Hi Claude,
Since most of my DD is already on paper, just thought I would share with the thread most of what I found while conducting my research. Most of you probably already know all this stuff, but I figured the following might still benefit a few individuals, therefore the post!
Manhattan Minerals Corp MAN
manhattan-min.com
Shares issued 24,264,523
Directors and Officers
Graham G. Clow
President and CEO
Robert R. Stone, B.Sc., C.A.
Chairman of the Board
Peter F. Tegart, P.Geo.
Managing Director, Director
*Robert D. Willis, P.Eng
Director
Edward R. Hirst
Director
**John C. Lamacraft
Director
Brian Lock
Director
Harry P. Sutherland, C.A.
Chief Financial Officer & Corporate Secretary
Richard D. Allan
Vice President, Engineering
manhattan-min.com
*Mr. Willis, the President and C.E.O. of the Company, retired from his position. Mr. Willis remains a director and a significant shareholder
**Mr. Lamacraft was recently appointed as a director of the company. Mr. Lamacraft is chairman and chief executive officer of Jascan Resources Inc. of Toronto. In addition thereto, Mr. Lamacraft is a director of Alberta Energy Company Limited and Aber Resources Ltd. Until 1996, Mr. Lamacraft was president and chief executive officer of Conwest Exploration Company Limited.
Financial situation and recent financings
As of March 31, 1999, Manhattan had working capital of $4.3-million
During 1998 and early 1999, the Company's outstanding debt was repaid and their hedge position was closed out
In January, the company raised approximately $2-million from a private placement of 1,017,000 special warrants at $2.95. The final prospectus under which the placement was done qualifies for distribution the 1,017,000 units that are issuable upon exercise of said special warrants. Each unit consists of one common share and one common share purchase warrant. Each purchase warrant entitles the holder to acquire a common share at a price of $6 until Jan. 21, 2000.
Moreover, it must be noted that their special warrant financing reported in the Stockwatch June 3, 1999 release, was oversubscribed (3 million special warrants surpassing the initial amount of 2.67 million). The syndicate led by First Marathon Securities Limited announced that 3.0 million special warrants at $3.75 each were sold for a total issue price of $11.25-million. Of said amount 7 million was underwritten on a bought-deal basis, the rest being sold on a best-efforts basis. Each special warrant is exercisable, without payment of additional consideration, for one unit. Each unit consists of one common share and one half of a common warrant. The holder of a whole warrant is entitled to purchase a common share at a price of $4.50 (Canadian) per share at any time before June 14, 2004, subject to earlier adjustment of the exercise price of the warrants in certain events after one year.
Recent developments to be noted
On May 15, 1999, the company received final approval from the government of Peru to proceed with exploration of the concessions The government of Peru fnally issued the final supreme decree approving its option to earn a 75-per-cent interest in the Tambo Grande mining concessions in northern Peru. By this Decree, Manhattan received all necessary approvals to immediately commence exploration of the Concession area. The Supreme Decree is the culmination of more than three years of negotiation with the Government to formalise the rights. Other than normal environmental permitting, no other approvals are required to bring the property to production.
The supreme decree approves an option agreement, the key business aspects of which are:
1. Manhattan has three years in which to produce a feasibility study and financing plan for the development and construction of a mining complex.
2. Upon exercise of the option, Manhattan will own a 75-per-cent interest in a new company, Empresa Minera Tambo Grande S.A. (EMTG), which will own and develop the mine. The remaining 25-per-cent interest in EMTG will be held by Minero Peru.
3. In order to exercise the option at the end of the three-year period, Manhattan must be the operator of a 10,000-tonnes-per-day mining operation and have net assets valued in excess of $100-million (U.S.). This requirement will be waived if a company that meets the criteria holds 25 per cent of the shares of Manhattan, or any subsidiary of Manhattan.
4. Following exercise, EMTG will have a four-year term to develop a mine, with a spending commitment as defined in the feasibility study. The spending commitment will be waived if the project is completed for a lesser amount.
