sas is on bnn and drilling as we speak
11 million spent on exploration
By RICK OWEN, NORTHERN NEWS
Posted 1 day ago
KIRKLAND LAKE -St Andrew Goldfields spent $11 million on exploration in 2011 and hit many milestones as it continues to develop a number of gold properties.
The company completed 69,000 metres of drilling and advanced its Taylor project to the pre-feasibility stage, which will include an updated resource for the West Porphyry Zone and finalizing the first resource estimate for the Deep Thunder Zone.
During the past year the company was able to confirm its geological model to test for new targets near the Holloway-Holt. As well drilling on the Ghost Zone started, returning 2. 96 grams gold per tonne over 10.2 metres, and 7.69 gams over 20.2 metres.
At the Hislop property St Andrew started drilling which returned 12. 41 grams gold per tonne over 9.0 metres.
In 2012 St Andrew has budgeted $7 million for exploration and this pro-g ram focuses on targets near existing operations.
"We are very pleased to kick off our 2012 exploration program," said St Andrew President and CEO Jacques Perron.
"We commenced our exploration efforts in 2010, so we are still in the early stages, however, we have a number of new discoveries that have the potential to turn into profitable ore bodies.
"We have quite a large land position and as we continue to develop and perfect our geological model, we have been better able to target our efforts in order to reap the best rewards.
St Andrew's 2011 exploration program was focussed on areas near the Holloway-Holt mines and on the Taylor project. The majority of the surface drilling was done on the Deep Thunder Zone and the Taylor project.
In 2012 surface drilling programs at the Holt Mine will focus on testing the down plunge extension of Zone 4, which currently hosts about one half of the Holt reserves.
Once the exploration drift at Holloway's Smoke Deep Zone is completed towards the end of the second quarter, underground drilling will start on the eastern down dip extension of the Smoke Deep Zone.
As well in 2012 follow up surface drilling will be conducted at the Ghost and Deep Thunder Zones and preliminary drilling will take place at the Lightening Vein, further to the east. Additional surface drilling has started at the Hislop North Project, and regional grassroots targets will receive some preliminary drill testing.