- Published: 22 September 2008
- Written by Editor
Queenston Announces First NI 43-101 Mineral Resource at Upper Beaver
Queenston Mining Inc. (TSX: QMI)(FRANKFURT: QMI)(STUTTGART: QMI)(BERLIN: QMI) ("Queenston" or the "Company") is pleased to report the results of a new mineral resource estimate at its 100% owned Upper Beaver gold-copper property located in Gauthier Township, Kirkland Lake. The mineral resource estimate was completed by Watts, Griffiths and McOuat Limited ("WGM"), Consulting Geologists and Engineers of Toronto, Canada and complies with NI 43-101.
Indicated and Inferred Mineral Resources have been determined in four zones (Porphyry, North Contact, Syenite Breccia and South Contact) that have been the focus of a 134 hole (97,065 m) drilling program that began in 2005.
Highlights
- Total Indicated Mineral Resources of 1,373,500 tonnes ("t") grading 8.5 g/t Au (capped) (375,000 oz. of Au) with 0.43% Cu. The uncapped grade is 9.7 g/t Au (427,900 oz.)
- Total Inferred Mineral Resources of 1,061,300 t grading 7.7 g/t Au (capped) (262,800 oz. of Au) with 0.39% Cu. The uncapped grade is 8.5 g/t Au (291,300 oz.)
- Drill hole UB08-135 targeting an area 300 m vertically below previous drilling intersected multiple Au-Cu zones including 2.7 g/t Au with 0.75% Cu over 4.8 m in the Porphyry Zone.
Charles Page, CEO and President of Queenston, said, "In addition to establishing a significant first mineral resource estimate at Upper Beaver that exceeds historic production, we are particularly pleased with the grade and continuity displayed by the mineralized zones. The mineralization remains open to the east, west and at depth and we feel that the gold-copper system indicates strong potential to host a one million plus ounce deposit. The Upper Beaver resource is a key milestone in Queenston's strategy of retuning to its mining roots by advancing four, 100% owned gold deposits in the Kirkland Lake camp towards production supported by a central mill."
The new mineral resources at Upper Beaver is the third NI 43-101 compliant mineral resource estimate the Company has announced this year. In July, Queenston and joint venture partner Kirkland Lake Gold Inc. ("KL Gold") reported new mineral resources on the South Claims JV property located in the western portion of the Kirkland Lake gold camp, of 39,000 t grading 38.1 g/t Au (Indicated) and 66,200 t grading 42.5 g/t Au (Inferred) (see news release dated July 16, 2008). At the Cadillac gold camp in Quebec, Queenston and joint venture partner Globex Mining ("Globex") reported an Inferred Mineral Resource of 243,200 t grading 17.3 g/t Au on the 50%-50% owned Ironwood deposit (see news release dated March 3, 2008).
Summary of Upper Beaver Mineral Resources
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Category Tonnes Cu(%) Au (g/t) Ounces Au (g/t) Ounces
(Capped) (Uncapped) (Uncapped) (Capped) (Capped)
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Indicated 1,373,500 0.43 9.7 427,900 8.5 375,000
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Inferred 1,061,300 0.39 8.5 291,300 7.7 262,800
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Note: Cutoff of 3.0 g/t Au; Au is capped at 50 g/t; Cu is capped at 2%.
The Upper Beaver mine previously produced intermittently (1919-1972), 140,000 oz. of Au and 11.9 million lbs. of Cu from 526,700 t grading 8.3 g/t Au and 1% Cu to a depth of 365 m. The majority of the mineral resource (Porphyry, North Contact, Syenite Breccia Zones) occurs in a series of breccia zones that dip steeply north (75 degrees) below the old mine workings. These zones contain chalcopyrite, magnetite, pyrite and visible gold within a mineralized corridor that extends over a horizontal and dip length of approximately 600 m near the southern contact of a syenite plug. The most prominent are the Porphyry Zones that contain approximately 75% of the mineral resource. The South Contact Zones represent three, flat lying altered and mineralized horizons containing chalcopyrite, magnetite, pyrite and visible gold that have been traced over a length of 250 m south of the mine workings. A 3-D representation of the geological models/wireframes of the zones comprising the Upper Beaver mineral resource is attached and can be viewed on the company's web site at www.queenston.ca.
