Underground for Tandem at Moss Twp. gold project

Plans are being formulated for an underground test of the Tandem Resources-Storimin Exploration joint venture project in Moss Twp., 70 miles west of Thunder Bay in northwestern Ontario. Representatives of Mining Corp., a Noranda contracting subsidiary, are now on the property to plan a ramp entry into the gold zone.

Meanwhile, surface drilling continues to enlarge the ore picture there. Hole No 23 at the extreme east end of the main zone cut 17 ft averaging 0.26 oz at the 175-ft horizon. This hole is 120 ft east of No 18 which encountered 6.0 ft grading 0.31 oz.

“We expect that a heavy program of drilling, using at least two machines,will be launched from the ice of Snodgrass Lake this winter. It will run to at least 20,000 ft,” S.G. Hawkins, Tandem’s president, told The Northern Miner this week.

Indeed the Tandem company is becoming increasingly active in exploration these days, with over 50,000 ft of core drilling lined up on various projects in which it is involved, including a continuing program on its 342-claim spread in the Casa Berardi area of Quebec. There, it is concentrating on geophysical and geochemical targets. And it is now giving serious considerati on to an early drill program for its Fond Lake gold property, 80 miles north of Nakina in northwestern Ontario. Previous drilling indicated some 300,000 tons grading 0.22 oz to a depth of 200 ft in a zone that remains open both to depth and along strike.

The Fond Lake program will likely be carried out through an arrangement with Ayrex Resources (ASE) that would see Tandem vending a 50% interest in the property for 400,000 shares of Ayrex and funding a $500,000 program in return for an additional 500,000 treasury shares.

Also, Tandem will be participating in the exploration of six separate groups of claims in the Casa Berardi area held jointly by North American Rare Metals and Dundee Palliser Resources. Tandem will fund North American’s interest in this project for a minimum expenditure of $389,000 for which it will receive stock in that company at 35 cents per share.

Another interesting development in the Tandem picture is that it holds an 8% direct interest in what is considered an important platinum discovery near Schefferville, Que., reported last month by well-known Val d’Or prospector Peter Ferderber.