RENO, NEVADA–(Marketwire – Jan. 18, 2012) - NuLegacy Gold Corporation (TSX VENTURE:NUG) reports that the results of the recently completed deep-penetration induced polarization and resistivity (“IP/R”) geophysical survey on its Red Hill gold exploration project in Nevada indicate that the high-grade gold bearing Central Pediment Anomaly is significantly larger than initially indicated.

“The new IP/R survey indicates that the structures and hydrothermal alteration related to the high-grade gold mineralization intersected in the historical drill hole BRH-13 (24.4 meters of 4.9 g/t Au, including 13.7 meters of 8.1 g/t Au) in the Central Pediment anomaly are much larger and thicker than indicated by the our previous IP/R survey,” says Dr. Steininger, NuLegacy’s COO. “This expansion is another important and valuable step toward our goal of discovering significant Carlin-type gold deposits at the Red Hill Project.”

The new survey was designed to follow-up on and enhance the original IP/R survey (press released on January 13, 2011), which had an approximate penetration depth of 350 meters, by going deeper and extending it to the west onto the subsequently optioned Barrick Gold portion of NuLegacy’s Red Hill Project. The new survey was designed to penetrate to a depth of over 700 meters to develop a better understanding of the controls and the possible extensions of the high-grade gold mineralization that had been intersected by BRH-013.

The new IP/R survey data indicates a much larger target extending considerably further to the west of hole BRH-13 than indicated by the initially more limited survey. It now appears BRH-13 only intersected the eastern edge of the now much-expanded Central Pediment Anomaly. Furthermore, the geology of the expanded Central Pediment Anomaly appears similar to that hosting BRH-13 indicating a much larger zone of carbonate rocks containing carbonaceous/pyritic material that may also be gold bearing. This deeper-penetrating IP/R survey over the Long Fault and Central Pediment Anomalies was executed by Zonge International during November 2011.

NuLegacy Gold is now integrating the new IP/R survey data with the existing geophysical database and drill results from this part of the Red Hill Project to pinpoint the drill targets for testing this deeper zone starting in Q1 of 2012. We also plan to continue drilling the highly prospective nearby Long Fault Anomaly.

NuLegacy Gold’s 100 square km Red Hill Project is in the Cortez Segment of the Battle-Mountain trend immediately adjacent to Barrick Gold’s newly announced (Sept. 2011) 3.5 million ounce inferred gold resource on the Red Hill-Goldrush discoveries.

The Cortez Segment is a more than 5 km wide and over 25 km long west-northwest alignment of known large bulk-mineable, sediment-hosted gold deposits. This truly “world class” gold district includes the Pipeline Complex (which NuLegacy’s COO Dr. Roger Steininger is credited with discovering in 1989), the Cortez and the Cortez Hills gold mines, as well as the recent Red Hill-Goldrush gold discoveries. NuLegacy’s Red Hill Prospect comprises similar geology to these gold deposits.

NuLegacy Gold Corporation is a Nevada focused exploration company exploring for Carlin-type replacement gold deposits on its two highly prospective district scale properties; the 100 km² Red Hill Project and the 80 km² Wood Hills South Project. Both projects have geology similar to the adjacent multi-million ounce gold discoveries that were made subsequent to the acquisition of our properties. The NuLegacy exploration and drilling programs underway employ proprietary techniques for targeting multi-million ounce deposits.

On Behalf Of The Board Of Directors Of NuLegacy Gold Corporation

Albert J. Matter, Chief Executive Officer

For further information please visit our website at www.NuLegacygold.com.

This news release and the accompanying graphics link contain forward-looking statements, which relate to future events or future performance and reflect management’s current expectations and assumptions. Such forward-looking statements reflect management’s current beliefs and are based on assumptions made by and information currently available to the Company. Readers are cautioned that these forward looking statements are neither promises nor guarantees, and are subject to risks and uncertainties that may cause future results to differ materially from those expected. See the cautionary statement “Forward-Looking Statements” and “Risk Factors” in the Company’s prospectus dated November 10, 2010 available on SEDAR at www.sedar.com. These forward-looking statements are made as of the date hereof and the Company does not assume any obligation to update or revise them to reflect new events or circumstances save as required under applicable securities legislation. This news release does not constitute an offer to sell securities and the Company is not soliciting an offer to buy securities in any jurisdiction in which such offer, solicitation or sale would be unlawful prior to registration or qualification under the securities laws of such jurisdiction. The technical disclosure in this press release and the accompanying graphics link has been reviewed by Dr. Roger Steininger, the Chief Operating Officer of the Company and a Qualified Person as defined by National Instrument 43-101 of the Canadian Securities Administrators.

]]> http://www.houstongoldnews.com/gold/nulegacy-gold-reports-geophysical-survey-expands-high-grade-gold-zone%e2%80%99s-potential/feed/ 0 http://www.houstongoldnews.com/gold/phase-1-drill-program-at-tanoyan-gold-project-succesfully-completed/ http://www.houstongoldnews.com/gold/phase-1-drill-program-at-tanoyan-gold-project-succesfully-completed/#comments Wed, 18 Jan 2012 19:12:00 +0000 admin http://www.houstongoldnews.com/uncategorized/phase-1-drill-program-at-tanoyan-gold-project-succesfully-completed/ Phase 1 Drill Program at Tanoyan Gold Project Succesfully Completed

Read more here:
Phase 1 Drill Program at Tanoyan Gold Project Succesfully Completed

• BC11-329 with 16.0 m of 3.20 g/t gold from a depth of 41.0 m;
• BC11-333 with 5.4 m of 3.20 g/t gold from a depth of 26.6 m, as well as 23.50 m of 2.30 g/t gold from a depth of 49.0 m; and
• RC11-2391 with 22.0 m of 1.23 g/t gold from a depth of 130.0 m.

