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Gold/Mining/Energy : An obscure ZIM in Africa traded Down Under -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: TobagoJack who wrote (842)	5/23/2003 10:11:41 PM
From: Snowshoe	Respond to of 867

Prospects look fine for platinum near Ketchikan CONTRACTS: Capital starting to flow in for a look at Union Bay site. adn.com By SARANA SCHELL Anchorage Daily News (Published: May 23, 2003) One of the world's largest platinum producers has signed on to prospect in Southeast Alaska this summer for the metal nearly twice as precious as gold. Vancouver, British Columbia-based Freegold Ventures staked more than 6,000 acres in the Union Bay area 35 miles northwest of Ketchikan in 2000, said Freegold consultant Curt Freeman. Drill tests the following year were interesting enough to attract partners. First came Pacific North West Capital, which shares offices and its chief executive, Harry Barr, with Freegold. Both companies are traded on the Toronto Stock Exchange. The Lonmin Group, which calls itself the third-largest primary producer of platinum group metals in the world, officially joined the venture Wednesday. The producer committed $815,000 to the project this summer after a year of contract negotiations, Barr said. Future investment will hinge on the results of this year's prospecting. If Lonmin signs on for another year, Barr said, the contract requires at least $1 million from the producer. Pacific North West Capital, which is operating the exploration phase, hired Fairbanks geologic consulting company Avalon Development Corp. to manage the prospecting. At the average pace for mining exploration, a study to peg the profitability of development is three to five years out, Barr said. If the numbers point to go, first production could take another five years. Platinum is popular in jewelry and as an effective pollution reducer in car exhausts. A troy ounce of platinum was $663 on the New York Mercantile on Thursday; gold was $368. Freegold also is exploring for gold in Interior Alaska's Fairbanks and Goodpaster districts, in Idaho and in Ontario. Daily News reporter Sarana Schell can be reached at sschell@adn.com.