SUDBURY, ON, July 2 /CNW/ - In 1999, Flag's drill hole, BL 99-1, located
north of Boland's Lake, Rathbun Township, in the Wanapitei Anomaly,
intersected 371 feet of quartz rich gabbro (silicified gabbro), containing
pyrrhotite and chalcopyrite, from 154 to 290 feet and from 630 to 865 feet.
Flag has confirmed the presence of quartz rich gabbro in two outcrops, 200
feet apart, 750 feet east and 100 feet north of BL99-1. The outcrops, 100
percent altered, with epidote chlorite and biotite, contain 23.8 and 20.2
percent purest quartz respectively. Flag is drilling an exploratory drill hole
into one of the quartz rich gabbro outcrops, to test its potential for
pyrrhotite and chalcopyrite and drilling an exploratory drill hole into a
nearby VLF airborne anomaly, confirmed on the ground by a VLF survey.
COBALT HILL
In July 2001, Flag asked Dr. Eva Schandl, Geological Consultant, Research
Associate, Department of Geology, University of Toronto, to do a mineralogical
study of mineralized outcrops, called "Cobalt Hill", located 2600 feet
southeast of the Wolf Lake gold-copper deposit in the northern perimeter of
Mackelcan Township in the Wanapitei Anomaly.
In her first report, Dr. Schandl informed Flag that the ubiquitous
occurrence of fuchsite (chromium (CR) rich muscovite) in quartz veins of the
altered sedimentary rocks in drill hole CH92-1, Flag's vertical drill at
Cobalt Hill, supported the concept of a mafic/ ultramafic igneous intrusion in
the vicinity of the sedimentary rocks, as chromium is a relatively immobile
element, not likely to move far from its source. As fuschite only persists to
2200 feet in the drill hole, the suspected igneous sources could be within
mineable depth.
Continuing her mineralogical studies, Dr. Schandl made a significant
discovery. She detected the presence of salt cubes in fluid inclusions in the
quartz veins at the drill hole, which indicated super-saline fluids in the
inclusions. Fluid inclusion analysis confirmed that the fluids at Cobalt Hill
were comparable to the super-saline fluids documented in ore deposits in the
adjoining Sudbury Anomaly. The significance of Dr. Schandl's discovery is that
the saline fluids in the Sudbury deposits are believed to have been
responsible for the mobilization and concentration of platinum group elements
and copper.
Continuing with her mineralogical study Dr. Schandl reported to Flag that
she had detected, in pyrite within quartz veins that had crystallized from the
super saline fluids, the ubiquitous presence of small inclusions of three
nickel-bearing sulfides - pentlandite, gersdorffite and bravoite, as well as
chalcopyrite, mercury tellurides and gold, suggesting that the source of the
saline fluids must have been rich in nickel, copper and gold.
Flag believes that this is the first discovery of Sudbury type
mineralization in the Wanapitei Anomaly, and the first in the Sudbury mining
camp, to be discovered by mineralogical and fluid inclusion studies. Dr.
Schandl suggests that the source of the metals, like the source of the
chromium, is a mineralized mafic/ultramafic igneous intrusion probably not too
far away and not too deep.
An application has been made, on behalf of Flag, to the Ontario Mineral
Exploration Technologies (OMET) Program, for a grant of $299,840 with Flag
contributing $74,960 for a total of $374,800 for a project to test the theory
that the source of the Ni-Cu-PGE mineralization, discovered by Dr. Eva
Schandl's studies at Cobalt Hill, may be a relatively shallow (650 to 1000
metres deep) Sudbury style mineralized mafic/ultramafic intrusion.
The proposed exploration team for the project consists of a variety of
experts in the field:
Dr. Peter Giblin, Sudbury, Geologist and field leader
Dr. Eva Schandl, Toronto, Mineralogist and research leader
Dr. Micheal Gorton, Toronto, Geochemist, Professor, University of Toronto
Eberhart Berrer, Sudbury, Geophysicist
Nick Contini, Calgary, Mineral Process Engineer, SNC Lavalin Group
Edwin Bauer, Calgary, Project Mining Engineer, SNC Lavalin Group
From 2002 to 2003, the project team proposes to conduct a detailed
investigation of the nature of fluids and sulfide minerals, in the Cobalt Hill
area, along with high resolution aeromagnetic, audio-magnetotelluric (AMT) and
down the hole electro-magnetic surveys to locate the mafic/ultramafic
intrusion that is considered to be the source of chromium, cobalt and
nickel-copper bearing sulfides identified by Dr. Schandl's studies.
The project team would also, by using a combination of techniques that
includes geophysical methods, combined with mineralogy, fluid inclusion
systems and geochemistry, endeavor to make a significant exploration
technology breakthrough, by the development of new methodology, that could be
used to find buried Sudbury-type intrusions and deposits in areas covered by
Huronian sediments, such as the 54 mile long Wanapitei Anomaly, which adjoins
the Sudbury Anomaly and the Sudbury Igneous Complex. |