A complete table of results and location map can be found on the Company’s website at:http://www.goldenpredator.com/documents/GPD-NR12-01-Brewery-Creek-NS-Jan-05-2012-FINAL.pdf

North Slope Zone Geology
The North Slope area lies approximately 1 km northwest of the Reserve-trend deposits which were historically mined at Brewery Creek. It is parallel and structurally similar to those deposits but occupies a different (lower) part of the stratigraphic section. Gold mineralization at North Slope is hosted in altered quartz monzonite sills and adjacent siltstones.

2011 Year End Brewery Creek Project Update
The Company completed 209 core holes for 31,210 m and 135 RC holes for 24,243 m at Brewery Creek in 2011. Drilling has been concentrated on delineating the two 2011 discoveries at the Bohemian-Schooner and Sleeman Zones, with significant additional drilling on the North Slope and Classic Zones. Results are still pending for 124 core and RC holes. Resource modeling in support of an updated resource estimate is well underway.

The Brewery Creek Project is a past producing heap leach gold mining operation with a total of 278,484 oz Au produced from seven near-surface oxide deposits along the property’s Reserve Trend from 1996 through 2002, when the mine (operated by Viceroy Resource Corporation) shut down due to low gold prices. The 187 km² property is located 55 km due east of Dawson City, accessible by paved and gravel roads from the junction of the North Klondike and Dempster Highways. In May 2011 the Company staked an additional 204 quartz claims east of the historic Brewery Creek property, increasing the Project to a total of 997 quartz claims.

The Project is in receipt of all necessary permits, including the Class 3 Mining Land Use permit required to conduct additional exploration. The Brewery Creek Project is authorized under a Type A Water License with an expiry date of December 31, 2021 , subject to the restrictions and conditions contained in the Yukon Water Act and Regulations. The Project also has a production license with an expiry date of December 31, 2021 , and the ninety-three mining leases covering mine facilities, pits, waste dumps and adjacent drill indicated deposits have expiry dates beginning in 2016. In addition, a Socio-Economic Accord with Tr’ondek Hwech’in First Nation with respect to the Brewery Creek Project is in place.

Sampling Methodology, Quality Control and Assurance
Samples were fire assayed for gold by ALS Chemex and ACME Laboratories in Vancouver. All assays are reported as drilled intervals and are not to be interpreted as true widths. Refer to the Company’s news release dated October 27, 2011 for a complete discussion of sampling methods, quality control and assurance.

The technical content of this news release has been reviewed and approved by Michael Maslowski , BSc, CPG, the Company’s Chief Operating Officer and a Qualified Person as defined by National Instrument 43‐101.

About Golden Predator Corp.
Golden Predator Corp., Yukon’s Gold Company, is a well-funded exploration company mandated to become a mid-tier gold producer. Golden Predator’s road-accessible advanced properties include its flagship Brewery Creek Project at which the Company is moving aggressively to a near term production decision, as well as its Grew Creek and Clear Creek Projects.

Golden Predator has the largest controlled land position in the Yukon, with exploration holdings in excess of 1,400,000 acres (over 5,700 km²), and is committed to strong relationships with Yukon First Nations and communities. Golden Predator’s management and technical teams continue to lead aggressive exploration programs in the underexplored regions of the Yukon, and are driven to bring value to shareholders and leave a positive legacy.

No stock exchange, securities commission or other regulatory authority has approved or disapproved the information contained herein. This press release contains projections and forward-looking information that involve various risks and uncertainties regarding future events. Such forward-looking information can include without limitation statements based on current expectations involving a number of risks and uncertainties and are not guarantees of future performance. There are numerous risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results and Golden Predator’s plans and objectives to differ materially from those expressed in the forward-looking information. Actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated in such information. These and all subsequent written and oral forward-looking information are based on estimates and opinions of management on the dates they are made and are expressly qualified in their entirety by this notice. Except as required by law, Golden Predator assumes no obligation to update forward-looking information should circumstances or management’s estimates or opinions change.

Read more here:
Golden Predator continues to expand North Slope Zone at its Brewery Creek Project, Yukon

The Gold Report: Michael, the companies you cover read like a who’s who of junior precious metals explorers. But with the junior explorers vastly underperforming the gold price this year, how are you pitching these equities to your institutional clients?

Michael Gray: Other than the strong mergers and acquisitions (M&A) thesis for the majority of our coverage list, we’ve also highlighted to clients what we would call game-changing exploration upside that a number of our stocks are exposed to. One example would be Extorre Gold Mines Ltd. (XG:TSX; XG:NYSE.A; E1R:Fkft), an explorer in Santa Cruz, Argentina, which we initiated coverage on in March 2011. At that point, it was trading at $5.09/share. We had a $9.50/share target. It ran to $14/share during the summertime based on its April 2011 Zoe vein discovery at Cerro Moro. Currently, it trades around $7.50/share.

We also believe there’s a strong investor appetite for high-grade, high-margin situations with relatively near-term production associated with low capital costs and short permitting timelines. That’s really reflected in Goldcorp Inc. (G:TSX; GG:NYSE) acquisition of Andean Resources Inc. last year.

Finally, there is significant optionality associated with a number of our stocks that have large gold resources in this gold price environment.

TGR: Your target prices for precious metals explorers are predicated on prevailing forward-curve prices. That is a less than an ideal method given that it doesn’t take into account tightness or weakness in the market, interest rates or inflation-adjusted values. What are your thoughts on that?

MG: It is difficult to accurately predict gold price over the next year, let alone the next five years. We use the forward curve for precious metals adjusted about every quarter on an as-needed basis for our valuations. For the past seven years, we have found it to be a very good predictor of realized future spot prices for gold.