Not included in the mineral resource is gold and copper mineralization associated with the North Basalt Zones where additional drilling is required to further evaluate three steeply dipping mineralized zones at the north contact of a syenite plug. Previous drill intersections from these zones announced in news releases dated October 10, 2006 include, 8.4 g/t Au with 0.3% Cu over 2.3 m and 11.3 g/t Au with 0.7% Cu over 4.2 m in hole UB06-60 and 20.8 g/t Au over 4.0 m in hole UB06-63.
Mineral Resources of Individual Zones
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Zone/Category Tonnes Cu(%) Au (g/t) Ounces Au (g/t) Ounces
(Capped) (Uncapped) (Uncapped) (Capped) (Capped)
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Porphyry Zones
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Indicated 942,600 0.52 10.9 331,100 9.6 290,700
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Inferred 859,200 0.45 9.2 255,300 8.3 229,600
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South Contact
Zones
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Indicated 209,900 0.19 6.3 42,800 6.3 42,800
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Inferred 171,400 0.15 4.9 27,000 4.9 27,000
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North Contact
Zones
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Indicated 126,700 0.47 10.0 40,700 6.9 28,200
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Inferred 12,600 0.58 16.1 6,600 9.3 3,800
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Breccia Zone
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Indicated 94,300 0.04 4.4 13,300 4.4 13,300
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Inferred 18,100 0.03 4.1 2,400 4.1 2,400
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Notes: 1. Interpretation of the mineralized zones were created as 3D
wireframes/solids based on a 3.0 g/t Au cutoff grade and a
minimum horizontal thickness of 2 m.
2. Mineral Resources were estimated using a block model with a block
size of 5m by 5m by 2m with a specific gravity of 2.9 t/m3
3. Grade capping was done on 1 m composite/individual assays at
50 g/t Au and 2% Cu.
4. Assumed gold price was US$650/ounce.
The Independent Qualified Person for the NI 43-101 compliant mineral resource estimate is Michael W. Kociumbas, B.Sc., P.Geo. of WGM. The NI 43-101 technical report on the mineral resource estimate will be filed on SEDAR within 45 days of this news release.
Program design, management, Quality Assurance/Quality control and interpretation of results is under the control of Queenston's geological staff many of which are qualified persons as defined by NI 43-101. Overall supervision is by Wayne Benham, B.Sc., P.Geo., Queenston's Chief Geologist. A detailed review of Queenston's QA/QC procedures is filed in the 2007 Annual Information Form on SEDAR.
Exploration Activity at Upper Beaver
The Company has completed nine exploratory drill holes testing a variety of targets on the property including geophysical anomalies that resulted from a Quantec Geoscience, Titan 24 survey. The most significant result was hole UB08-135 that was drilled to target the Porphyry Zone at a vertical depth of 1,100 m in the vicinity of a Titan anomaly. This hole intersected the zone approximately 300 m vertically below the previous drilling and assayed 2.7 g/t Au with 0.75% Cu over a core length of 4.8 m (3.5 m true width). This intersection beneath the new mineral resource confirms the continuity of the mineralized corridor to depth and adds potential for additional resources at Upper Beaver.
Other holes that intersected gold mineralization as part of the anomaly testing program include UB08-130 assaying 5.4 g/t Au over 1.9 m under the North Basalt Zone, UB08-132 and UB08-132W assaying 1.2 g/t Au over 0.8 m and 3.0 g/t Au over 1.5 m located south of the mine workings, and hole UB08-63E assaying 4.4 g/t Au over 0.5 m at the projected location of the Porphyry Zone, 150 m west of hole UB08-135 and 130 m deeper at the -1265 level (true width estimated at 75% of core length).
Holes UB08-129, -131, -133 and -134 targeted isolated Titan anomalies outside the limits of the known Upper Beaver deposit. Each hole intersected zones of alteration and sulphide mineralization and indicate the broad nature of the mineralized system associated to the deposit. Although no significant values were encountered in these holes further exploration is warranted. Drilling has now begun to extend the deposit both east and west of the known mineral resource. Also, metallurgical testing on a composite of the Upper Beaver mineralization is in progress and preliminary results are very encouraging. Test work by SGS Mineral Services Inc. ("SGS")under the supervision of the Company's consultant Peter Godbehere, B.Sc., A.R.S.M., indicates a 96% recovery of gold and 96% recovery of copper from gravity/floatation methods. A preliminary economic assessment of the Upper Beaver project will be initiated upon final results of the test program.
