Starfield confirms depth extension at the West zone

Vancouver — The initial results from this year’s drill program by Starfield Resources (SRU-V) indicate that the geological resource will be greatly expanded at the West zone on the Ferguson Lake copper-nickel-cobalt-platinum-palladium property, 160 km south of Baker Lake in the Canadian territory of Nunavut.

The second hole of the current program, hole 69, tested the sulphide horizon 80 metres below hole 68 (three zones ranging up to 1.04% copper, 0.69% nickel, 0.09% cobalt, 1.7 grams palladium and 0.33 gram platinum per tonne over 17.8 metres from 438 metres down-hole). The hole confirmed the depth potential of this high-grade zone. It cut:

• 1.8% copper, 0.88% nickel, 0.12% cobalt, 2.65 grams palladium and 0.38 gram platinum over 6.3 metres from 437 metres down-hole;
• 2.2 metres averaging 0.74% copper, 1.1% nickel, 0.14% cobalt, 22 grams palladium and 0.4 gram platinum from 445 metres down-hole; and
• 5.7 metres grading 0.94% copper, 0.71% nickel, 0.09% cobalt, 1.9 grams palladium and 0.32 gram platinum from 526 metres down-hole.

Five holes have been completed during the current round of drilling. All of them cut the massive-sulphide horizon. Hole 70 was collared 120 metres west of hole 69 and hole 71 was drilled 240 metres west of hole 68. Hole 72 was designed to test the mineralized horizon 220 metres below hole 71. Assay results from these holes are pending.

Collared 120 metres east of hole 72, the rig is currently turning on hole 73.4

According to the last count, the West zone hosts an inferred resource of 28.2 million tonnes grading 0.85% copper, 0.56% nickel and 1.2 grams combined platinum-palladium. Included in this resource is a higher-grade core comprising 7.2 million tonnes averaging 1.1% copper, 0.8% nickel and 2 grams combined platinum-palladium. A 4.8-km-long geophysical conductor has traced the zone. The resource occupies only 20% of this geophysical anomaly.

The copper mineralization at the zone was originally discovered in the 1950s by Inco (N-T), which pegged the West zone with a resource of 6.4 million tonnes grading 0.87% copper and 0.75% nickel. Three decades later, a unit of Homestake Mining (HM-N) discovered showings of platinum, palladium and cobalt mineralization in sulphide-bearing outcrops.

Manual resource estimates for the East I zone come in at 2.9 million tonnes grading 1% copper, 0.8% nickel and 1.2 grams combined platinum-palladium.

The East II zone tallies 1.3 million tonnes grading 0.9% copper, 0.8% nickel and 1.2 grams combined platinum-palladium.

This year’s program is aimed at drill-testing the mineralization at greater depths and testing other geophysical targets.

Starfield earned a 100% interest in the 20,000-ha property by paying $75,000 in cash, issuing 4.25 million shares and spending $1.7 million on exploration.