New N.B. exploration fund draws hopeful prospectors

Chances look good that prospectors will be flocking to take advantage of a new mineral exploration assistance program set up by the province of New Brunswick.

Though it had been open for business for just a week or two when The Northern Miner called to check, the new Mineral Exploration Stimulation Program (or MESP as its called), is getting “very good response,” its co-ordinator says.

Aimed mainly at individual prospectors who want to join the hunt for minerals in New Brunswick, the MESP program has a modest fund of $150,000 which will be given over the next year to finance exploration projects, each to receive a maximum of $10,000.

“Already,” says Greg Crouse, a geologist with the province’s Department of Natural Resources and Energy, and co-ordinator of the program, “we’ve had close to a dozen applications for funding, and that’s not bad.

“We think we could get as many as 30 or 40 applicants all told.” He explained that even though the total fund is $150,000, with the maximum $10,000 per project, it’s expected many of the applicants will be looking for lesser amounts for their projects.

The idea has been in the works for several years, though just now getting off the ground. Eligible work will include regional and detail prospecting, grid establishment, geological mapping, geochemical and geophysical surveys, trenching and drilling, and specialized work, e.g. mineralogy.

A 6-man provincial geological committee (including a member of the N.B. Prospectors and Developers Association) will assess the projects for funding, Crouse says this committee had been due to hold its first meeting a few days ago.

Most of the resulting exploration push will be focused on gold, he said, but there has already been one proposal for a base metals project.

He said, too, he expected much of the gold exploration would be undertaken in the Bathurst area of the province, where there is already a lot of activity.

Crouse said any firm or individual holding a prospecting licence is eligible for assistance from MESP, but he said in fact there is an effort to discourage companies, in favor of individual prospectors. The modest size of the grants would probably help this, he said.