Canmine to go hunting for nickel Deposit northeast of Thompson could be
bigger than Voisey's Bay
Winnipeg Free Press, Tue, Dec 12, 2000
By Murray McNeill
CANMINE Resources Corp. is launching a $2 million exploration drilling
project next month in northern Manitoba.
The Ontario-based junior mining company said it plans to drill 25 holes on
its BINCO nickel property over the course of this winter, next spring and
summer.
The 163,145-hectare property is located northeast of the Thompson Nickel
Belt, which is one of the largest nickel-producing regions in the world.
Canmine officials are hoping to discover one or more large nickel deposits
on the property.
Canmine president Ted Ellwood said in a telephone interview that mining
industry officials have long believed the Thompson Nickel Belt extended east
of Thompson, so that's where most of the exploration work has focused in the
past.
But new geological data unearthed over the last couple of years suggests the
belt may extend to the northeast of Thompson, rather than to the east.
"So there are good geological reasons for looking in that area," Ellwood
said.
He said if nickel deposits are found in the area, it could prove to be an
even bigger find than the Voisey's Bay nickel deposit in northern Labrador
because Voisey's Bay is a single deposit and this could be a "belt" of
deposits.
"That would have the interest of every major mining company in the world,"
he said.
Ellwood said Canmine has spent about $1.6 million over the last three years
to advance the BINCO project to the drilling stage. He said company
officials hope to have all 25 holes completed by the end of next summer.
"But a lot depends on how easily we can move between drill sites," he said.
Ellwood also noted if nickel is found in the rock at one of the drill sites,
the company would expand the drilling activity at that location to try to
determine the size of the deposit, so that could delay the completion of the
other holes in the original drilling plan.
Canmine is continuing its exploration and development work on a proposed $20
million nickel and copper mine in Nopiming Provincial Park near Lac du
Bonnet, and with the further development of a cobalt refinery it acquired
late last year near Cobalt, Ont. |
