological mapping, prospecting and soil geochemisty once the relevant data have been compiled.
Meanwhile, Eagle Plains has begun diamond drilling at its wholly owned Coyote Creek property, 50 km northeast of Cranbrook. The road-accessible property covers 9,800 acres and hosts highly anomalous zinc geochemical values. Previous stream-sediment analysis returned values ranging from 380 to as high as 5,500 ppm zinc. Follow-up exploration identified a metal-rich shale package that extends throughout the property area. So far, the shale has not been drill-tested, but Eagle Plains intends to drill two holes totalling 300 metres.
In early June, Rio Algom commenced a 2,000-metre program of diamond drilling on Eagle Plains’ South Findlay property, 35 km northwest of Kimberly. The 16,450-acre South Findlay property is contiguous with Greenland Creek claims, and Rio Algom has recently been focusing its attention on the Lower-Middle Aldredge formation contact. The contact represents the approximate stratigraphic location of the Sullivan deposit.
In early 1999, Eagle Plains entered into an agreement with Rio Algom Exploration whereby the latter stands to earn a 60% interest in the property by spending $2 million on exploration and paying $310,000 in cash to Eagle Plains over four years. Kennecott originally optioned the property in 1996, and in 1997 and 1998 it spent $1.3 million on exploration, including four drill holes totalling 1,570 metres. Last year, Rio Algom carried out a sampling and geological mapping program that located the stratabound fragmental unit that was interpreted to be the time-stratigraphic equivalent of the Sullivan deposit stratigraphy.
Eagle Plains believes that its wholly owned 12,600-acre North Findlay property, which is contiguous with the South Findlay claims, still shows potential for hosting sedex-type base metal mineralization. In 1998, Kennecott Canada Exploration drilled a single hole and intersected significant base metal enrichment over 105.2 metres. Within this interval, 46 individual thin stratabound mineralized horizons were intersected. In late spring of 1999, Eagle Plains entered into an agreement with Billiton Metals Canada whereby Billiton could earn a 50% interest in the property by spending $2 million on exploration over four years. As part of this agreement, Eagle Plains completed a $400,000 exploration program in 1999, which included 1,617 metres of drilling in six holes, testing stratigraphy over a 5-km strike length. The results were encouraging; however, in March, Billiton elected not to proceed with its option.
On the 11,200-acre Bootleg property, 1.5 km west of Kimberly, Eagle Plains inked a deal with Rio Algom. According to the deal, Rio Algom can earn a 60% stake in the property by spending $2 million on exploration and paying $310,000 in cash to the company over four years.
Rio Algom has indicated it will carry out geological mapping on the property, possibly followed by a single drill hole to test the Sullivan time horizon.
Eagle Plains holds a 100% interest in several other properties in the province, including those known as Kokanee Creek, St. Mary, and Hot Punch.
The 3,645-acre Kokanee Creek property, near Nelson, shows potential for hosting Britannia-type (roof-pendant) mineralization. The property hosts a 500-by-500-metre gold-silver-lead-zinc soil geochemical anomaly that is open in all directions. A first phase, 5-hole drill program, completed in February and March of 1997, resulted in the discovery of near-surface gold mineralization. Hole 2 returned 26.11 grams gold per tonne over 0.7 metre and 13.52 grams gold over 1.4 metres. Field work in 1997 expanded the zone to the north, south and west. Eagle Plains is currently seeking a joint-venture partner to assist in ongoing exploration.
The St. Mary claim group comprises 1,336 acres in an area 45 km from Kimberly. Eagle Plains identified a prominent EM conductor on the property, which had not been explored since 1996.
The Hot Punch property, 30 km west of Invermere, is a historic producer. Hot Punch mineralization was first discovered in 1899, and three separate adits and two small shafts were driven on the vein system between 1908 and 1926. A fourth adit was apparently developed in waste. A total of 74 tonnes of ore was mined, yielding 108,582 grams silver, 27,268 kg lead, 904 kg zinc and 62 grams gold.
Geochemical and geophysical work carried out by Eagle Plains in 1996 resulted in the definition of mineralization over a strike length of 600 metres. The property is described as “drill-ready.”
Meanwhile, in the Yukon, Eagle Plains holds an interest in the McQuesten property, formerly known as Wayne. The 1,450-acre property is about 40 km northeast of Mayo. McQuesten contains a broad, east-west-trending zone of skarn and replacement-style mineralization in a sequence of altered sedimentary rocks intruded by narrow felsic sills. Reverse-circulation drilling by Eagle Plains in 1997 yielded encouraging results, including 21.3 metres grading 3.23 grams gold and 35.3 metres grading 1.77 grams gold.
In early April of this year, NovaGold entered into an agreement with
NovaGold purchased the right to earn a 70% interest in Eagle Plains’ McQuesten property from Viceroy Resources in 1999 by agreeing to spend $1 million in exploration and cash payments totalling $320,000.
The 3,000-acre Fire and Ice properties, 40 km south of Ross River, in southern Yukon, overlie rocks from the same volcanic belt that hosts the Wolf deposit, owned jointly by
The wholly owned 1,200-acre Dragon Lake property is 85 km northeast of Ross River, Y.T. The project targets skarn-replacement gold mineralization associated with Tombstone-Suite intrusives and surrounding sediments. Soil geochemical sampling and limited trenching have been carried out by Eagle Plains since 1996. Last year, the company conducted a $100,000 program of diamond drilling and intersected skarn mineralization, with erratic gold values grading up to 3.66 grams per tonne over 1.2 metres.
Eagle Plains’ wholly owned St. Cyr property is in the south-central Yukon, about 37 km southeast of Ross River. The 2,800-acre property is staked over stratigraphy that is favourable for hosting VMS mineralization. The claims cover prominent copper-zinc-silver soil geochemical anomalies and lead-zinc-barium stream-sediment anomalies. Work by Eagle Plains in 1998-99 included geologic mapping, as well as rock and soil sampling.
In the Northwest Territories, 170 km west of Norman Wells, Eagle Plains holds the Gayna River property. The 2,500-acre project contains carbonate-hosted silver-lead-zinc mineralization outlined by Rio Tinto during the mid-1970s. Rio Tinto completed 27,000 metres of diamond drilling and calculated reserves of about 50 million tonnes grading 4.7% zinc from numerous individual deposits. Eagle Plains intends to complete a thorough compilation of all existing data. Following this, the company will begin an induced-polarization survey over favourable stratigraphy to outline drill targets.
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