SEG 45 Final_qx4 - Society of Economic Geologists
SEG 45 Final_qx4 - Society of Economic Geologists
SEG 45 Final_qx4 - Society of Economic Geologists
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OCTOBER 2005 • No 63 <strong>SEG</strong> NEWSLETTER 33<br />
and 163 Kt Cu to the Ridgeway operation,<br />
extending mine life by six years.<br />
The Ridgeway mine reported cash costs<br />
for the 2004-2005 financial year <strong>of</strong> only<br />
$39/oz, compared with $109/oz for the<br />
previous quarter.<br />
At the Copper Hill prospect, Golden<br />
Cross reported drill intersections <strong>of</strong> 217<br />
m @ 0.72% Cu and 1.17 g/t Au (close to<br />
an old hole <strong>of</strong> comparable grade) and<br />
128 m @ 0.32% Cu, 0.19 g/t Au, 35 ppm<br />
Mo. Further drilling will focus on poorly<br />
drilled portions down to 200m depth.<br />
Rio Tinto has proposed to extend<br />
their block caving mining operations at<br />
Northparkes until 2017 via the development<br />
<strong>of</strong> the E48 deposit which has<br />
reserves <strong>of</strong> 22.6 Mt at 1.15% Cu and<br />
0.46 g/t Au.<br />
Alkane Exploration’s strong land<br />
position in the Orange-Cadia district<br />
has attracted the attention <strong>of</strong><br />
Newmont, which has signed a joint<br />
venture to earn up to an initial 51% in<br />
the Alkane tenements by funding $5M<br />
in exploration expenditure over a fiveyear<br />
period, with the right to earn an<br />
additional 24% interest. Previous work<br />
by Alkane in the area returned 19 m @<br />
0.2% Cu and 1.23 g/t Au. Alkane also<br />
plans to have a bankable feasibility<br />
study for its 600,000 oz Wyoming Au<br />
deposit ready by the end 2005. The<br />
company is undertaking studies to better<br />
understand the geometry <strong>of</strong> the<br />
underground ore shoots to determine<br />
an optimal mine plan. Alkane has also<br />
progressed its nearby Galwadgere Cu-<br />
Au project to a small open cut resource<br />
<strong>of</strong> 2 Mt @ 1% Cu, and continues marketing<br />
studies on its complex Dubbo<br />
zirconia-tantalum-niobium project.<br />
In the New England fold belt (NEFB),<br />
drilling programs by Straits Resources<br />
at a number <strong>of</strong> vein systems at the<br />
mothballed Hillgrove Au-Sb mine have<br />
shown continued success. The company<br />
PAID ADVERTISEMENT<br />
◆ News Summaries<br />
◆ Deposit Statistics<br />
◆ Research Information<br />
100 Lemming Dr. Reno, Nevada 89523<br />
phone: 775 3<strong>45</strong>-2343 fax 775 3<strong>45</strong>-1317<br />
http://www.activityupdate.com info@activityupdate.com<br />
has recently announced a resource <strong>of</strong><br />
3.9 Mt at 5.1 g/t Au and 1.95% Sb<br />
(1.2Moz Au equiv), and is looking at<br />
the possibility <strong>of</strong> re-opening the mine.<br />
Historical production at Hillgrove<br />
totaled 720 Koz Au and 50 Kt Sb.<br />
Drake Resources has commenced<br />
exploration to evaluate the potential <strong>of</strong><br />
the Drake low-sulfidation epithermal<br />
field, where resources currently stand at<br />
146 Koz Au and 4.6 Moz Ag with base<br />
metal credits.<br />
Triako Resources’ high-grade Hera<br />
Au deposit (1.49 Mt @ 9.4g/t Au, 0.5%<br />
Cu, 4.4% Pb, 4.3% Zn and 24g/t Ag) has<br />
attracted the interest <strong>of</strong> CBH Resources,<br />
which purchased a 6.5% stake in Triako<br />
for $2.5M. Hera is located about150 km<br />
from CBH’s Endeavour Zn-Pb-Ag operation<br />
near Cobar.<br />
VICTORIA<br />
Recent attention has focused on the<br />
Fosterville region in Victoria with the<br />
successful commissioning <strong>of</strong><br />
Perseverance Corporation’s bacterial<br />
oxidation treatment plant. Production<br />
at the Fosterville mine for 2005-2006 is<br />
estimated to reach 135,000 oz <strong>of</strong> Au<br />
and development is scheduled to commence<br />
early in 2006 to access the<br />
810,000 oz underground reserve. In the<br />
same region, Gold Fields have reported<br />
a new greenfields discovery based on<br />
four exploration holes. No details have<br />
been released.<br />
Austar Resources have reported<br />
encouraging results from the 1.5 Moz<br />
historical Walhalla goldfield. Recent<br />
drilling at the Lomond Reef discovery<br />
has extended the strike length <strong>of</strong> known<br />
mineralization to 800 m and to a depth<br />
<strong>of</strong> 300 m with an average thickness <strong>of</strong><br />
6.5 m. Austar plans to commence a<br />
scoping study in late 2005.<br />
ORE AND THIN SECTION<br />
PETROGRAPHY<br />
QUEENSLAND<br />
The Department <strong>of</strong> Natural Resources<br />
and Mines kicked <strong>of</strong>f its Smart<br />
Exploration initiative at the Structure,<br />
Tectonics and Ore Mineralisation<br />
Processes (STOMP) Conference in<br />
Townsville by announcing the completion<br />
<strong>of</strong> a major airborne airborne magnetic<br />
and radiometric survey over the<br />
Mount Rawdon Corridor in southeast<br />
Queensland.<br />
NEW ZEALAND<br />
Newmont’s decline at Favona in the<br />
Waihi district, Coromandel region, North<br />
Island, was over 500 m long and over 70<br />
m below the surface in August. Exploration<br />
drilling continued in a number <strong>of</strong><br />
nearby areas including Waihi East,<br />
Union Hill and under the Martha open<br />
pit. Exploration continues to find highgrade<br />
veins under the Martha pit with<br />
one intercept reported as 7 m true width<br />
at 22 g/t Au and 100 g/t Ag.<br />
Glass Earth completed their Taupo<br />
Volcanic Zone airborne geophysical surveys<br />
(40,000 line km <strong>of</strong> aeromagnetic/<br />
radiometrics and 6,000 line km <strong>of</strong> airborne<br />
gravity) and are processing the<br />
data to identify drill prospects.<br />
In the South Island, OceanaGold continued<br />
development work on the Globe-<br />
Progress mine near Reefton and increased<br />
resources to 604,000 oz Au<br />
through pit design optimization.<br />
Similarly, a redesign <strong>of</strong> the plan for<br />
underground mining from 2007 on the<br />
Frasers downdip extension <strong>of</strong> the Macraes<br />
open pit mine in Otago, involved<br />
decreased tonnage but increased grade to<br />
3.05 g/t Au. CanAlaska Ventures<br />
recently completed a program <strong>of</strong> RC<br />
drilling on the Rise and Shine shear zone<br />
with joint venture<br />
to page<br />
partner OceanaGold. 34 ...<br />
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Carson City, Nevada 89704 LTLPetrographics@yahoo.com<br />
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