J-Pacific to explore Blackdome (May 03, 2004)

Vancouver — J-Pacific Gold (JPN-V) has retained Roscoe Postle Associates to develop an exploration plan for the Blackdome mine property, 70 km west of Clinton in south-central British Columbia.

Blackdome produced 225,000 oz. gold and 547,000 oz. silver during its first operating run from 1986 through 1991. The underground mine was revived for a short period in the late 1990s.

Blackdome hosts an inferred mineral resource of 124,120 tonnes averaging 12.8 grams gold and 33.7 grams silver per tonne, or about 50,834 oz. gold and 134,386 oz. silver. The property has a modern, 200-ton-per-day flotation and gravity mill.

In 2001, J-Pacific commissioned SRK Consulting to complete a preliminary exploration-risk assessment of the project, along with the resource estimate and a geological model. The company says this study concluded that Blackdome had “significant potential to host entirely new economic orebodies.”

The new exploration study will be used to develop and assess exploration targets on the mine property, which consists of 81 mineral claims, 10 Crown-granted claims, and two mining leases.

J-Pacific views the Blackdome mine project as a long-term asset, and has other gold properties in British Columbia, as well as in Nevada and northwestern Quebec.

Earlier this year, the company signed an agreement allowing Japanese firm Jipangu to earn 50% of its Golden Trend and HC properties in Nevada. To do so, Jipangu must spend US$2.7 million at the former project and US$1.75 million at the latter. Both are in the Cortez gold district of Nevada’s Battle Mountain-Eureka trend.

Jipangu can acquire an additional 15% stake in the properties by advancing them to the feasibility stage.

J-Pacific’s Quebec properties are in the Abitibi greenstone belt. The Montgolfier property is described as having similar stratigraphy to the Casa Berardi gold mining camp.