News in Brief (December 15, 1986)

Ameritex Resources has acquired 68 claims in the Casa Berardi area and 32 claims in the Chibougamau area, both in Quebec.

Interquest Resources has completed the first stage of a diamond drilling program on its Pickle Lake project in northwestern Ontario. The company has an option to earn a two-thirds interest in the 57-claim property midway between Dome Mines’ Dona Lake gold discovery and St. Joe Gold’s Muskeg deposit and is adjacent to Lac Minerals’ Hasaga deposit. Values from the six holes totalling more than 1,000m of drilling gave values up to 0.18 oz gold per ton over one metre as well as anomalous gold values in all of the holes.

Ennex International, 15% owned by Northgate Exploration, says it has outlined about one million tons of ore grading 0.30 oz gold per ton on its Sperrin Mountains gold discovery in Northern Ireland. It says the next step toward bringing the property into production is an underground development program to examine the five veins on which the ore reserve is based at depths up to 170 ft.

Power Exploration has reached an agreement to acquire the bulk of Van Horne Gold Exploration’s property holdings in return for Power common shares. Directors of the two companies are discussing a merger and it is anticipated that Van Horne would distribute to its shareholders all of its assets other than Power common shares prior to such a merger being completed. The acquisition would give Power a major land position in the Pickle Lake and Opapimiskan Lake areas of northwestern Ontario.

Eastern Lights Resources has called a shareholders’ meeting to approve a name change to Wellco Aerospace Manufacturing and consolidation of outstanding shares on the basis of 1 new share for 2 old shares.

Inco Ltd. says its Manitoba division will be shut down for a 4-week vacation period, next July 13 to Aug 9. The company adds no other actions are planned at this time, but that market conditions will continue to be closely monitored.

Pursuant to an agency private placement agreement, Terra Mines has sold 22 units at a price of $25,000 per unit, which brings the total number of units sold to 197. Each unitholder will receive 10,870 shares.

Greenstone Resources has acquired a 100% working interest in a gold-silver property in Colombia. The company says the property, which is subject to a 20% net profits interest after payout, hosts a former producer which produced 14,000 tons at an average millhead grade of 1.24 oz gold per ton up to 1975. Production could begin by the fourth quarter of 1987, the company says.

Members of the United Steelworkers of America union, local 6131, at Noranda Minerals’ Matagami division, have accepted a 3-year contract, effective Nov 18. Hourly wage increases and improvements to the employee pension and benefits plans were included in the agreement as well as lump-sum payments of $1,000, in two instalments, by the end of June, 1987. The Matagami division operates two zinc and copper mines at a daily rate of about 3,200 tonnes per day and employs some 390 people.

Good Hope Resources and Golden North Resource Corp. have amalgamated under the latter name, both on a share-for-share basis. (Not Golden Hope as reported in The Northern Miner Nov 24 issue.)

Exploration Miniere Normetal says five drill holes on its Barraute Twp. property in northwestern Quebec have intercepted disseminated mineralization over large widths. The results of the first three holes have returned values from 0.02 to 0.34 oz gold per ton with 13 gold-bearing sections ranging from 0.5 to 20 ft in width. Results from the other two holes are not available yet.

Warrior Resources has called a shareholders’ meeting to approve the acquisition of the Decision Sheet Modelling software program for one million shares and a name change to Warrior Industries.

Gallagher Explorations plans to acquire all shares of Gunnar Gold Inc. by the issue of 3.8 million of its own shares. Gunnar holds or options interests in the Beardmore and Kirkland Lake areas of Ontario, and Gaudet Twp. in Quebec. Gallagher trades on the ASE.

Camreco reports a loss of $110,000 for the 9-month period ended Sept 30 compared with net earnings of $419,000 for the same period a year earlier. The company completed the acquisition of Boone Plumbing Supply during the third quarter and one month revenue of $1,897,000 from that division accounted for 72% of the company’s total revenue for the entire 3-month period.

Mon-Dor Explorations Inc. has started its first phase of exploration on the metallurgical quartz project, located in Quebec, optioned from Placements Simokon. Under the terms of the agreement, Mon-Dor can earn a 50% interest in four deposits by spending $975,000 before May 1, 1988. The companys says a crew of five is currently involved in a major mapping and sampling program with 350 samples already gathered and shipped to Montreal.

For the three quarters ended Sept. 30, McChip Resources posted net earnings of $418,875 (15cents per share) compared to restated earnings of $762,464 (27 cents per share) for the same period in 1985. Working capital at Sept 30 stood at $1.5 million versus $1.4 million for 1985. Reduced earnings for the recent period are due primarily to lower investment income.

The best continuous section from drilling done by Rambo Explorations on its Turgeon property in northwestern Quebec’s Massicotte Twp. yielded 0.12 oz gold over 8.8 ft. The property is about 40 km northwest of the Golden Pond deposit in Quebec’s Casa Berardi area.

Oasis Resources expects to raise up to $3 million in a public offering of which $1.5 million will go toward exploration on its Souart Twp. property. Oasis also has an option to earn a 40% interest in the delta project, a platinum exploration program in the Ungava area of northern Quebec, from Falconbridge, and has properties in Quebec’s Casa Berardi and Val d’Or areas.

La Societe Miniere Louvem has reached an agreement whereby a limited partnership will invest $2,425,000 in exploration on some of Louvem’s properties in return for a 15% undivided interest in Louvem’s Pascalis-Nord property near Val d’Or, Que. Shares of the partnership will be exchangeable, on an optional basis, for a total of 1,125,000 common shares of Louvem on May 22, 1987.

An option agreement has been completed by Gallagher Explorations giving the company the right to earn a 45% interest in seven claims adjoining the Arthur White gold mine near Red Lake, Ont.

Known as the Headway Red Lake property, it was last explored in detail in 1946. At that time, three gold-bearing zones were outlined. Gallagher can earn its interest by spending $375,000 on exploration.