Thundermin Resources Inc. (“Thundermin”) and Queenston Mining Inc. (“Queenston”) announce that they have agreed to enter into a joint venture whereunder Queenston can earn 50% of Thundermin’s interest in the Duck Pond base metal property in Newfoundland by committing to spend $1,400,000 on the property prior to June 30, 2000, by assuming 50% of Thundermin’s future obligations on the property and by subscribing for $150,000 of ordinary common shares of Thundermin at a price of $0.22 per share. Thundermin will remain the operator of all exploration programs on the property.
The Duck Pond property is located in west-central Newfoundland approximately 30 km southeast of the past-producing, high grade, Buchans base metal mine. The property covers 11,796 hectares of highly prospective mineral lands on which inferred resources of 6,000,000 tonnes of copper-zinc-silver-gold mineralization occur in two volcanogenic massive sulphide deposits (See Table). The Upper Duck lens represents an underground resource lying between 250 to 450 m below surface that averages 18m thick. The Lower Duck lens occurs between 700 to 800 m below surface and is believed to be the down-faulted continuation of the Upper Duck lens. The Sleeper lens, which is poorly defined, lies approximately 50 m stratigraphically below the Upper Duck lens. The Boundary Deposit is located 4.5 km northeast of Duck Pond and is amenable to open pit mining methods.
|
Tonnes %Cu %Zn %Pb Ag(g/t)
Au(g/t) |
Duck Pond Deposit |
|
Upper Duck Lens 3,880,000 3.8 6.7 1.1 71.0 1.1 |
|
Lower Duck Lens 1,000,000 2.8 5.0 1.4 32.5 0.6 |
|
Sleeper Lens 676,000 1.7 8.7 1.2 62.5 0.5 |
|
5,556,000 3.4 6.6 1.2 64.5 0.93 |
|
Boundary Deposit 446,000 3.5 3.5 0.5 22.8 - |
|
|
|
Total 6,002,000 3.38 6.4 1.12
61.35 0.87 |
As previously announced on March 2, 1999, Thundermin holds the right to acquire a 100% interest in the Duck Pond property from Noranda Inc. (“Noranda”) by spending $1,400,000 on the property prior to June 30, 2000 and by making a production decision on any deposit outlined on the property and making a cash payment of $500,000 to Noranda by June 30, 2003 and
placing any such deposit into commercial production by June 30, 2006. Thundermin is also required to make a $3,000,000 cash payment to Noranda upon achieving full production and to pay Noranda a 2% Net Smelter Return Royalty (“NSR”) on any production from the property. Noranda retains the right, under certain circumstances, to re-acquire a 50% interest in the property by completing a positive feasibility study and providing Thundermin and Queenston with production financing for their 50% share of construction costs.
Thundermin and Queenston intend to carry out a $1.4 million exploration program consisting of: surface diamond drilling to update and increase the resource of the Upper Duck lens, the Boundary deposit and the Sleeper lens; relogging of previous drill holes to refine the geological interpretation in the area of the deposits; additional metallurgical testing to enhance recoveries and concentrate grades; and drilling other base metal targets on this large property. The results of this program, which is to be completed by June 30, 2000, will form the basis for a decision to proceed with an underground exploration program. Such a program would include detailed definition drilling of the Upper Duck and Sleeper lenses and the extraction of a bulk sample for metallurgical testing necessary to complete a production feasibility study.
A $650,000, first phase, diamond drilling program will focus primarily on confirming and expanding resources in the Upper Duck and Sleeper lenses in addition to drilling a previously untested geophysical target adjacent to the Boundary deposit. This program is expected to commence in May once necessary work permits and drilling contracts have been secured and is expected to take approximately four months to complete. Thundermin and Queenston will advise shareholders once the drilling commences.
- 30 -
May 6 , 1999
For further information please contact Mr. John B. Heslop, President of Thundermin (THR:TSE) or Mr. Charles E. Page, President of Queenston (QMI:TSE) at (416) 364-0001.
Suite 1116, 111 Richmond Street
West, Toronto, Ontario M5H 2G4
Tel: (416) 364-0001 Fax (416) 364-5098