TGR: You recently revised your long-term gold metal price assumptions for five years. In 2017, you’re projecting a gold price of $1,837/ounce (oz) up from $1,714/oz, while your long-term price for silver is $33.42/oz up from $28.97/oz. Do you believe your price projections are aggressive in comparison with other brokerage houses?

MG: Our valuation philosophy is to use a flat 5% discount rate and the prevailing forward curve for long-term prices for gold, silver and foreign exchange. We then apply an operating multiple to the net asset value (NAV) that is less than one times NAV, whereas some banks may use a lower price deck and a different discount rate, but a multiple to NAV that is greater than one times. In the end, the entire valuation picture needs to be looked at to assess aggressiveness. We believe we’re middle of the road.

TGR: What’s your typical multiple to NAV?

MG: Among our explorers, we have a range of 0.35 to 0.85x NAV. Our high-end NAV multiples are associated with companies with high-quality assets that we see as potential takeover candidates like Extorre.

TGR: Extorre and ATAC Resources Ltd. (ATC:TSX.V) have solid potential to be involved in M&A activity in 2012, according to your reports.

MG: Extorre’s Cerro Moro project has Measured, Indicated and Inferred resources of 2.4 million ounces (Moz) gold equivalent (Au eq) that, according to its recent scoping study, are both mineable via open-pit and underground methods. We model Cerro Moro’s high-grade silver resources to have -$1,045 cash operating costs on a silver byproduct basis. This is one of the best high-grade projects out there in our view.

TGR: The Argentinean government recently issued a decree requiring the repatriation of sales proceeds for mining companies in Argentina that could impact a project like Cerro Moro. Has the way that you valued the company changed as a result of those government measures?

Shawn Campbell: We looked at that decree when it came out and the stocks definitely had an initial reaction to it. The explorers and producers, such as Barrick Gold Corp. (ABX:TSX; ABX:NYSE), have all been consistent in saying that they believe the effect of this is an additional cost of 1–2% based on revenue. The mechanics are that companies will have to convert, or repatriate, sales into pesos, but the current system allows them to transfer it back into the U.S. and then send the money abroad. We did a sensitivity study on Extorre and it had minimal effect on our target price and net asset value.

TGR: How big can Extorre’s Cerro Moro get in terms of total ounces in the ground?

MG: The analogy we draw is to AngloGold Ashanti Ltd. (AU:NYSE; ANG:JSE; AGG:ASX; AGD:LSE) vein field at its Cerro Vanguardia gold-silver mine, which has been operating since the late ’90s. Currently, it’s 9 Moz gold in past-production current resources. We hosted a conference in Toronto recently where one of the representatives from Formicruz, who formerly worked with AngloGold Ashanti, suggested that he wouldn’t be surprised if that district will ultimately see more than 12 Moz of gold produced. Extorre’s Cerro Moro project is basically an array of veins in the early stages of exploration that have a number of similarities with Cerro Vanguardia. It already has 2.4 Moz Au eq in resources. We feel comfortable that Cerro Moro could ultimately grow to a +5 Moz number in its life. We currently value Cerro Moro based on 2.7 Moz Au eq.

TGR: Who are the likely suitors?

MG: Companies that have expressed interest in that region certainly are potential suitors. If the production profile can reach the right critical mass, companies such as Eldorado Gold Corp. (ELD:TSX; EGO:NYSE) would be interested, given it had bid for Andean before. Yamana Gold Inc. (YRI:TSX; AUY:NYSE; YAU:LSE) and Goldcorp, companies with operations down in Argentina that are interested in a high-grade production of a certain size, could also be interested. We also think given that it has high silver content—roughly 50% of the value—some of the midtier silver producers could also be interested.

TGR: Why is ATAC amongst the top group of Macquarie’s list of M&A candidates given that you just cut the 12-month target price to $8.50/share from $11/share?

MG: ATAC is an early call. This is a sediment-hosted gold geological setting similar to Nevada’s Carlin trend. It has all the right signs and signals in terms of geological environment and early success in drill holes from September 2010 documented ore-grade gold mineralization over significant thicknesses. Although our Carlin thesis is intact as far as we’re concerned, it’s clear that the geological risk for defining large resources in the short term has increased due to the high degree of structural control versus lithological controls. We moved our target price down to reflect this geological risk.

We have a strong conviction that the geology associated with the Rackla gold belt is the type of hunting grounds that the seniors have been looking for, but generally haven’t found on a worldwide basis outside of Nevada, and that given the strong geological similarities the Rackla gold belt has good potential for hosting such Carlin-type gold deposit. There are very few tier-one (+20 Moz) opportunities in the world and, with the right amount of success and given its enormous 100%-owned land position, ATAC could be an attractive takeover target.

TGR: Is it any closer to proving the theory that this is a Carlin-style mineralization?

MG: With the empirical evidence of the geological setting, the mineralization style, the signature of elements—antimony, arsenic, mercury, thallium, gold, low silver—and numerous characteristic alteration features, there are not too many people out there who necessarily would disagree with that deposit-type analog. The deposit type is important as it suggests that the potential endowment could be very large given the northern part of the Carlin trend alone has 100 Moz of gold. We’re not necessarily saying that would be the endowment within the Rackla gold belt; however, we certainly see evidence of a big system in place between the Osiris targets, where there’s been a significant amount of drilling, and out 26 kilometers (km) to the west to the Pyramid gold prospect, which also has a number of the indicative geological features. Again, ATAC is an early takeover candidate in our view partly because of the rarity of this type of geology and potential.

TGR: Is there a first-mover advantage in terms of a major coming in early and locking up this belt once it has proven there are significant amounts of gold there?

MG: Some of the senior mining companies have been spending up to $50 million (M)/year on their greenfield worldwide budgets, looking for another Carlin trend or similar tier-one asset. It doesn’t take too many years of spending that amount of money to justify moving early on an asset like this at the right price.