5. Manhattan will provide Minero Peru's equity contribution to EMTG and will arrange for all debt financing for the project.
6. EMTG will pay to Minero Peru a net smelter royalty on production, based on a sliding scale ranging from nil at 60 U.S. cents per pound of copper to 5 per cent at $1.20 (U.S.) per pound of copper.
Properties
manhattan-min.com
Tambo Grande
manhattan-min.com
In northern Peru, Manhattan has 87,000 hectares of prospective exploration land that comprise the Tambo Grande Project.The Project is located in the Department of Piura, mostly within the Province of Piura and District of Tambo Grande. The Tambo Grande Project is subdivided into three sub-projects: the Tambo Grande Concessions, the Lancones Concessions and the Papayo Concessions.
In short, the Tambo Grande Concessions comprise ten mining concessions, covering an area of 10,000 hectares. The Concessions are owned by Minero Peru (a state owned company) which has granted Manhattan an option to earn a 75% interest.The Tambo Concessions host one identified polymetallic volcanogenic massive sulphide deposit, TG-1, plus seven other significant geophysical anomalies within a five-km. radius. TG-1 was discovered by BRGM in 1979 and subsequent work, including diamond drilling, identified a potentially open pittable geological resource of 42 million tonnes, grading 2.0% copper, 1.5% zinc, 38 grams of silver per tonne and 0.4% lead. In addition, recent sampling has identified a potentially significant gold content that has yet to be systematically quantified. Overlying the deposit is an oxide cap, which hosts further gold values. None of the other anomalies were tested by BRGM.
Manhattan recently announced the results of gold and silver assays carried out on the resampling of core from 21 holes on the TG-1 deposit, drilled by BRGM in 1979/80. TG-1 is a volcanogenic massive sulphide deposit hosting an inferred resource in the sulphide zone of 42 million tonnes grading 2 per cent copper, 1.5 per cent zinc, 38 grams silver per tonne and 0.4 per cent lead. The following summarizes the results of assays of drill core from the oxide cap overlying the sulphide zone. Prior to this resampling program by Manhattan, the gold content in both the oxide cap and the sulphide zone had not been systematically quantified. The company expects to release assay results from the BRGM sulphide zone drilling within the next 10 days.
The overall weighted average of the intervals in bold in the table below is 4.93 grams gold per tonne and 98.8 grams silver per tonne, over 11.5 metres true width. The overall weighted average over the total oxide thickness is 3.06 grams gold per tonne and 62.4 grams silver per tonne, over 18.3 metres true width.
Thick- True Uncut
Hole ness From To Width Au Ag
m m m m g/t g/t
TG-1 18.1 10.0 30.9 18.1 5.06 48.1
Incl. 17.0 21.0 3.5 10.95 16.8
26.0 30.9 12.0 8.87 150.7
TG-3 15.7 19.0 28.0 9.0 4.57 21.0
Incl. 21.0 23.0 2.0 5.96 17.1
26.0 28.0 2.0 8.21 32.6
TG-4 8.5 26.2 30.5 4.3 6.76 94.4
TG-6 52.5 21.1 38.0 16.9 4.83 63.1
Incl. 26.0 36.6 10.6 5.84 58.1
TG-7 19.5 17.0 31.1 14.1 0.61 30.8
TG-8 18.3 10.0 28.3 18.3 4.78 56.0
Incl. 11.0 20.0 9.0 7.39 54.8
TG-9 15.9 24.0 32.0 8.0 8.26 29.8
Incl. 26.7 30.7 4.0 15.30 39.0
TG-10 17.5 9.0 25.0 16.0 1.76 8.4
TG-11 17.8 16.0 29.8 13.8 7.82 628.9
Incl. 19.4 25.0 5.6 11.4 15.0
TG-12 18.7 27.2 32.3 5.1 6.29 36.7
TG-13 11.9 16.2 25.7 9.5 3.07 7.1
Incl. 21.0 25.7 4.7 4.65 11.5
TG-16 12.8 24.0 28.9 4.9 19.12 80.7
Incl. 26.0 28.9 2.9 30.52 117.8
TG-17 4.5 22.5 27 4.5 7.88 18.4
TG-18 44.0 27.1 42.2 15.1 2.58 140.0
TG-19 10.9 19.3 30.2 10.9 3.56 31.0
TG-20 9.8 16.5 26.3 9.8 6.29 33.0
Incl. 23.7 26.3 2.6 21.90 112.8
TG-21 14.5 18.0 32.5 14.5 5.32 169.9
Incl. 25.5 32.5 7.0 8.74 294.0
Holes 2, 2b, 2c, and 5 are located on the northwest fringe of the deposit and contain oxidized volcanics, rather than oxidized sulphides. Core from holes 14 and 15 was used previously by BRGM for test work.
