news
True North feels Regal; discovers 2.39-carat emerald
True North Gems Inc TGX
Shares issued 19,512,136 Feb 2 close $0.82
Tue 3 Feb 2004 News Release
Mr. Ken Shortt reports
PRELIMINARY VALUATION OF POLISHED GOODS-FIRST SAMPLE
True North Gems has released additional information from the company's
Regal Ridge gemstone project located in the Finlayson district, Yukon,
Canada. The new data included valuation of a small parcel of polished
stones.
Although important for continuing analysis, this testwork in no way
constitutes a representative or diagnostic sample of the overall deposit.
Only about 1 per cent of the material collected during the 2003 exploration
program has been analyzed.
A total of 628 finished stones, with total carat weight of 153.67 carats,
were returned from Gem Resources in Bangkok, Thailand, and Terra Nova Gems
Inc. of Nanaimo, B.C. Grading of these stones demonstrated a wide range of
values as defined by the industry's four C's: colour, clarity, cut and
carat weight.
Most of the gemstones from this sample were cut as calibrated round
brilliants. A select set of the best material was polished to special makes
at multicarat weights. Finished stone sizes from the parcel of small
calibrated round brilliants, known as melee, ranged from 1.89 to 6.41
millimetres in diameter and 0.03 to 0.75 carat in weight. (Melee represents
stones less than 0.25 carat and it is the single-largest component of the
global trade in coloured stones.)
The largest special was a 2.39-carat emerald cut. The per-carat value of
the small calibrated polished goods ranged from a low of $15 (U.S.) per
carat for commercial stones to a high of $500 (U.S.) per carat for fine
stones. The per-carat value of the specials ranged from $250 (U.S.) per
carat to $500 (U.S.) per carat.
The table below lists a wholesale emerald price matrix derived from
industry-accepted publications upon which the values for the gemstones
returned from the faceting tests are based.
Approx.
Size weight Commercial
(mm) (carat) ($U.S./carat)
1 to 3 .02 to .10 10 - 35
3 to 4 .10 to .25 15 - 100
4 to 5 .25 to .50 25 - 200
Approx.
Size weight Good
(mm) (carat) ($U.S./carat)
1 to 3 .02 to .10 32 - 250
3 to 4 .10 to .25 100 - 400
4 to 5 .25 to .50 200 - 500
Approx.
Size weight Fine
(mm) (carat) ($U.S./carat)
1 to 3 .02 to .10 250 - 450
3 to 4 .10 to .25 400 - 700
4 to 5 .25 to .50 500 - 1,250
Emerald prices vary strongly on the basis of the finished carat weight of
any individual stone. Finished carat weight is a function of the overall
cutting yield, about 5 per cent for the automated faceting, or about 20 per
cent for the hand faceting. The attribution of an overall value based on
finished products for the 2003 sample as a whole must await the completion
of additional manufacturing testwork. True North is experimenting to
establish the most appropriate processing techniques for the optimization
of grade, quality and yield.
While the gemstone marketplace will ultimately determine the true value of
Canadian emeralds through actual sales, the figures above represent a
reasonable expectation of values for the sizes and qualities of finished
gemstones produced to date through automated cutting.
William Rohtert is an economic geologist and graduate gemologist, and is
acting as a qualified person with respect to the Regal Ridge project in
compliance with National Instrument 43-101. The prices indicated in this
press release have been sourced from the Guide to Wholesale Gem Pricing
(fall/winter 2003-2004 edition), published by Gemworld International Inc.,
of Northbrook, Ill. Further information on this publication is available on
the Internet at www.gemguide.com.
WARNING: The company relies upon litigation protection for
"forward-looking" statements.
(c) Copyright 2004 Canjex Publishing Ltd. https://www.stockwatch.com
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