There is no question: ATAC’s Rackla gold belt is still at a very early exploration stage and no resources have been documented. There is also a very short field season in the Yukon to contend with, especially in this particular area, so it certainly would be early and aggressive for a senior to be doing anything right now. This said, it’s a very special situation as there’s just not very many of these Carlin-type environments, especially associated with a large land position, 100% ownership and no royalties, anywhere on a worldwide basis.

TGR: Strategic Metals Ltd. (SMD:TSX.V) is developing the Midas Touch project in the Yukon, south of ATAC Resources’ Osiris discovery. Why is ATAC a takeover target and not Strategic?

MG: Strategic is a potential takeover target. However, its Midas Touch project has not yet documented a discovery drill hole with significant gold grades over a significant length, so ATAC is more likely given that it has confirmed significant gold mineralization. That said, Strategic has documented a fairly extensive +400-meter (m) long zone of arsenic mineralization on its Crag property, which seems to be in the right type of trap rocks (as ATAC’s Osiris targets). Strategic also owns about 9% of ATAC, and its Midas Touch land position is very large and could be a compelling way to gain exposure to the Rackla gold belt in the Yukon.

TGR: International Tower Hill Mines Ltd.’s (ITH:TSX; THM:NYSE.A) Livengood project in Alaska, based on $1,400/oz gold and a cutout grade of 0.22 grams/ton (g/t), has 16.5 Moz of Measured and Indicated resources and 4.1 Moz of Inferred resources. Are we ever going to see a project of that scale developed in Alaska? There are certainly a couple there now that don’t seem to be much closer to development.

MG: Livengood is a tier-one, +20 Moz gold asset, owned 100% by a junior, which is relatively rare. We currently model Livengood using a 0.35 g/t cutoff, a little bit of a higher grade, with life-of-mine grades of 0.65 g/t gold and include a starter pit in the first four years of 0.82 g/t gold. In September 2011, International Tower Hill released a large mill preliminary economic assessment (PEA), which contemplates a 91,000 ton/day (tpd) milling operation with life-of-mine average gold production of 607,000 oz per year. It is a large, low-grade mine proposition in Alaska. Livengood’s key attractive feature compared to some of the other larger development projects is its good infrastructure as it is located on a highway 100km north of Fairbanks along with access to power and water.

TGR: Donlin Creek has 50 Moz and it’s not anywhere close to being developed. Northern Dynasty Minerals Ltd.’s (NDM:TSX; NAK:NYSE.A) Pebble project is about 100 Moz and that’s not very close to being developed either. It does seem that even though the ounces are there and the geology is prospective, they’re not being developed. What is the impediment?

MG: For some of the other projects, there are significant infrastructure challenges. There aren’t necessarily roads or any power infrastructure to these sites. Northern Dynasty also has some stakeholder groups not embracing the project.

Livengood is a brownfield site from former placer mining and it’s next to the Alaska pipeline. It doesn’t have a significant stakeholder group that would be opposing the project. There aren’t obvious challenges in our view when it comes to community relations, First Nations issues or competing interests.

TGR: Rainy River Resources Ltd. (RR:TSX.V) just made a nickel-copper-cobalt discovery at its Rainy River gold project in northwestern Ontario. What do you know about that project?

MG: The Rainy River gold project is part of a new Canadian gold belt. It has more than 6 Moz gold in its global Measured, Indicated and Inferred resources. It’s 100% owned and associated with a large land position—all attributes we like. A recent scoping study documented a combined open-pit/underground mine scenario that would produce 325,000 oz/year over about a 13-year mine life. The economic study estimated initial capital costs and sustaining capital of about $1.5 billion. It resulted in a pretax internal rate of return (IRR) of just less than 20% and a net present value (NPV) of $786,000 using a 5% discount rate. This project has come into greater visibility with this study.

It’s extremely well located near the U.S. border in northwestern Ontario. The capital expenditure estimated in the PEA at $1.4B for initial and sustaining capital is higher than we expected. It is modeled as a 30 t/d operation. It will have a higher than average strip ratio to deal with and have overburden and water management issues to deal with, but certainly is a project that can be permitted. As far as the nickel-copper-cobalt discovery, it’s not important to our valuation of Rainy River at this time as we interpret it to be relatively small with limited size potential.

TGR: It would just be a bonus at best. That IRR is fairly low and a lot can go wrong when bringing a project into production. What does Rainy River have to do to get that IRR up around the 30% range?

MG: It does have a pending resource announcement in January, which would include the majority of the drilling it conducted this year. Analysts are looking at that for visibility on conversion ratios to Measured and Indicated categories and if there is an improvement in the average grades. On a conference call in November when it released the study, it indicated a 10% change in grade had a +30% impact on project NPV. This is a grade-sensitive project and this is the first so-called economic snapshot of the deposit. That pretax IRR of 19%, given the capital costs, needs to be improved for this to become robust.

TGR: Brett Resources Inc. (BBR:TSX.V), which had about 5 Moz in the same area of northwestern Ontario, was bought by Osisko Mining a couple of years ago. Is that the thesis here, too?

MG: Rainy River is on a path where it has to derisk the project vis-à-vis permitting and economic studies to make it a compelling takeover target. It probably is in the gun sights given its size, but at this time, the economic visibility is really going to depend on that resource estimation that’s coming up and the ability to optimize a number of the parameters.

TGR: Heading further south still, Midas Gold Corp. (MAX:TSX) has a 100% interest in the Yellow Pine mining district in Valley County, Idaho, and already has outlined about 6 Moz there. Why haven’t more people heard of this story?

MG: The company just completed its initial public offering (IPO) in July, so it is still a new story. However, its Golden Meadows project, at 5.8 Moz Indicated and Inferred, is probably the largest gold resource in an IPO that we’re aware of.

TGR: What’s ahead for Midas?

