A newly-listed exploration company recently caught our attention with the acquisition of a promising gold property in northern Ontario’s prolific Red Lake Gold District. Rockland Resources Ltd. (CSE: RKL) recently began trading on the Canadian Stock Exchange and on March 29, 2021, announced that it had acquired 100% interest in the Cole Gold Mine Property.
Located 30 km west of the Campbell Red Lake Mine Complex, the property has already been permitted and Rockland expects to commence drilling in mid-May. For investors, Rockland represents a fresh name, without any legacy issues, that is about to drill in one of the world’s best known gold camps.
The 568 hectare Cole property consisting of 28 claims is set in the gold-bearing quartz-vein geology common throughout the Red Lake gold region. The property was last drilled in 1973 by Kerr Addison Mines, which conducted 2,108 metres of drilling along with electro-magnetometer geophysics, and returned high-grade gold values as high as 68.3 g/t gold over 1.5 feet. From 1933 to 1937, the original Cole Gold Mine operator sank a vertical shaft down to a depth of 530 feet with four levels of crosscuts totaling 7,000 feet, and completed 4,000 feet of drilling.
In 2020, the most recent previous property owner, Wabassi Resources, assayed 38 grab and 15 sawn samples with returns as high as 57.7 g/t gold. Additional highlights include 16.7 g/t, 14.8 g/t and 7.21 g/t gold within the samples, while a further six returned values above 0.5 g/t gold. Most importantly, it appears Wabassi had acquired a valid exploration permit, which enables a diamond drill program to begin in the near term.
Much of the historic work occurred when gold prices were very low. Today’s near-record high gold prices certainly warrant an aggressive exploration program to confirm and validate the historical drilling data, as well as determine the size and scope of the underlying mineralization, which appears to be open in all directions and at depth.
Currently, the company is planning a maiden drill program consisting of 2,500 metres that is set to begin in May. A magnetic drone survey meanwhile is set to take place this month, which is to assist with geological and structural interpretation of the property.
Rockland Resources is well capitalized with $300,000 in the treasury and it is currently in the process of completing a private placement financing of up to $2 million. This will enable the company to execute its drill program and also to potentially acquire additional property to expand its land position in the area. Like many companies exploring in the Red Lake Gold District, the question is not whether gold will be found, but whether or not a deposit can be developed into a commercially viable mine.
With only 14 million shares outstanding and a small market capitalization of only $3.5 million, Rockland possibly represents the quintessential ground-floor opportunity for gold exploration investors. It is a newly minted public company so investors need not worry about disgruntled shareholders or any negative corporate legacy issues, while the management team has extensive exploration and public company experience. Rockland expects to commence drilling in May and shareholders can expect a steady flow of news from the company as the project progresses.
Rockland Resources last traded at $0.28 on the CSE.