Southern Africa Minerals active in Botswana, Quebec Quinsam lays off workers

Southern Africa Minerals (SAF-T) has recovered microdiamonds from its wholly owned Mosomane property in Botswana.

Three micros were recovered from a 43.5-kg sample taken from a trench dug about 7 metres into a kimberlite sill averaging 10 metres in thickness.

Three other samples, totalling 164 kg, were found to be barren of diamonds.

The junior will now carry out large-core drilling to collect representative samples of the sill. Also, large-core drilling will be performed on a 75-metre-wide, 2.5-km-long kimberlite dyke.

Regional sampling for indicator minerals indicates the presence of other kimberlite intrusives on the 647,000-ha property, the company says. These would be drilled on completion of the sampling program.

Meanwhile at Southern Africa and Noranda’s (NOR-T) Caber zinc-copper project in the Matagami camp of northwestern Quebec, a 10-hole diamond drilling campaign is under way. In addition, the partners are preparing to test the Caber North “C zone,” 2 km north of the main Caber massive sulphide deposit.

Noranda can earn up to a 70% interest in Caber by bringing it to production.

This will entail work expenditures of $6 million, as well as $2.85 million in private placements in Southern Africa Minerals.

Quinsam Coal, a 63%-held subsidiary of Hillsborough Resources (HLB-T), intends to lay off some of its workers at the Campbell River operations on Vancouver Island, B.C.

Hillsborough attributes the move to “severe conditions in the company’s export markets” and adds that “once this exercise is complete, Quinsam’s remaining workforce of 80 people will be able to operate efficiently to produce coal for its domestic and export customers.”

Quinsam says it plans to expand current mining activities as export markets improve.