MG: There are three resources on the property that have come in through the consolidation of this district. The relatively straightforward increase in resources will involve near-pit expansion, so sketching in the resources lateral and to depth of the existing three deposits, as well as the infill drilling to increase the confidence in the resource categories. Subsequent to that, there is very high potential to expand mineralization along strike of the three deposits. Following that, there are a number of new targets that have never been assessed to depth. A number of the targets on the property were assessed only for oxide gold mineralization. There’s great sulfide-associated gold potential to depth on a number of the targets throughout the property.

TGR: What’s the permitting regime like in Idaho?

MG: Idaho permitting has a bit of a reputation for taking a long time, but it’s a very clear and harmonized process between the state and the federal government. Given that there are a number of examples of successful mines having been permitted in Idaho over the last 15 years, including a number of expansions, if you propose the project effectively and it does not have fatal flaws, our understanding is that eventually the projects get permitted.

TGR: In Guatemala, Tahoe Resources Inc. (THO:TSX) is developing the massive Escobal silver project with roughly a 20-year mine life. But Tahoe needs to convert its exploration license into a mining exploitation license. Will that prove difficult?

MG: In October, Tahoe received its environmental impact statement approval and is able to proceed with construction of a mine. That is a major derisking milestone. It signals that it’s likely we’ll see conversion of its current exploration license to a mining exploitation license. The timing is really going to depend on when the new mining laws are passed by Congress. Guatemala has a new president who will be inaugurated in January. We’re likely looking at the new mining laws being passed after May 2012.

We model Tahoe’s +300 Moz Escobal silver-lead-zinc-gold project at 13 Moz silver/year over a 20-year mine life, including 19 Moz over the first five years, with cash operating costs of about $5.05/oz silver net of byproduct credits.

TGR: How do you account in your valuation for the risks associated with the new mining law coming into effect, and that this is a one-asset company developing a mine in a developing country over the long term?

MG: We try to reflect that as a balance between the world-class nature of Tahoe’s Escobal asset being rare, really part of an emerging silver vein district, and with the political risk. In this type of situation, we incorporate that political risk in our multiple to NAV until we see events unfold otherwise. Goldcorp has been operating the Marlin gold mine in northeast Guatemala for a number of years, which essentially gives us confidence that Escobal will become a mine. If the political situation doesn’t deteriorate, then we’re comfortable with our risk multiple. That said, we appreciate that Guatemala is a country that is moderate to high risk.

TGR: Would you say the management at Tahoe is the kind of management you would want in this situation?

MG: Chief Executive Officer Kevin McArthur and a number of the executives at Tahoe have extensive experience in Guatemala. It makes a difference having a team that’s operated in a country and has that type of development experience. Our understanding is that McArthur is focused on building Escobal, getting it into commercial production, and then may look to build a multi-asset silver company from there.

TGR: In Brazil, Colossus Minerals Inc. (CSI:TSX) plans to bring the high-grade Serra Pelada gold-platinum-palladium (Au-Pt-Pd) project into production and appears to have enough cash to do so. But there could be some problems with Serra Pelada’s metallurgy and some of the ground conditions in the past-producing pit there. Could you tell us about those issues?

MG: Colossus’ 75%-owned Serra Pelada Au-Pt-Pd project, in Para State, Brazil, is one of the highest-grade precious metal deposits on the planet. We conducted a site visit to Serra Pelada in mid-October. On metallurgy, the flow sheet for a conventional gravity recovery plant appears to be in place and would recover about 95% of the gold. Construction for that gravity plant is scheduled to start this quarter. For platinum and palladium metallurgy, the company has been working on the optimal flow sheet, which may involve calcining to burn off the carbon. This metallurgical work is still in progress and will rely on the evaluation of the bulk sample to be collected in the second half of 2012. We’re currently modeling 65% recovery of the platinum and palladium.

As for ground conditions, the decline development for exploration and ultimate extraction of the Central Mineralized zone at Serra Pelada is lateral to the historic pit and initially used road headers, but the poor ground conditions eventually dictated that conventional drill and blast would be required and be more effective. As of early November, the decline was at about 600m and it involved shotcreting the walls followed by rock bolting and screening, then shotcreting again and locally strapping with steel. If advance rates of 4m/day can be achieved, then bulk sample extraction location should be reached toward the middle of 2012. We also expect the ultra-high-grade Au-Pt-Pd mineralization to have challenging ground conditions given the carbonaceous host rocks.

TGR: There have been some changes in management there. Tell us about that.

MG: There have been a number of changes starting with, most recently, Ari Sussman becoming chairman of the board. He was the chief executive of two companies and now he’s focused just on Continental Gold Ltd. (CNL:TSX). Claudio Mancuso was the chief financial officer and now is the chief executive. He will be able to focus all his energies on leading the company. There were certainly a lot of other management changes between Q211 and Q311 when the chief operating officer left. Colossus has hired Paulo de Tarso Serpa Fagundes as its new COO, who previously worked with Yamana as the general manager for its Mercedes Mine in Mexico.

TGR: Doesn’t that make you raise an eyebrow or two at the same time?

MG: Having been on the ground in mid-October, it was a chance for us to meet the entire team and gain an appreciation for its skill set and ability to work together. We were satisfied that the current team is prepared for the challenges that lie ahead associated with the project. This said, the technical risks associated with the project are still not quantified at this time.

TGR: Do you have any parting thoughts on investing in the precious metals explorer space or words of wisdom?

MG: I like the expression Good people do good things with a good capital structure as it certainly applies to the precious metal exploration business where projects come and go. My main comment is that to be successful at picking the winners among the precious metal explorers, especially the early-stage ones, it’s really important to reduce geological risk by looking at the right geology and focusing on high-quality assets. More often than not, they tend to be associated with technically superior management teams that are extremely persistent.

TGR: Thanks for your time.

