Vancouver — Results from 18 drill holes indicate that the Gold Mountain zone near Nelson, B.C., is higher in grade and smaller than expected. The target is part of the Kena property of
The latest drilling tested a 1.5-km-by-500-metre coincidental geophysical and geochemical anomaly, which was believed to be prospective for a large-tonnage resource minable by open-pit methods. However, results indicate a high-grade zone confined to the eastern margin of the intrusive body within widespread sub-economic gold mineralization
Holes 12 through 18 returned broad intervals of anomalous mineralization. The highest grades, in hole 18, returned 180.7 metres grading 0.33 grams gold per tonne from a down-hole depth of 4.9 metres. Included in this section was an 18-metre section running 1.21 grams gold.
Moving back to the area of earlier drill success, Sultan deepened holes 1 through 3. Collared 125 metres east of the bonanza-grade intercept, these holes were all drilled from the same site. Hole 1 showed little change, returning 130.5 metres grading 0.95 gram gold at a down-hole depth of 6.7 metres, including a higher-grade section of 3.05 grams gold over 18 metres from 16 metres down-hole. Hole 2 averaged 1.12 grams gold over 100.6 metres from 2.7 metres down-hole, including 4 metres of 7.74 grams gold from 54 metres down-hole. Hole 3 cut the high-grade section, returning 240.7 grams gold over 1.2 metres from 48.8 metres down-hole. Cutting this bonanza-grade section to 34.29 grams gold per tonne, the hole averaged 1.87 grams gold over 116.1 metres from 8 metres down-hole.
The high-grade zone has now been cut by four holes over a distance of 150 metres to a vertical depth of 190 metres. The mineralization appears to be related to the contact between the Silver King porphyry and the Elise volcanics and can occur in either unit.
A core sample from the upper portion of hole 3 (41 metres grading 1.66 grams gold from 8 metres down-hole) was taken by a “major international gold mining company” and sent to McClelland Laboratories in Sparks, Nev., for agitated cyanidation leach testing.
The sample was crushed to minus 0.5 inch, and gold recoveries ranged from 20.4% over two hours to 57.1% over 96 hours. McClelland says gold recovery in excess of 70% is achievable with an additional 72 hours of leaching.
The initial metallurgical study indicated bottle-roll recoveries of 92% and 97% when crushed to a minus 200 mesh and with cyanide leached for 24 hours. The two separate 8-metre continuous samples were taken from hole 2 (40 metres averaging 1.22 grams gold starting 6 metres down-hole). The composites contained between 1.15 to 2.87 grams gold. Gravity tests from these samples, with a maximum 48-mesh particle size, returned gold recoveries that ranged from 36.1% to 43.2%.
Twenty-nine drill holes have been completed to date on the Gold Mountain zone. Assay results are still pending for the last 11 holes. The current drilling will be wrapped up by the end of the year, and an expanded program is being planned for early 2002. The junior is tracing the intrusive-volcanic contact with an induced-polarization survey.
This year’s drill program focused on the Gold Mountain zone, as well as within the Silver King porphyry unit, adjacent to the older Elise volcanic package.
The Kena property is underlain by volcanic rocks intruded by the younger Silver King porphyry stock. The volcanics are commonly altered and sheared. Sultan reports that brecciation, silicification and potassic alteration are prominent in areas that have the best gold-copper mineralization. Associated minerals are pyrite, chalcopyrite and finely disseminated magnetite. The Gold Mountain zone is in a 6-km-long soil geochemical anomaly within the northwestern portion of the 17-km-long Silver King porphyry property. The zone remains open to the north and south.
Kena is a 30-minute drive from Nelson and boasts excellent infrastructure. Power, gas and rail lines pass through the project area, as does a major highway.
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