Freegold buys rest of Almaden, options Alaskan prospect

An agreement with BakBone Software allows International Freegold Mineral Development (ITF-T) to boost to 100% its interest in the Almaden gold project in Idaho.

Freegold previously held a 60% stake in Almaden, which it earned by funding a feasibility study in 1997. The company will tie up the remaining interest by issuing 2 million shares to BakBone Software.

A 1997 feasibility study by Watts, Griffis & McOuat indicates Almaden contains open-pit reserves of 527,000 oz. gold. The study recommends heap leaching, and calls for deep drilling to test the area below the existing resource.

Meanwhile, in a separate deal, the junior has granted Quaterra Resources (qta-v) the right to earn 50% of the Union Bay platinum-palladium project in southeastern Alaska.

Quaterra can do so by spending $1 million on exploration, and by making staged payments of $100,000 over four years. It is also required to issue 200,000 shares to Freegold in two tranches.

Exploration is under way at the site, with work focused on an area where grab samples have returned up to 17.9 grams platinum-palladium, as well as elevalated platinum-group-metal (PGM) values from panned stream-sediment samples. More than 160 chip samples were taken, 23 of which returned values greater than 0.1 gram per tonne, while eight exceeded 1 gram.

Four channel samples, taken with a rock saw, tested an area where previous chip sampling showed high-grade values. Two adjacent 1-ft. samples averaged 7.9 grams platinum and palladium per tonne.

Olivine pyroxenite appears to be the most favourable lithology for mineralization, and the presence of magnetite and chromite stringers along narrow pyroxenite dykes is also deemed prospective.

Currently, crews are advancing targets along the N zone for a subsequent drilling program of up to 3,000 metres. The North zone has been traced for at least 1,300 ft. along strike and over a vertical distance of 600 ft. A new zone, dubbed Jaguar, was found some 1,000 ft west of, and parallel to, the North zone. So far, the partners have traced the Jaguar zone over 900 ft., and mineralization is open-ended. The limits of mineralization are being pushed westward, in the direction of previous pan-concentrate samples taken in the next drainage, a mile away.

The partners believe the prospect may have placer potential, similar to the Goodnews Bay deposit in northwestern Alaska.

They say sampling results point to the presence of one or more magmatically derived and PGE- enriched stratiform horizons within a layered ultramafic intrusion.