Quarter Time Wrap
THE BOURSE WHISPERER: The Roadhouse’s inbox was inundated with quarterly reports this season so we thought we’d take a random selection and see what the companies had to say.
Ventnor Resources
During the quarter base metals exploration play Ventnor Resources commenced a fourth phase of drilling at the company’s Thaduna and Green Dragon copper project.
During the quarter there were 18 RC drill holes for 3,118 metres and 13 NQ2 diamond tails for 1,197m drilled at Thaduna and 11 RC holes for 1,352m and 2 HQ diamond holes for 390m at Green Dragon.
Deeper diamond tails are proposed to intersect the
mineralisation at depths from 280 metres to 300 metres below surface and
drilling is underway. Source: Company report
The quarter’s drilling has brought the total undertaken at the Thaduna and Green Dragon project to 145 RC drill holes for 18,700m and 15 diamond tails for 1,517m drilled at Thaduna and 89 RC holes for 11,643m and 2 HQ diamond holes for 390m at Green Dragon drilled to the end of the quarter.
The company has a deep drilling program underway to test the projected mineralisation at 280m to 320m below ground level.
The fourth phase program is designed to achieve two goals:
– To complete the resource drill out above 200m vertical; and
– To investigate the potential for economic mineralisation below 200m vertical along a strike length of 1,000m.
The company’s third phase of drilling at the Thaduna and Green Dragon copper prospects was completed in December 2011 and some results were received in the March 2012 quarter that included:
37m at 2.61 per cent copper from 111m, including 10m at 7.53 per cent copper from 134m downhole;
62m at 2.19 per cent from 125m, including 32m at 3.10 per cent copper from 127m downhole ending in mineralisation – 3.70 per cent copper at EOH, to be extended by diamond drilling
19m at 1.85 per cent copper from 246m including 6.57m at 3.93 per cent copper and 19.2 grams per tonne silver from 258m downhole;
13m at 2.87 per cent copper from 130m, including 8m at 4.48 per cent copper and 15.6g/t silver from 131m downhole; and
9m at 2.68 per cent copper from 180m downhole.
Laconia Resources
Perth based exploration company Laconia Resources’ activities for the March quarter included progress on its acquisition of the Rasuhuilca gold-silver project in Peru and results from preliminary metallurgical testwork at the company’s Lennons base metals project in Western Australia.
Laconia completed Due Diligence on the proposed acquisition of the Rasuhuilca gold-silver project during the March quarter.
Rasuhuilca project location map. Source: Company report
The company said the acquisition will establish it as an emerging precious metals producer and complement its existing portfolio of precious and base metals projects in WA.
The project is a high-grade gold and silver asset with near-term development potential and major exploration upside.
Other March Quarter highlights included:
At the Lennons Find Base Metals project in WA, preliminary test work was completed on composite samples from the oxide component of the Resource.
Results included:
– Sulphuric acid leach extracted 75 per cent of the copper and 87 per cent of the zinc; and
– Subsequent cyanide leach tests extracted 87 per cent of the gold and 94 per cent of the zinc.
Geological and litho-geochemical study was completed at Lennons Find in preparation for detailed field mapping and interpretation of the mineralising system.
The total Mineral Resource at Lennons Find is currently at 1.80 million tonnes at 82g/t silver, 0.26g/t gold, 0.2 per cent copper, 1.4 per cent lead and 5.1 per cent zinc.
Laconia is in a solid financial position with $2 million in cash at bank at the end of the quarter.
Exploration planned by Laconia for June 2012 Quarter includes Reverse Circulation (RC) drilling targeting additional oxide resources at Lennons Find and metallurgical test work on bulk samples from Lennons Find oxide resources.
The company will also RC drill test co-incident XTEM and geochemical targets at its Barramine project in addition to complete Phase 2 infill and regional auger drilling at the 701 Mile project.
Brazilian Metals Group
During the March Quarter Brazil-focused iron ore exploration and development company Brazilian Metals Group forged an agreement to acquire the advanced stage Carrapato iron project in the Northern Minas Gerais state, in Brazil.
BMG announced an agreement to acquire 100 per cent of the Carrapato iron project, which it stated was a significant step in the company’s strategy to complement its existing large scale iron projects with smaller, high grade projects with near term production potential.
