EXPLORING FOR DIAMONDS AND THE NORTH — Hackett River gets

A second hard look is being given to the Hackett River mineral belt about 200 km east of Metall Mining’s (TSE) Izok Lake project in the Northwest Territories. Inactive until recently, the belt has been known for its base metals since the late 1960s. Today, there is increasing interest in gold and, especially, diamonds.

Several airborne anomalies suggesting kimberlite pipes have been identified; and while kimberlite pipes only too rarely mean commercial deposits, it is unusual to find the gems in any other kind of environment. Etruscan Enterprises (VSE) and its predecessors acquired the first mineral leases at Hackett River in 1966. Known as Bathurst Norsemines until 1986, the company outlined major tonnages of zinc-copper-precious metals mineralization, all prior to 1981. The property was then under option to Cominco (TSE); it is now jointly owned, with Etruscan, the operator, holding 46.4%, and Cominco the balance. Etruscan is subsequently required to spend at least $400,000 annually on the property and have its programs vetted by Cominco.

Noranda (TSE) owns the Musk deposit (65 km southeast of Etruscan), and Westmin (TSE) the Yava deposit (half-way between Etruscan and Musk). In the early 1980s, work ceased on Musk where reserves are 351,000 tonnes grading 10.3% zinc, 1.2% copper, 1.4% lead, plus 1.7 grams gold and 373 grams silver per tonne.

Drilling on Yava in the early 1970s indicated 1.1 million tonnes grading 5% zinc and comparable values to the Musk in the remaining suite of metals. Both deposits are volcanics-hosted massive sulphides. No work is planned on either property in the immediate future.

Homestake Mining (NYSE) and joint-venture partner Kerr-McGee (NYSE) have released little data on their gold showings. Goose Lake and nearby Boot Lake deposits are recent finds, and the latest figures for George Lake (T.N.M. May 31/93) enumerate an inventory of 3.1 million tonnes grading 8.6 grams gold per tonne. George Lake is 30 km northeast of Etruscan and two other showings are 90 km due east. Like Echo Bay’s Lupin mine, Homestake’s gold mineralization is associated with iron formation.

Etruscan’s 125-sq.-km. property spreads over a length of 28 km, but only the central five kilometres have been intensively explored. Five separate mineralized lenses were drilled prior to 1981, indicating 15 million tonnes grading 8.9% zinc, 0.4% copper, 1.1% lead, plus 0.3 grams gold and 192 grams silver per tonne. Four million tonnes grading 12.8% zinc are contained in the largest, single zone discovered to date.

A 300-metre-long structure was also tested during the same period and returned 3.8 to 23 grams gold and 960 to 2,300 grams silver per tonne over widths of 4.5 to 8.0 metres. The values are associated with zinc mineralization in a calc-silicate rock, believed to be skarn derived from metamorphosed iron-formation.