Mineral exploration is all about stages. It is well-known that it is an arduous task to make it to production, but the rewards can be so exceptional that the process is worth the toils. As a result, each process in the mining life cycle is important in and amongst itself as it defines the value of the property along the path to production.
Vancouver-based Sphere Resources Inc. (TSX-Venture:SPH.H) is focused on identifying and appropriating exploration targets and other high quality assets in major global mining camps with a particular emphasis on precious metals. Sphere controls property in two of the most prolific gold regions in North America in the Red Lake District of Ontario, Canada and Nevada in the United States.
This week, the Company announced clearing one of the developmental hurdles in exploration as it completed a Dipole-Dipole Induced Polarization (IP) and magnetic survey on its entire Alcourt leased property just outside of Red Lake, Ontario. The property is formidable not only because of its location, but also size, covering 83 hectares and having known gold occurrences from previous exploration. Additionally, Sphere has found and exposed the three previously discovered gold veins by mechanical stripping.
The Alcourt property was explored in the 1980s by Sherritt Gordon Mines Ltd and showed promising data, although it is notable that the data is not compliant with today’s NI 43-101 standards.
Sherritt’s exploration included detailed panel sampling on two of the three narrow gold-bearing veins on surface and approximately 3,000 metres of drilling being performed on both the No. 1 and 3 veins. Panel samples on the No.1 Vein ranged from 1.8 metres to three metres of quartz vein material ranging from 60 to 180 kg in weight. The average gold grade of four determinations of each panel sample returned grades that ranged from 0.0105 to 1.649 ounces gold per tonne.
On the No.3 Vein the average grades of four determinations of each of the 8 panel samples with each two metres of quartz vein material ranging from 50 to 120 kg in weight, ranged from 0.0584 to 1.2759 ounces gold per tonne.
Throughout the 48 diamond drill holes completed on the property, with half targeting the No. 1 Vein, non-NI 43-101 compliant evaluations estimated that the property hosts resources in excess of 20,000 tonnes grading 0.45 ounces gold per tonne. This equates to 9,000 ounces of gold which at today’s prices would be valued at more than $13 million.
Of course, this is really just the start of what the property could hold in reserves as additional veins were identified in the previous drilling program and much more extensive (and compliant) drilling and sampling will be conducted by Sphere to give the land a proper valuation.
Exploration will be gaining steam on Alcourt as the IP survey was conducted to identify other targets on the remainder of the property for future drilling. This data will be available in a few weeks to select top priority targets. Channel sampling will be done on the three exposed veins after spring break-up which will provide more accurate data on the grade of the gold.
The mandatory NI 43-101 property report is being prepared by a third-party independent qualified person and is slated for deliver in May or June.
Sphere is not standing still in any sense of the word. With these ongoing developments on the Alcourt property and the NI 43-101, Sphere intends to provide all required documentation to the NEX Board of the TSX Venture Exchange to apply for graduation to the TSX-Venture exchange.
With the stock still trading close to 52-week highs, technical and fundamental traders alike will be keeping their eyes and ears open for news that could propel the share price through the resistance at $0.105, which may quite possibly take out the current high of 12 cents, which was touched in late March.
