Highland Resources Inc announced that, following the recent amendment to its Mining Venture Agreement with BRP LLC and Keweenaw Copper Company and the completion of USD 16.5 million private placement, the Company has started a drilling program on the Keweenaw Copper Project in northernmost Michigan. Two drills are already on site.
From about 1850 to 1968 the Keweenaw Peninsula produced 5.4 million short tons of copper, mostly as native copper concentrated in the tops of basalt lava flows and within interbedded conglomerates. For a long period this area produced over 80% of all copper consumed in the USA. Sulfide minerals were rare in the native copper ores but in the 1960s primary chalcocite mineralization, also in basalt flow tops, was discovered in a 20 mile long belt east of the native copper mines. Chalcocite is a copper sulfide containing about 80% Cu. Follow up exploration drilling located numerous zones of chalcocite mineralization of potential economic interest, but low copper prices discouraged additional exploration.
One zone of chalcocite, the 543S sulphide deposit, was explored with 101 diamond drill holes from 1973 to 1977 and is the most advanced mineralized zone. The 543S deposit contains a historic resource estimate of 4.5 million short tons averaging 2.27% Cu at a 0.75% Cu cutoff grade as described in a Technical Report by Behre Dolbear & Company Limited titled Centennial and Kingston Native Copper, 543S and Other Copper Sulfide Properties, Houghton and Keweenaw Counties, Michigan, USA'' dated September 29th 2011. This estimate is not compliant under NI 43-101 guidelines and must not be used to evaluate economic viability.
The Company is not treating the historical estimate as current mineral resources or mineral reserves. Small amounts of native copper and native silver are also present. The historical resource estimate is contained in six separate zones averaging 16 ft. true thickness that are inclined to the north at about 40 degrees. Several of these zones come to the bedrock surface under unconsolidated glacial deposits that are 10 feet to 100 feet thick. Oxidation is shallow due to recent glaciation. The chalcocite zones have a low total sulfide content and the wall rocks contain abundant acid consuming minerals.
The Company's objective is to complete approximately 100 diamond drill holes to confirm the size and grade of the non compliant 543S historic resource estimate by the end of 2012. Resource modeling will begin in early 2013 if justified. At least 5 additional, incompletely drilled chalcocite zones are now targeted for drilling immediately following work on the 543S zone. Numerous unexplored copper in soil anomalies from the 1970s exploration work in the Chalcocite Belt will also be evaluated for initial drilling, in addition to more broadly based geophysical studies.
Ms Ross R Grunwald Company's VP Exploration said that "This project combines the unusual opportunity to confirm non compliant historic results on a well-drilled high-grade chalcocite deposit with exploration drilling on numerous incompletely or undrilled deposits that, if successful, provide considerable upside potential in a relatively short period of time in a major mining district that has been largely ignored for the past 35 years."
Source - Highland Resources
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