Core prepares for hard look at Knora gold bet

After months of quiet negotiations, Edmonton-based Core Explorations has got its hands on a property with some small-scale production potential.

Located in the Kenora Mining Division, near Kenora, Ont., it includes the 38-claim Goldhill and 13-claim Golden Gate prospects which Core has optioned from vendors Edward Hansen, George Zebruck and Alastair Nilson.

Under the terms of a recent agreement, Core must pay three $15,000-instalments by Sept 16, 1989, and issue 50,000 shares to the vendors who have an option on 50,000 additional shares.

Depending on when the option is exercised, the price will be 55 cents , 75 cents or $1.00 per common share. Core can increase its interest to 75% by making a cash payment of $750,000 before Dec 31, 1990.

“We believe that we could be looking at a very profitable high grade, low tonnage open cut production situation,” says President Hugh Currie.

His enthusiasm is based on previous exploration by Bonzano Exploration in 1983 and Kidd Creek Mines between 1984 and 1985. Following airborne surveys and a geological mapping program, Kidd Creek recommended a diamond drilling program at Golden Gate before the company was taken over by Falconbridge Ltd. and the option dropped. Government reports

According to government reports, 220 tons of ore were shipped from the property at the turn of the century, from which 4.95 oz gold per ton were recovered.

However, the remains of two mills, two tailing ponds at the mine and old newspaper clippings attest to much larger unreported production, says a more recent report.

An evaluation program published in November says the Goldhill property contains a number of vein structures including the D.B. vein which is explosed for a 100-ft length by trenching and an open cut.

A shaft at the “Ada G” vein was pumped down 23 ft and a large opening below the collar was noticed, the report says. “The ladders are still present in the shaft and outside of the first ladder they will probably be serviceable,” says project manager Barry Dugal. Samples taken from the vein to the west of the shaft assayed up to 1.16 oz.

During a recent evaluation program, all of the known mineral showings were drilled and blasted to provide fresh ore samples. Of 116 samples taken, Currie says 55 had assay values ranging from 0.06 oz to 2.12 oz * Silver was also found in a limited number of samples, but any ratio of gold to silver will not be known until additional exploration is completed, Currie says. West Hawk

The property’s location 51 miles via the Trans Canada Hwy. from Goldbeam Resources’ West Hawk Lake, Man., mine property makes the Kenora claims attractive to Currie who is also president of Goldbeam.

Currie is attempting to prove up between 350,000 and 500,000 tons of roughly 0.4 oz at West Hawk before making a production decision there. If he is successful, West Hawk ore would be trucked 12 miles west to Goldbeam’s tank leaching plant for processing.

After getting the go-ahead from shareholders and the Alberta Stock Exchange, Core Explorations is preparing for a 4-stage exploration program recommended by consulting engineer Dr Bruce Wilson.

The Kenora program includes drilling, dewatering of the old shafts and expansion of ip and geochemical surveys.

“We want to complete our dewatering of three of the 11 shafts on the property and drill 5,000 ft-10,000 ft of short holes on four major veins while resampling some of the old underground workings,” said Currie.

“A feasibility study will follow immediately afterwards,” he said.