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Snowfield Gold Project

USA / Alaska / Hyder /
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This is the boundary for claim 509216 that comprises the Snowfield Gold Project which is 100% owned by Pretium Resources Inc, who acquired the property in 2010 from Silver Standard Resources Inc. 509216 includes one mineral and two placer claims totalling 2,142.2 hectares that overlap eachother in the same boundary.

Snowfield was discovered by Esso in 1980 while conducting detailed field work on the Sulphurets property, which they had previously optioned. Between 1981 to 1983 Esso performed more work on Snowfield zone in which results showed the potential for a large low grade gold deposit. Esso terminted the option in 1985 then Newhawk and Granduc Mines created a 60:40 joint venture which Newhawk operated. The joint venture conducted field work between 1985 and 1988 which included minor diamond drilling and sampling. In 1999 Silver Standard acquired the Sulphurets claim after purchasing all shares of Newhawk.

Geologically Snowfield is a near surface, low grade, bulk tonnage and porphyry type gold deposit with associated mineralization of silver, copper, molybdenum, and rhenium. Gold is hosted by schistose, pervasively altered volcanic and volcaniclastic rocks which contain 1 to 5% disseminated pyrite and minor disseminations and veinlets of tourmaline, molybdenite, and numerous younger calcite veinlets. Gold occurs as microscopic grains of less than 30 um of elctrum that are encased with fine grained, pervasively disseminated pyrite in close association with trace amounts of galena and sphalerite.

During 2010 a drill program was conducted by Silver Standard which included 17,976 meters drilled from 46 holes. Contractors for the drilling were Radius Drilling and Martrix Drilling with an average number of rigs on site of 7. In 2013 updated resource estimates were released and include:

-25.9 million ounces of measured and indicated gold resources and 9.0 million ounces of inferred resources at a cut-off grade of 0.30 grams of gold-equivalent per tonne.

-Silver resources of 75.8 million ounces measured and indicated and 51.0 million ounces of inferred.

-Copper resources of 2.98 billion pounds of measured and indicated and 1.10 billion pounds of inferred.

-Molybdenum resources of 258.3 million pounds of measured and indicated and 127.7 million pounds inferred.

-Rhenium resources of 22.5 million ounces of measured and indicated and 11.5 million ounces of inferred.

Pretium obtained approval for the neighboring Brucejack Gold Mine in 2015 and due to that will be concentrating on development of that project but Snowfield represents a valuable future long term asset. Agreements have been made with Seabridge to examine the possibility of combined efforts in developing Snowfield and Seabridges KSM Project through enginerring studies and infrastructure.

Reference:

www.pretivm.com/projects/snowfield/overview/
www.pretivm.com/files/doc_downloads/snowfield/Snowfield...
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Coordinates:   56°30'58"N   130°12'19"W
This article was last modified 9 years ago