LAC expands White River holdings

The company has staked at least 650 new claims near White River, Ont., while at the same time discounting rumors of a discovery on another property it owns in the Hemlo area.

A major unmapped structural break and some greenstone enclaves east of White River appear to be the main target of LAC’s recent claim staking.

Earlier this year, LAC conducted a drilling program on a large block of claims it holds in the Hemlo greenstone belt, but the company says no significant results were encountered although there have been rumors of a new discovery.

“I think the rumors that have been circulating about a new discovery on our White River claims have been blown all out of proportion,” said one LAC geologist. Rumors about a new discovery are not backed up by any new results, he told The Northern Miner.

“Maybe we have a showing,” he said. “But there is nothing significant to announce.”

A spokesman for LAC in Toronto confirmed the company has increased its land position near White River as part of a routine exploration strategy. “It’s always good to keep adding to your land position,” he said.

Since the new claims are situated along the highway which connects the town of Hornepayne to White River, the staking activity may have attracted more attention than was warranted, he added.

The company would not say what type of exploration program it plans to conduct on the newly staked claims this winter.

Staking crews for Noranda Inc. (TSE) have also been active on ground elsewhere in the area, according to another source contacted by The Northern Miner.

The 650 claims stake by LAC are mostly in Abraham, Hunt and Cooper twps. The company’s other main property, situated in Brothers and LaBerge twps., covers a large stretch of ground underlain by a greenstone belt extending east from the Hemlo camp. Work on that property is unrelated to the new staking activity, the company said. LAC has been exploring the older claims for a number of years, and recently completed a drilling program, using two machines.

Delio Tortosa, resident geologist for the Wawa district, said he also heard the rumors of a new gold find in the southeast end of the Hemlo greenstone belt, but nothing was ever confirmed.

“You wouldn’t believe the number of rumors coming through this office about new discoveries,” he said.

Meanwhile, officials at LAC denied that a new gold showing has been found on any of its claims. “We have no results that merit an announcement at this time,” the company said.

Much of the new staking activity covers granitoid terrain which is cut by a major fault structure believed to be a favorable site for the occurrence of gold deposits. Major fault structures in granitic rocks have not been traditional targets for exploration, but some geologists feel they deserve a closer look.

“The Renabie mine is one example of a gold mine found in granitic host rocks,” explained Tortosa. “Maybe that’s the type of geological concept LAC is using in the White River area.”

The Renabie gold mine, owned jointly by Corona Corp. (TSE) and American Barrick (TSE), occurs within granitic rocks about one kilometre outside of a typical greenstone belt, Tortosa said.

“If the model for gold deposits outside greenstone belts is successful, it would certainly open up a lot of other potential areas for exploration,” he added.

The main targets staked by LAC were deformation zones and east- southeast trending remnants of greenstone rocks parallel to the Hornepayne Highway.

The Calgary-based firm of Tiaga Consultants has put together a land map of the White River area, but so far there haven’t been any junior companies interested in the area, a spokesman for Tiaga said.

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