The Carrapato project is an extension of the Sarzedo mine, which has a 1.3 billion tonnes resource and was recently sold to Chinese state-backed East China Mineral Exploration and Development Bureau (ECE), for $1.2 billion.
Location of Carrapato tenement, Itaminas Sarzedo Mine to the
east; Vale’s Corrego do Feijao mine to the south. The tenement is about
1000 metres wide east-west. Source: Company report
Carrapato is also immediately adjacent to the Corrego do Feijao Mine of global big boy Vale, which produced direct ship iron ore at a grade of 66.6 per cent iron.
The project has proximity to domestic steel mills and rail infrastructure, to provide future domestic or export options for early development of a low cost iron ore operation.
The company has two larger projects, also located in the Northern Minas Gerais state the Gema Verde and Rio Pardo iron projects where further metalurgical testwork and pre-feasibility work was conducted during the quarter.
Alligator Energy
Uranium explorer Alligator Energy lit up its March Quarter performance with a maiden JORC Code-compliant Resource statement at its flagship Tin Camp Creek uranium project in the Northern Territory.
Alligator Energy confirmed a maiden Resource at the Caramel prospect within the Tin Camp Creek project of 944,000 tonnes at 0.31 per cent uranium for 6.5 million pounds of uranium.
Caramel Resource. Source: Company report
The company also carried out a comprehensive revision of the geology of the Caramel prospect, which identified a number of extension targets.
Company has a sound cash position with $8.1 million in in the bank.
Further activities for 2012 will involve drilling a seven kilometre zone from Caramel to South Horn within the Tin Camp Creek project area.
Alligator plans to drill 5,000m of Diamond Drilling in 2012 and drilling is due to commence late May.
Corazon Mining
Canada-focused exploration company Corazon Mining identified further strong nickel-copper-cobalt sulphide mineralisation at the company’s Lynn Lake nickel-copper sulphide project in Canada.
Drilling beneath the EL Mine at Lynn Lake Project continued to identify strong nickel-copper-cobalt sulphide mineralisation, including:
– 73.46m at 0.81 per cent nickel, 0.50 per cent copper and 0.022 per cent cobalt from 727.54m, including 32.46m at 1.26 per cent nickel, 0.72 per cent copper an 0.032 per cent cobalt from 727.54m.
Corazon conducted down-hole EM surveys taht defined several conductors it will use to direct exploration drilling of extensions to the EL Deposit between 700m to 1,200m below surface.
EL Deposit – Drill hole cross-section. Source: Company report
Drilling of priority target areas identified a new zone of nickel-copper sulphide mineralisation.
One hole intersected approximately 51m of disseminated to massive sulphide mineralisation approximately 50m east of previously discovered sulphide breccia.
Drilling of these targets is continuing.
Corazon has kicked off mining studies for the Lynn Lake project and early results indicated copper and cobalt may provide a valuable credit (greater than CAD$2.00 per pound of nickel benefit).
Canadian underground mining costs have come in showing an approximate 30 per cent reduction in comparison to Australian costs.
Corazon is holding approximately $2.18 million at end of the quarter.
Talga Gold
During the March Quarter Talga Gold conducted exploration on the company’s 100 per cent-owned projects in Sweden (graphite, iron ore, copper-gold) and the Pilbara and Yilgarn regions (gold and iron ore) of Western Australia.
Fieldwork completed on Talga’s WA projects included Reverse Circulation (RC) drill testing of gold and iron targets and geochemical surveying over first pass targets.
In Sweden, the company acquired seven advanced graphite projects in its own right before entering an option agreement to acquire a further eleven graphite, iron and copper/gold prospective projects from TCL Sweden, a subsidiary of Teck Resources.
Sweden project location and transport infrastructure map
showing graphite deposits and Talga/TCL Sweden tenure. Source: Company
report
Work completed by Talga in Sweden included ground geophysical surveys, project reconnaissance, data compilation, logging and sampling of historic drill cores and the estimation of maiden JORC Code-compliant Inferred mineral resources at three projects.
Talga claims one of these project areas to include the highest grade graphite deposit published by any public company in the world. (Ref. Technology Metals Research – Advanced Graphite Projects Index).
Talga has $2.71 million cash at bank and enjoyed a strong increase in market capitalisation during the period.