Michael Gray is a mining equity analyst with Macquarie Capital Markets and covers a range of precious metal explorers and producers with an emphasis on North and South America. He is an exploration geologist and holds a Bachelor of Science in geology from the University of British Columbia and a Master of Science in economic geology from Laurentian University. His career of over 25 years in the mineral exploration business started with senior mining companies including Falconbridge, Lac Minerals, Cominco and Minnova where he worked throughout Canada and the USA. He co-founded Rubicon Minerals in 1996 and helped navigate the company through a series of joint ventures and an asset portfolio build that was eventually centered on the Red Lake gold district, Canada. During this period, Gray was president of the 5,000 member B.C. & Yukon Chamber of Mines for one year and on the executive committee for six years. Gray then joined the mining analyst world in 2005 where he brought to bear his technical skills to identify new precious metal opportunities at an early stage with outstanding exploration potential; he has covered a number of these opportunities that were subsequently taken over by gold producers.

Shawn Campbell is a mining equity associate with Macquarie Capital Markets and supports the analyst covering a range of precious metal explorers and producers with an emphasis on North and South America. Prior to being an associate, Campbell was an auditor with Deloitte for six years where he held key roles in auditing large public mining companies. He has a Bachelor of Commerce degree from the University of Victoria and is a CFA charterholder.

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DISCLOSURE:
1) Brian Sylvester of The Gold Report conducted this interview. He personally and/or his family own shares of the following companies mentioned in this interview: None.
2) The following companies mentioned in the interview are sponsors of The Gold Report: Extorre Gold Mines Ltd., Goldcorp Inc., Tahoe Resources Inc., Colossus Minerals Inc., Continental Gold Ltd. Streetwise Reports does not accept stock in exchange for services.
3) Michael Gray: I personally and/or my family own shares of the following companies mentioned in this interview: None. I personally and/or my family am paid by the following companies mentioned in this interview: None. Michael Gray was not paid by Streetwise for participating in this story.
4) Shawn Campbell: I personally and/or my family own shares of the following companies mentioned in this interview: None. I personally and/or my family am paid by the following companies mentioned in this interview: None. Shawn Campbell was not paid by Streetwise for participating in this story.

Streetwise – The Gold Report is Copyright © 2011 by Streetwise Reports LLC. All rights are reserved. Streetwise Reports LLC hereby grants an unrestricted license to use or disseminate this copyrighted material (i) only in whole (and always including this disclaimer), but (ii) never in part.

The Gold Report does not render general or specific investment advice and does not endorse or recommend the business, products, services or securities of any industry or company mentioned in this report.

From time to time, Streetwise Reports LLC and its  directors, officers, employees or members of their families, as well as persons interviewed for articles on the site, may have a long or short position in securities mentioned and may make purchases and/or sales of those securities in the open market or otherwise.

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Source: Brian Sylvester 

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M&A opportunities abound: Michael Gray and Shawn Campbell

The Canadian-led study, published in the journal Geology, states that “the possibility of mining sea floor [deposits] has stirred debate about the sustainable use of this new resource and whether commercial development is worth the risk.”

The Vancouver Sun quotes Mark Hannington, the University of Ottawa’s Goldcorp Chair in Economic Geology and lead author of the study, saying that while there may be vast mineral deposits under the ocean, they cannot hope to meet the world demand for metals:

“I think the bottom line that the world needs to understand is that the oceans — at least on the neo-volcanic zones where people are presently exploring — are not going to make a major impact on the total availability of metals,” he said. Still, “some companies, like Nautilus, will make a few bucks if they can recover the metals at a cost which is less than that associated with mining on land.”

All will depend, says Hannington, at how quickly land-based resources get depleted and whether undersea mining can ever be competitive:  “Just in the United States, which is not a major mining centre, there are 90 million tonnes of copper and zinc in the ground that hasn’t been developed,” he told The Sun. “And that’s more than all the metal in the deposits that we think exist in the neo-volcanic zones and the ridges” of the oceans.

Nautilus is developing its first project at Solwara 1, in the territorial waters of Papua New Guinea, where it is aiming to produce gold, copper and silver. The company also holds approximately 600,000 square kilometers of exploration acreage in the western Pacific, in PNG, the Solomon Islands, Fiji, Vanuatu and Tonga, as well as in international waters in the eastern Pacific.

Using techniques modelled on oil and gas exploration, undersea mining would employ robotic machines to break up the ore on the ocean floor and then pipe the slurry to a surface barge for transport and processing on land.

]]> http://www.houstongoldnews.com/gold/study-casts-doubt-on-undersea-mining/feed/ 0 http://www.houstongoldnews.com/gold/management-shake-up-and-private-placement-at-cassidy-gold/ http://www.houstongoldnews.com/gold/management-shake-up-and-private-placement-at-cassidy-gold/#comments Thu, 27 Oct 2011 18:33:00 +0000 admin http://www.houstongoldnews.com/uncategorized/management-shake-up-and-private-placement-at-cassidy-gold/

KAMLOOPS, BRITISH COLUMBIA–(Marketwire – Oct. 27, 2011) - Cassidy Gold Corp. (“Cassidy”) (TSX VENTURE:CDX) announces that it will conduct a non-brokered private placement of up to 3,300,000 units of Cassidy (the “Units”) at a price of $0.15 per Unit for aggregate proceeds of up to approximately $495,000. Each Unit will consist of one common share in the capital of Cassidy and one non-transferable share purchase warrant, each warrant entitling the holder to purchase one additional common share at a price of $0.20 for two years from the closing of the offering, subject to accelerated expiry in certain circumstances.

Shares acquired by the placees, and shares which may be acquired upon the exercise of the share purchase warrants, will be subject to a hold period of four months and one day from the date of completion of the financing in accordance with applicable securities legislation. Finder’s fees in amounts yet to be determined may be paid to persons who introduce the Company to investors. Funds raised by this private placement will be used for general corporate purposes.

