Canadian-based Committee Bay Resources Ltd, has completed the first-year funding commitment of $2.7 million to its joint venture partner at the Coolgardie Gold Project in Western Australia.
Canadian-based Committee Bay Resources Ltd, has completed the first-year funding commitment of $2.7 million to its joint venture partner at the Coolgardie Gold Project in Western Australia.
Committee Bay is part of the Redemption joint venture with WA-based gold company Focus Minerals Ltd.
The funds form part of Committee Bay's three-year commitment of $8 million to earn a 50 per cent interest in the Redemption joint venture tenements.
The completion of the first-year commitment gives Committee Bay a 20 per cent interest in the joint venture.
A total of $3.2 million has been spent on exploration since the inception of the joint venture in August 2005.
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COMMITTEE BAY COMPLETES FIRST-YEAR EARN-IN COMMITMENT OF A$2.7M AT COOLGARDIE
PROGRAMS IDENTIFY NUMEROUS OUTSTANDING RESOURCE AND EXPLORATION OPPORTUNITIES
WA-based gold company Focus Minerals Ltd (ASX: FML) and its Redemption joint venture partner at the Coolgardie Gold Project in Western Australia, Canadian-based Committee Bay Resources Ltd., today announced that Committee Bay had completed the first-year spending commitment of A$2.7 million as part of its 3-year, sole funded commitment totaling A$8 million to earn a 50% interest in the RJV tenements.
The completion of the first-year commitment represents a significant milestone for the Joint Venture and, as a result, Committee Bay now holds a 20% interest in the Redemption Joint Venture, which includes a consolidated 210km2 tenement holding, the fully permitted 1.2mtpa Three Mile Hill processing facility, and a 1.4 million ounce resource inventory.
A total of A$3.2 million has been spent on exploration since the inception of the RJV in August 2005, including resource evaluations and optimizations, 8500m of RC drilling, 6000m of surface and underground core drilling, surface geochemistry and extensive geological compilation and regional target development.
The focus of the first year's programs has been a staged exploration approach to evaluate near term resource opportunities, pursue high priority exploration targets and develop a regional exploration model and strategy for the Coolgardie area. Resource reviews, re-calculations and economic pit optimizations were carried out on all significant gold deposits in the Coolgardie field to identify potential near term production and allow ranking, prioritization and development strategies of the RJV resources..
Significant mineralized gold lodes similar in style to those previously mined were encountered in a number of areas including East Tindals where drilling intersected 10.52g/t Au over 3.3m and 15.02g/t Au over 3.8m , 150m below existing drill holes. Drilling will continue as feasibility work is initiated towards a production decision. At Redemption Corridor drilling confirmed the presence of high grade shoots within the structure, including 58.45 g/t Au over 1.8m and 7.22 g/t Au over 4.1m at the Big Blow Prospect and, 6.39 g/t Au over 2.9m at Perseverance. At Dreadnought new drilling shows the mineralized zones remain open down-dip and confirmed the geologic continuity of the higher grade trends, including 3.53 g/t Au over 82m and 6.48 g/t over 10.9m. (Previously announced)
Focus Minerals' Managing Director, Mr Peter Williams, said the results of this first evaluation and exploration phase at Coolgardie had been very encouraging, with the integration of information from existing resources, drilling programs and regional exploration identifying district-scale trends and regional patterns of mineralization which would form the basis of ongoing drilling and exploration activity.
"We are very pleased with the progress to date in what amounts to the first comprehensive and integrated exploration program in Coolgardie's history," he commented. "The whole-of-field approach facilitated by the consolidation of a previously fragmented land package has delivered impressive results for the Joint Venture and opened up exciting exploration opportunities for the project."
"In addition, the strength of the current gold price has unlocked new production opportunities which have not been pursued to date in the region," Mr Williams added. "We are currently pursuing a number of these opportunities, and expect to make further positive announcements in this regard over the coming months."
