A Strong Exploration Play in BC’s Prolific Golden Horseshoe

Savvy Stockhouse resource sector investors have been keeping an eagle’s eye view on a mining and exploration jurisdiction in Northwestern British Columbia – an area that has been heating up for some time.

And it is in a road accessible corner of the province that hosts some of the world’s most significant mineral potential. The world-class Kemess Gold-Copper Mine lies 45 kilometers away.

While geologists had determined that billions of dollars of gold, silver, and copper lie beneath the soil and rock of this relatively unexplored region, the area remained mainly inaccessible to large-scale mining operations. But this hidden gem remains hidden no more. This is BC’s Golden Horseshoe (or Triangle to some).

Benchmark Metals Inc. (TSX-V.BNCH, OTC:CYRTF, Forum) is an exploration-stage company focused on proving and developing the substantial resource potential of the Lawyer’s Gold and Silver project, located in the prolific Golden Horseshoe. The Company maintains a district size land position here and recently improved access from Prince George, upgrading three bridges on a network of sturdy roads.

The Company is now initiating the largest drill program in the region. In the current program, Benchmark will focus on aggressive new drilling where it sees potential to convert existing targets into a multi-million-ounce gold-silver mineral resource estimate. Drilling will also test new exploration targets with anomalous geological features.

The Edmonton-based company will have five drill rigs turning and anticipates results from late July to December 2020.

According to Company Director and President Jim Greig there are three main catalysts for growth for the company over the next nine-month period –

1. Completion of up to 50,000 metres of planned drilling over five sites at the Lawyers Gold-Silver Project in Northwest BC
2. A mineral resource estimate in Q1 of 2021
3. A Preliminary Economic Assessment (PEA)

In conversation with Stockhouse Editorial, Mr. Greig explained how the project is already ramping up for a busy 2020 summer drill season:

“By the end of June, we’ll be starting with two drills immediately and then we’ll soon have five drills spinning thereafter. Next, we’ll have some metallurgy results and that’ll provide information about the level of gold and silver recovery from the rock. Very good relationships are established with First Nations with new collaborative agreements to come. These are big achievements, having a positive relationship with this First Nations stakeholders and community is pivotal. And lastly, we expect to see drill results by the end of July and then on a regular basis thereafter. We’re expecting spectacular numbers early to get things going and hopefully move the market cap.”



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In addition to onsite drilling, the 2020 exploration program will also include a “ 3D induced polarization and resistivity geophysical surveys” along with ground magnetics at multiple zones. The Company will conduct detailed bedrock, alteration, and structural mapping and extensive soil and bedrock sampling across new targets.


About the Lawyers Gold-Silver Project

The Lawyers property is located in the Toodoggone region of the Omineca Mining Division of B.C., on the eastern side of the Golden Horseshoe, and consists of 37 contiguous mineral claims. The claims cover 140 square kilometres of land that encompasses the Lawyers group of prospects, including the former Lawyers underground gold-silver mine and the Silver Pond group of prospects, and consists of over 16 gold-silver mineral occurrences.

Exploration in the area began in the late 1960’s and peaked in the 1980’s, identifying numerous showings, prospects and deposits culminating in the development of the Lawyers gold-silver mine that operated from 1989 to 1992, producing an abundant 171,000 ounces of gold and 3.6 million ounces of silver.

Five underground developments remain in place, in addition to historical resources and new targets.

Benchmark says the Lawyers Project exhibits “geological similarities to world-class low sulphidation epithermal gold-silver mines located in the Patagonia region of Argentina.”

When the Company announced a proposed 2019 exploration program at Lawyers, it said drilling would focus on infill, step-out, and deeper drilling to expand the current resources at the Cliff Creek and Dukes Ridge zones and establish new resources at the Phoenix and AGB zones. The goal is to facilitate a new resource estimate by late 2020 or early 2021.

The Company stated that the second drill will focus on step-out drilling along strike at 50-to-100 metre intervals from known zones at the core of the Lawyers trend (Cliff Creek, Dukes Ridge, Phoenix and ABG zones).

The most recent step-out hole intersected over 140 metres of intense alteration and multiphase veining and extended the Cliff Creek to strike length to over one kilometre.

First drill hole results from the Lawyers Trend (Cliff Creek Zone) were reported in August 2019 which “intersect high-grade mineralization over 3 to 10 metres of core length and bulk-tonnage mineralization of up to 80 metres core length over a strike length of at least 400 metres, with intercepts as deep as 250 metres.”

The Company anticipates that drilling will continue into the first week of October 2020 and it will disseminate drill results as they are received from the laboratory and interpreted.

As a historically producing gold-silver mine site, the Lawyers Project offers a range of logistical benefits including full road access, existing cut line for tie-in to regional power grid, nearby airstrip and mine site infrastructure (see Figure #1 below).


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Lawyers is accessed primarily by the Finlay Forest Service Road, which begins south of Mackenzie, a small forestry town located about 180 kilometres north of Prince George, B.C. The Finlay FSR forms the southern part of the Omineca Resource Access Road, an industrial road that provides access to Kemess and links to Lawyers, which is located just 45 kilometres beyond.

With gold prices having increased five to six-fold in the last 20 years – even after adjusting for inflation – and combined with the Golden Horseshoe’s historic high grades, the area becomes even more attractive.

Investor Update

Big names and big money have stepped up to the plate to finance the Lawyers Gold-Silver Project. The Company has raised over CDN$24 million since its inception, including foundational investors like mining magnate Eric Sprott – Benchmark’s largest shareholder to date – who’s company, Sprott Asset Management, has invested CDN$8.5 million (or a nearly 20% stake) into the 2020 exploration program.

“We have a track record of making people money.”

Benchmark Metals Inc. Director and President Jim Greig

And the market has already taken note. Since March 23rd, investors have helped nearly double BNCH’s share price with considerable volume trading continuing to take place.


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In Closing

Greg Jensen co-chief investment officer Bridgewater Associates, the worlds largest hedge fund, sees gold rising 30% to US$2000 in the latter half of 2020.

As gold approaches the CDN$2400 mark at press time and silver now closing in on CDN$25 p/oz, and the precious metals markets heating up in general, ‘getting in while the going is hot’ has never looked better.

Benchmark Metals Inc. has the financial backing, the right properties in the right jurisdictions, the experienced management team, and the boots on the ground getting a lot of drilling done this summer. It all adds up to making some serious market noise moving forward.


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FULL DISCLOSURE: This is a paid article produced by Stockhouse Publishing.