Cassidy is also pleased to announce the appointments of Paul Rankine as the Chief Executive Officer and a director of Cassidy and of Marion Bush as the Chief Operating Officer and a director of Cassidy.

Paul Rankine has served as the Chief Executive Officer and a director of Zambezi Nickel Ltd. from May 2005 to February 2007, a director of Stellar Diamonds plc. from August 2007 to October 2010 and a director of TomCo Energy plc from September 2011 to present, all companies listed on the London Stock Exchange’s AIM. Paul has experience as a mining equities financial analyst and consultant and has held positions with Citigroup Asset Management Ltd. and Altima Partners LLP. Paul holds an MBA from the University of Cape Town and an MSc in Mineral Economics from the University of Witwatersrand, is a fellow of the South African Institute of Mining and Metallurgy and a member of the Society of Mining, Metallurgy and Exploration Inc. in the United States.

Marion Bush graduated from Curtin University of Technology, Western Australia with a BSc (Geology) in 1993 and a Postgraduate Diploma (Applied Geology) in 1994. She graduated from the Imperial College in London, UK with an MSc (Mineral Project Appraisal) in 1998. Marion has experience in commercial management, analyst and marketing roles. Most recently she worked as an analyst for Zamin Advisors Ltd. and as a consultant with Digby Advisors Ltd.

The Board of Directors sincerely thanks James Gillis for his past services as Cassidy’s Chief Executive Officer. Mr. Gillis will remain the President and a director of Cassidy.

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Management shake up and private placement at Cassidy Gold

MOUNT PEARL, NEWFOUNDLAND–(Marketwire – Sept. 13, 2011) - Cornerstone Capital Resources Inc. (“Cornerstone”) (TSX VENTURE:CGP) (FRANKFURT:GWN) (BERLIN:GWN) (PINK SHEETS:CTNXF) announced today the results of initial exploration work carried out on its 100%-owned Cascabel project in northern Ecuador. The project is located approximately 120 km north of Quito and 20 km south of the Colombian border. Access is very good via a paved road from the provincial capital city of Ibarra to San Lorenzo city, on the Pacific coast, and secondary gravel roads to the central part of the 50 km² property. Maps showing the geology and exploration results of this program may be viewed at http://www.cornerstoneresources.com/s/Ecuador.asp?ReportID=478495.

Highlights

Assay results for the 179 rock samples (grabs and representative rock chips) collected shows that precious and base metals are anomalous over most of the area:

• 93 samples (52%) are gold anomalous (> 0.1 g/t Au), including 26 samples (14%) > 0.5 g/t Au, maximum 5.93 g/t Au
• 43 samples (24%) are silver anomalous (>5 g/t Ag), including 10 samples (5%) > 30 g/t Ag, maximum 150 g/t Ag
• 144 samples (80%) are copper anomalous (>0.01% Cu), including 36 samples (20%) > 0.1% Cu, maximum 3.23% Cu
• 54 samples (30%) are lead anomalous (> 0.005%), including 15 samples (8%) > 0.05% Pb, maximum 0.32% Pb
• 100 samples (56%) are zinc anomalous (>0.01%), including 30 samples (17%) > 0.1% Zn, maximum 26.50% Zn

Free gold has been identified by panning in most of the streams of the area (49 pan concentrates out of 64 show the presence of gold) with higher amounts of gold grains (10-30) concentrated in the headwaters of the Rio Parambas, Rio Cachaco and Rio Cristal. Some of the streams have not yet been surveyed and/or followed up.

“We are very pleased with these encouraging initial results on the Cascabel project obtained after only a few weeks of field work”, said Brooke Macdonald, Cornerstone’s President. “We are just starting our work programs on this property and already we’re seeing potential for significant porphyry copper and gold mineralization similar to the new porphyry discoveries in neighbouring Colombia”.

Regional geology and mineralization

The Cascabel area is underlain by Upper Cretaceous sedimentary rocks which are overlain by Oligocene to Miocene andesitic flows and breccias. These units are intruded by Miocene age batholiths and stocks of granodiorite and diorite. Major regional structures in the area strike northeast. One such structure, the Apuela regional fault, transects the southeast part of the Cascabel property. Several mineral prospects, part of the same geological belt, have been identified in the Cascabel district: the Chical (Au-Ag) and Rio Amarillo (Au-Ag-Cu) epithermal prospects located 12 km to the northwest and 12 km to the south of the property respectively. Cascabel is located upstream from an extensive alluvial gold district, Playa de Oro, located 50 km to the west. The Junin porphyry copper-molybdenum deposit (undeveloped National Instrument 43-101 compliant inferred resource of 982 Mt @ 0.89% Cu, 0.04% Mo and 1.9 g/t Ag) lies 65 km to the southwest.

Exploration program and results

The primary objective of the initial exploration work was to follow up and find the source(s) of multi-element (gold-copper-lead-zinc) stream sediment anomalies defined in previous surveys (Belgium Mission 1980-1984, British Geological Survey 1998-2000 and a proprietary stream sediment geochemical survey). Most of the current work was focused in the central part (20 km²) of the property. One hundred and seventy nine (179) rock samples (53 floats and 126 outcrops) were collected during the reconnaissance geological mapping (scale 1: 25,000) and prospecting program, and a total of 64 stream sediment samples were collected and pan concentrated to identify the number, size and shape of visible gold grains and other precious metals.