The BRGM drilling was carried out on a hole spacing ranging from 50 metres to 150 metres, extending over an area of approximately 700 metres by 300 metres. All holes except TG-1 were vertical. The core was held in secure storage by BRGM until July, 1998, when it was transferred to Manhattan's secure core logging facility in Piura, Peru. The samples were taken at one-metre intervals from HQ (63 millimetre) size whole core. The core was halved and the remaining portion kept for future analysis, if required. Assay results are reported as uncut. Out of a total of 422 samples in the intervals reported above, two samples were greater than 30 grams gold per tonne, the highest being 80.97 grams per tonne over 0.4 of a metre.
The oxide cap is composed of a stratified gossanous sequence overlying the sulphide zone. The base of the sequence is typically a ferruginous baritic sandstone, grading upward into oxidized and altered rhyolite, a silicified and locally barite bearing goethite-cemented breccia and, finally, upward into a clay rich gossan. The gold concentration increases with depth in the oxide cap and appears to overlie base metal concentrations in the underlying sulphide zone.
The oxide cap is overlain by approximately 15.4 metres of sandy overburden. Assay results have yet to be received from the new Manhattan drilling (see Stockwatch June 17, 1999) to determine whether the oxides that continue beyond the BRGM defined limits are gold bearing.
Sampling methods, preparation and analytical procedures were carried out under a quality control program designed by MRDI Canada, a division of H.A. Simons Ltd., and ITS-Bondar Clegg Ltd. The samples were prepared by ITS-Bondar Clegg at Manhattan's core logging facility and then transported by ITS-Bondar Clegg for analysis in Canada. Gold concentration was determined by standard fire assay methodology. Silver concentration was determined using total acid digestion with AA finish. The quality control program included the insertion of duplicates, standards and blanks, in addition to ITS-Bondar Clegg's standard quality control program. ITS-Bondar Clegg is registered to ISO 9002 standard and all assays are certified by B.C. certified assayers.
As to the Lancones Concessions, it cover an area of 74,000 hectares, 100% owned by Manhattan.
Finally, the Papayo Concessions cover an area of 3,000 hectares. These concessions are owned by CEDIMIN S.A. and Manhattan can earn a 51% interest by carrying out exploration and feasibility work over the next four years. As a result, Manhattan now holds rights and interest to a total of 77,000 hectares outside the Tambo Concessions. This ground is at the early stages of exploration. Recent gravity geophysical surveys on portions of this ground have identified more than ten anomalies, which will require further work.
Moris Mine
manhattan-min.com
The Moris Mine is a 3,000 tonnes per day heap leach gold/silver mine located in Chihuahua State, northern Mexico
1998 saw record production levels achieved. A total of 21,100 ounces of gold and 77,800 ounces of silver were produced. Cash operating costs were $252 per ounce after inventory adjustments.
Manhattan made several improvements to the Moris operation (improvements were made in throughput rate, grade control, laboratory accuracy and reliability, heap chemistry, and ADR plant operations), ensuring that said operation can operate profitably and consistently in a depressed gold market
By the way Claude, we miss you on the frenchy thread [ggggg]
Kind Regards
Ari |