Company Strategy
The Company's strategy is to return to producer status through the advancement of our primary gold assets in Kirkland Lake, Ontario and in Cadillac, Quebec. In the eastern portion of the Kirkland Lake camp the Company is focused on advancing four, 100% owned gold deposits (Upper Beaver, McBean, Anoki and Upper Canada) towards production employing a central milling facility. The success at Upper Beaver in establishing a new mineral resource is the first stage of the plan. Currently two drills are operating at the past producing McBean deposit to advance historic resources of 835,000 t grading 5.1 g/t Au (Measured and Indicated) and 1,835,200 t grading 6.5 g/t (Inferred) towards NI 43-101 status. The historic resources at McBean are not compliant with NI 43-101 and can not be relied upon. Adjacent to McBean, the Anoki gold deposit hosts a NI 43-101 Measured and Indicated Mineral Resource of 522,300 t grading 5.7 g/t and an Inferred Mineral Resource of 141,800 t grading 6.2 g/t. Exploration drilling will also commence this year at the Upper Canada mine where previously 1.5 million oz of gold were produced at an average grade of 11 g/t. An historic resource of 1.9 million t grading 7.0 g/t (Measured and Indicated) remains at Upper Canada and has potential to expand. The historic resources at Upper Canada are not compliant with NI 43-101 and can not be relied upon.
In the western portion of the camp the Company maintains joint ventures with Kirkland Lake Gold Inc. ("KL Gold") on three properties adjacent to the Macassa mine. In 2006, KL Gold made a significant new gold discovery on the Macassa property (the south Mine complex ("SMC")) that currently hosts in excess of 1.0 million ounces of gold and continues to grow. The SMC was recently extended onto the jointly owned (50%-50%) South Claims JV property where underground exploration has already outlined a high-grade NI 43-101 Indicated Mineral Resource of 39,000 t grading 38.1 g/t and an Inferred Mineral Resource of 66,200 t grading 42.5 g/t. Advanced underground exploration, consisting of drifting and diamond drilling is continuing on the JV property to expand the mineral resource to the east, west and south where it remains open. Adjacent to and west of the JV property, Queenston is continuing with a deep surface diamond drill program on the 100% owned AK property targeting the down-dip projection of the SMC. Results at AK indicate the presence of the same geological environment that hosts the SMC at Macassa.
In the Cadillac gold camp Queenston and joint venture partner Globex are advancing the Ironwood deposit to determine its economic viability. The deposit contains a NI 43-101 Inferred Mineral Resource of 243,200 t grading 17.3 g/t Au and recent diamond drilling was successful in confirming the geological interpretation including new intersections of 12.4 g/t Au over 5.8 m (hole W08-61), 14.4 g/t Au over 9.9 m (hole W08-63) and 15.3 g/t Au over 15.0 m (hole W8-64) (see news release dated July 9, 2008). Drilling at Ironwood has also extended the deposit closer to surface with an intersection of 11.7 g/t Au over 8.8 m in hole W08-73 (see news release dated July 23, 2008). Metallurgical testing of the Ironwood mineralization is being performed by SGS to provide the joint venture with options regarding treatment methods.
Queenston is well financed to meet its expenditure requirements with working capital reported at June 30, 2008 of approximately $22 million.
This news release was reviewed by Queenston's Chief Geologist and qualified person Wayne Benham, P. Geo.
Forward Looking Statements
Except for historical information this News Release may contain certain "forward looking statements". These statements may involve a number of known and unknown risks and uncertainties and other factors that may cause the actual results, level of activity and performance to be materially different from the Company's expectations and projections. A more detailed discussion of the risks is available in the "Annual Information Form" filed by the Company on SEDAR at www.sedar.com.
Contacts:
Queenston Mining Inc.
Charles E. Page, P. Geo.
President and CEO
(416) 364-0001 (ext. 224)
Queenston Mining Inc.
Hugh D. Harbinson
Chairman
(416) 364-0001 (ext. 225)
Queenston Mining Inc.
Andreas Curkovic
Investor Relations
(416) 577-9927
Email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
Website: www.queenston.ca
SOURCE: Queenston Mining Inc.
mailto:This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. http://www.queenston.ca
