Press coverageThe StarPhoenix
Published: Saturday, May 31, 2008
Thebuzz created by finding what appears to be a large seam of thermal coalin eastern Saskatchewan has created some market traction for aSaskatoon junior exploration company.
Peoplewho have invested in Wescan Goldfields Inc. (WGF on the TSX Venture)have seen their shares quadruple in value in the past month after thecompany announced it was seeking a land position 50 kilometresnortheast of the town of Hudson Bay, where Goldsource Mines Inc. ofVancouver created a national stir by finding bituminous coal afterdrilling holes in what it believed might be a kimberlite deposit.
Whilethe Vancouver-based Goldsource saw its stock jump 2,100 per cent sinceits announcement, Wescan has not stood still either, seeing its stockrise from below 20 cents a share to around 80 cents.
Earlierthis week, Wescan was provided with a "letter of comfort" fromSaskatchewan Energy and Resources, stating the majority of the coalpermit applications made on behalf of Wescan are "first in line" andwill be given priority. Wescan states the land mass of those priorityclaims totals 2,300 square kilometres, with some of that land partiallysurrounding the Goldsource land.
Inthe past month, the discovery of high-grade thermal coal in easternSaskatchewan has twice been on the front page of The Northern Miner,the national weekly newspaper that covers Canada's mining companies.
Allof the activity so far is based on Goldsource's reporting of coresamples from two holes drilled this winter that showed a coal seam atleast 25 metres thick, the equivalent depth of a seven-storey building.
Priorto getting interested this spring in the coal play, Wescan Goldfieldshad exploration projects in both gold and uranium in northernSaskatchewan. Its Jojay gold project is in the La Ronge gold belt.
Mostof Wescan's mineral properties were spun off a portfolio of goldproperties that were owned by Shore Gold Inc. when that company movedfour years ago to concentrate on its Fort a la Corne diamond play.
© The StarPhoenix (Saskatoon) 2008