SUMMARY OF KEY RESULTS
TINDALS
At the Tindals mining center 4500m of underground core drilling were directed at exploring multiple lode gold zones which are centralized around existing underground infrastructure. At the Tindals East, significant intersections of 10.52g/t Au over 3.3m and 15.02g/t Au over 3.8m drilled to 150m below existing drill holes demonstrated that the Tindals East System remains open at depth and drilling has defined a continuous zone of mineralization over a 100m strike and 350m down dip. Drilling at the Countess Lode System has now identified a shallow south plunging mineralized zone over a 200mx75m area which remains open in an up plunge direction. Drill holes targeting the Countess also identified significant mineralization and resource opportunities 50m to the east in the Tindals West zone. Highlights from the Countess drilling include 6.70 g/t Au over 4.5m in the Countess Lode and 6.39 g/t Au over 4.0m from the Tindals West Zone. Compilation and Independent Resource Calculations of the Tindals mineralized zones are currently being conducted.
DREADNOUGHT
At the Dreadnought Project 1600m of RC and 1000m of core drilling were conducted to extend and confirm the continuity of near surface resources currently calculated at 970,000t tonnes at 2.5 g/t (78,000oz) indicated and an additional 2,570,000 tonnes at 1.9 g/t (157,000oz) inferred (previously announced). The program successfully demonstrated that that the mineralized zones remain open down-dip and confirmed the geologic continuity and of the higher grade trends, including 3.53 g/t Au over 82m and 6.48 g/t over 10.9m.
REDEMPTION CORRIDOR
Exploration drilling programs within the Redemption Corridor targeted a 2.5 km section of north-south oriented mineralized structures with 3700m of RC and 500m of diamond core tails in selected holes. The program confirmed the presence of high grade shoots within the structure, including 58.45 g/t Au over 1.8m and 7.22 g/t Au over 4.1m at the Big Blow Prospect and, 6.39 g/t Au over 2.9m at Perseverance.
LADY CHARLOTTE
An 1800m RC drill program targeted three trends of diorite hosted mineralization at the Lady Charlotte Prospect located immediately east of the Tindals Mining Center. Highlights of this program including 6.44 g/t Au over 4.0m, 28.80 g/t Au over 1.0m, 5.94 g/t Au over 3.0m and 2.56 g/t Au over 18.0m, indicate that significant potential exists for the development of resources in this area.
Other drill programs totaling 1400m of RC drilling conducted primarily at the Norris and Bonnievale areas testing conceptual geological targets. These programs have identified new structures with excellent exploration potential.
Regional exploration work included extensive surface geochemistry programs at the Mount and Camel Paddock areas, which identified numerous gold in soil anomalies in these areas. The RJV also maintained a comprehensive regional geological program to evaluate the Coolgardie Belt and develop regional targeting models.
(A full table of results from the first-year exploration programs will be published in Focus Minerals' March Quarterly Report expected to be lodged with the ASX before the end of April).
COMPETENT PERSON'S STATEMENT
The information in this report relating to Resources and Reserves are based on work supervised by Mr Chuck McCormick who is a Fellow of the Australasian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy (AusIMM). Mr McCormick has the relevant experience as a "Competent Person" as defined in the 2004 edition of the Australasian Code for Reporting of Mineral Resources and Ore Reserves in relation to the mineralisation reported on. Mr McCormick is Exploration Manager of Focus Minerals Ltd.and consents to the inclusion of the material in the from and content in which it appears.
BACKGROUND INFORMATION - FOCUS MINERALS LIMITED
Focus Minerals Limited (ASX Ticker: FML) is an Australian-based exploration and development group whose focus is to become a significant gold producer in the Coolgardie region of Western Australia.
Through its Redemption Joint Venture with Canadian-based Matador Exploration Inc, Focus Minerals is the largest landholder in the Coolgardie Gold Belt located in Western Australia, 560km east of Perth and 35km south of the "Super Pit" in Kalgoorlie. Over 2.6 million ounces of gold has been produced from the Coolgardie gold belt alone since 1892.
The Redemption Joint Venture has the mineral rights to more than 210km2 of under-explored tenements including Indicated and Inferred Resources totaling 1.4 million ounces of gold (Indicated Resource of 5.32 million tonnes at 1.8g/t gold and Inferred Resource of 13.7 million tonnes at 2.5g/t gold) as well as the 1.2mtpa Three Mile Hill processing plant, located in one of the world's most significant gold and nickel mining regions.
Matador is sole funding A$8 million of exploration expenditure at Coolgardie in stages over three years with a first-year minimum commitment of A$2.7 million. The overall objective of the Joint Venture is to define sufficient reserves to enable the Three Mile Hill Plant to operate at full capacity with 5 years of scheduled ore treatment, providing cash flow to further explore the surrounding highly prospective gold belt.
