Sherwood sees mine potential at Minto

Vancouver — Buoyed by the results of a new resource estimate, Sherwood Mining (SWM-V) plans to accelerate development of the Minto copper project in the Yukon.

Bruce McLeod, the company’s president, notes that the independent resource estimate shows about 10% more copper and gold than was indicated in a 1994 estimate.

A previous operator, in the late 1990s, tried to bring the Minto mine to production. An access road was built and mill construction was under way when construction was suspended in 1999, owing to slumping metal prices.

Sherwood revived the fully permitted project earlier this year after acquiring and consolidating ownership from various parties with interests in the partially developed mine. The company then retained an independent consultant to upgrade existing resources to comply with National Instrument 43-101. A technical report is being prepared and will be filed shortly.

Based on the new recent estimate, the Minto project hosts measured and indicated resources of 9.1 million tons grading 1.83% copper, 0.016 oz. gold and 0.232 oz. silver per ton, plus an inferred resource of 770,000 tons grading 1.41% copper, 0.013 oz. gold and 0.175 oz. silver. These estimates are based on 239 drill holes, including 11 sunk in 2001.

For comparison purposes, the 1994 estimate showed a resource of 8.8 million tons at 1.76% copper, 0.015 oz. gold and 0.223 oz. silver in the measured and indicated category, plus 314,000 tons of 0.85% copper, 0.006 oz. gold and 0.09 oz. silver in the inferred category.

Sherwood is forging ahead to bring the project to the feasibility stage later this year. As a first step, the company will drill 39,000 ft. as part of an effort to upgrade inferred resources to the measured and indicated category and determine if historic gold grades were underestimated in the currently defined pit limits.

The program will include stepout drilling to expand known resources. Potential extensions of the main deposit have already been identified, notably to the southwest where a hole in 2001 returned 3.05% copper over 73 ft.

Sherwood also views the Minto property as having good potential for the discovery of satellite deposits. Exploration programs by various companies over the past three decades have outlined numerous targets and showings that remain largely untested. Results from early-stage targets include 3.2% copper over 52 ft. and 5.3% copper over 25 ft.