Brad Humphrey's QMX Gold Corp. (QMX) closed unchanged at 18 cents on 1.51 million shares on word that it has drilled a 196.6-metre interval averaging 1.78 grams of gold per tonne from a new hole at its Bonnefond project in the Val d'Or district of Quebec. The lengthy hit, which began at 136 metres and ended at 333 metres -- within the proposed pit shell, the company says -- got a grade boost from a 33.5-metre zone averaging 5.46 grams per tonne. There were also some high-grade zones at greater depths. One, at a downhole depth of 375 metres, averaged 3.3 grams per tonne across 9.5 metres, aided by a two-metre interval averaging 10.42 grams per tonne.
Dr. Andreas Rompel, vice-president of exploration, cheered the latest result, stating that he and his crew "continue to develop a better mineralization model with every hole drilled" at Bonnefond, adding that "we gain more knowledge about the mineralization at depth." After several deep holes, Dr. Rompel believes that the mineralization continues down plunge and hosts several high-grade intervals.
QMX began the year with word that another Bonnefond hole had produced 2.16 grams of gold across 185 metres from 60 metres to 245 metres, aided by a 23-metre zone that averaged 23.1 grams per tonne. There were deeper hits there as well. An 11.2-metre interval returned 10.88 grams per tonne and a two-metre zone yielded 11.31 grams per tonne -- hits that occurred at downhole depths of over 600 metres.
QMX has a resource estimate for the lower-grade open-pittable portion of Bonnefond, which it prepared nearly two years ago. The estimate lists 4.76 million tonnes indicated at 1.69 grams per tonne and 2.41 million tonnes inferred at 1.87 grams per tonne, just over 400,000 ounces of gold. That estimate could be updated, perhaps later this year, as the company has just started a new 35,000-metre drill program through which Dr. Rompel and his crew "intend to enlarge the known resource" further.
As well, the drilling will probe the area around the previously prolific Bevcon intrusive that Dr. Rompel says "was far from depleted" when the old Bevcon mine closed years ago. "We are very confident that we can build a similar resource compared to our flagship Bonnefond project."
Investors are not quite as confident about Bevcon, or Bonnefond for that matter, as are Dr. Rompel and the investors who bid QMX's stock close to the 40-cent mark last summer. That run resulted from word that a 73-metre hit at Bonnefond averaged 6.48 grams of gold per tonne, starting at just 150 metres -- a high-grade gold encounter that had Dr. Rompel blathering on about "shear zones transecting the tonalitic and dioritic intrusive with elevated mineralization levels." Fortunately, the gold spoke for itself and QMX's stock did a quick double. Unfortunately, the yellow metal has not been as chatty of late.