Reconnaissance mapping confirmed that andesitic volcanic rocks and flysch-type sediments are intruded by a diorite porphyry stock which is exposed at lower elevations along the Rio Parambas. Porphyry-style alteration and mineralization is associated with the intrusion, with a central potassic-altered core and peripheral, east-west trending, phyllic-argillic alteration zones up to 4 km long by 0.5 to 1 km wide to the south. The phyllic-argilllic alteration affects the diorite, as well as the volcanic and sedimentary units. A series of northeast and northwest striking conjugate faults were mapped and interpreted from satellite imagery. North-northeast and north-northwest striking secondary structures are also present throughout the area, and appear to control part of the mineralization.

Anomalous gold, silver, copper, lead and zinc are distributed over an extensive area (> 10 km²) in the central part of the property and preliminary information indicates a rough metal zonation. Gold and copper mineralization is associated with the central potassic zone of the diorite porphyry, as well as NE-NNE and NW-NNW trending structures and the phyllic-argillic zones developed within volcanic and sedimentary rock units. Copper is present as disseminated chalcopyrite, covellite and malachite in the porphyry and as higher grade concentrations, associated with the peripheral structural system. Silver, lead and zinc mineralization appears to be peripheral to the central potassic zone, associated with the same NE-NNE and NW-NNW structures. The higher grade precious and base metals assay results (> 1 g/t Au, > 30 g/t Ag, > 1% Cu and/or > 1% Zn) are generally related to sub-metre (0.2 to 1.0 m), NE-NNE and NW-NNW oriented, brecciated massive sulphide veins, silicified zones and quartz veins.

Planned future work includes the completion of prospecting and reconnaissance mapping which will cover the entire property, follow up on the stream sediment anomalies, ridges and spurs soil sampling to define the limits of the mineralized systems and prioritization of target areas to initiate detailed exploration surveys.

Assaying, Quality assurance / Quality control (QA/QC)

Rock samples were delivered by Cornerstone employees to and prepared by the ACME preparation laboratory in Cuenca (ACME code R200-250), and assayed by the ACME-Vancouver laboratory (www.acmelab.com) for gold (ACME code G601, F.A., 30 g.) and multi-elements (ACME code 1DX2, Aqua Regia, ICP-MS finish). All over limits results for precious and base metals were systematically re-assayed (ACME codes G6Gr and 7TD).

ACME is an ISO 9001:2008 qualified assayer that performs and makes available internal assaying controls. Certified blanks and standards are systematically inserted with samples as part of Cornerstone’s QA/QC program.

Qualified Person

Yvan Crepeau, MBa., P.Geo, President of Cornerstone Ecuador S.A. (“CESA”) and a qualified person in accordance with National Instrument 43-101, has reviewed and approved the technical information contained in this new release.

Purchase agreement

During the first quarter of 2011, Cornerstone acquired a 100% interest in Santa Barbara Copper & Gold (“SBCG”) and all its assets in Ecuador, including the Cascabel and La Encrucijada properties, for a cash payment of $20,000 and a 2% Net Smelter Return (“NSR”) royalty on any future mineral production on each property. Cornerstone retains the right to purchase one-half (1%) of the NSR for $1,000,000 within 3 months following completion of a feasibility study, and the remaining one-half (1%) NSR for $3,000,000 within 3 months following a production decision.

About Cornerstone

Cornerstone Capital Resources Inc. is a mineral exploration company based in Mount Pearl, Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada, with a diversified portfolio of projects in Ecuador, Chile, and Atlantic Canada, and a strong technical team that has proven its ability to identify, acquire and advance properties of merit. The company’s business model is based on generating exploration projects whose subsequent development is funded primarily through joint venture partnerships. The company is well funded and commitments from JV partners constitute significant validation of the strength of Cornerstone’s projects. Further information is available on Cornerstone’s website:www.cornerstoneresources.com.

Investors can access and join the following Cornerstone social media channels:

Facebook (http://www.facebook.com/cornerstoneresourcesinc)

Twitter (http://twitter.com/Cornerstone_cgp)

YouTube channel (http://www.youtube.com/user/CornerstoneResource)

Flickr (http://www.flickr.com/photos/cornerstoneresources)

The link to a recent Corporate presentation is: http://www.cornerstoneresources.com/i/pdf/Presentations_0711_CRICorporate.pdf

The link to a virtual tour of drilling at the Gama prospect, Shyri concession in Ecuador is: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ne8XSfgLwIM

Cautionary Notice:

This news release may contain ‘Forward-Looking Statements’ that involve risks and uncertainties, such as statements of Cornerstone’s plans, objectives, strategies, intentions and expectations. The words “potential,” “anticipate,” “forecast,” “believe,” “estimate,” “expect,” “may,” “project,” “plan,” and similar expressions are intended to be among the statements that identify ‘Forward-Looking Statements.’ Although Cornerstone believes that its expectations reflected in these ‘Forward-Looking Statements’ are reasonable, such statements may involve unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors disclosed in our regulatory filings, viewed on the SEDAR website at www.sedar.com. For us, uncertainties arise from the behaviour of financial and metals markets, predicting natural geological phenomena and from numerous other matters of national, regional, and global scale, including those of an environmental, climatic, natural, political, economic, business, competitive, or regulatory nature. These uncertainties may cause our actual future results to be materially different than those expressed in our Forward-Looking Statements. Although Cornerstone believes the facts and information contained in this news release to be as correct and current as possible, Cornerstone does not warrant or make any representation as to the accuracy, validity or completeness of any facts or information contained herein and these statements should not be relied upon as representing its views subsequent to the date of this news release. While Cornerstone anticipates that subsequent events may cause its views to change, it expressly disclaims any obligation to update the Forward-Looking Statements contained herein except where outcomes have varied materially from the original statements.

On Behalf of the Board,

Brooke Macdonald, President

Further information is available on the Cornerstone Web site at www.cornerstoneresources.com; via e-mail atcommunications@crigold.com; or toll free at 1-877-277-8377.

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Cornerstone Capital Resources Inc. :significant porphyry copper-gold mineralization discovered at Cascabel project in Ecuador