Alexandria to scoop up other half of Val d'Or claims
2007-05-10 12:25 ET - News Release
Mr. Eric Owens reports
ALEXANDRIA TO PURCHASE 100% OF IAMGOLD PROPERTIES IN VAL D'OR
Alexandria Minerals Corp. has signed a letter of intent with Gestion Iamgold-Quebec Inc. to acquire a 100-per-cent interest in two properties in the Val d'Or area on which it is currently earning a 50-per-cent interest. The properties are the Akasaba and the Bloc Sud (Bloc Sud West, Bloc Sud Trivio and Sleepy).
Subject to Toronto Stock Exchange approval, Alexandria will pay Iamgold $500,000 in cash and/or shares in three equal instalments: upon signing the agreement, and at the 12-month and 24-month anniversaries of signing. This agreement will supersede all conditions of the prior earn-in agreement (as reported in Stockwatch May 30, 2006). Previously, Iamgold had transferred management of the properties to Alexandria (see news in Stockwatch April 10, 2007). Iamgold will retain a 2-per-cent net smelter return (NSR), but Alexandria may purchase one-half of the NSR, or 1 per cent, for $500,000.
The properties consist of 90 mineral claims, and comprise an important part of Alexandria's Cadillac Break properties in the area. The properties come with two historic gold deposits, the Akasaba and the Sleepy. The Akasaba mine produced 262,500 tonnes of ore grading 5.14 grams per tonne in the 1960s, and was estimated by Louvem Mines in 1987 to host a further 255,000 tonnes grading 6.3 g/t. The Sleepy deposit was discovered by Cambior Inc. in the late 1980s, and was estimated to host 152,000 tonnes grading 5.2 g/t (Geospex 1998). These historical resource estimations do not comply with accepted standards defined in National Instrument 43-101, as a qualified person has not yet done sufficient work to classify these historical estimates as current mineral resources. The company is not treating these as current mineral resources, and views them as advanced exploration targets at this time. As such the historical estimates should not be relied upon, except as exploration targets and for modelling purposes.
These target-rich properties, in conjunction with adjacent properties on which Alexandria is earning a 100-per-cent interest from Aur Resources (collectively, the Cadillac Break properties), typify the variety of environments and styles of gold mineralization found in the Val d'Or region. At the Akasaba mine, gold was produced from massive chalcopyrite-pyrite-pyrrhotite lenses hosted in volcanic rocks near the Cadillac Break. The Sleepy zone, on the other hand, is a disseminated pyrite-gold deposit hosted in gabbro and diorite of the Vicour sill.
Alexandria recently drilled two diamond drill holes testing the Sleepy zone, which completed its first phase of drilling on the Cadillac Break properties (results are pending). This first phase program totalled 22 holes for 7,800 metres, and was designed to test a variety of targets on the 25-kilometr-long property package, ranging from early stage geophysical and geochemical targets to advanced stage historic deposits. Recent results from the company's drilling on the Orenada and Oramaque properties, showed that Orenada zone 4 and zone 2 have potential for enlargement (see news in Stockwatch March 29, 2007, and April 25, 2007).
The Val d'Or gold camp has produced more than 23 million ounces of gold in its history from such notable gold mines as the Sigma (9.2 million ounces of gold produced), the Lamaque (4.3 million ounces of gold), the Sullivan (1.2 million ounces of gold produced) and the Kiena mine (1.5 million ounces of gold) amongst others. In addition, a number of discovery and development activities have been under way including Agnico Eagle's Goldex project, hosting 1.6 million ounces of gold at an average grade of 2.1 grams per tonne, Alexis Minerals' Lac Herbin property and Osisko Explorations' Malartic property.
Data review and compilation have been a continuing process over recent months, and is being monitored by Eddy Canova (PGeo), the company's designated qualified person. To date, property-wide geophysical and geochemical compilation is near completion, and the process of entering in the more than 2,400 holes drilled over the past 70 years has begun. Detailed examination of the historic deposits is under way, and is nearing completion, in order to better target drill holes.
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