When the stars align over southern Canada
Full size / The Kenville Mine was the first underground lode gold mine in British Columbia and is well known for the nature of its high-grade gold content.
Already one of North America’s best performing gold stocks, Ximen Mining Corp. continues to make big headlines as the company today announced its focus on acquiring the past producing Kenville Gold Mine located near Nelson in southern British Columbia, Canada.
As recently announced in February, Ximen appointed Dr. Mathew Ball as VP Exploration, who was working to get the Greenwood Mill operational in southern British Columbia – a modern processing facility built in 2007 yet operational for only few months in 2008 due to weak precious metals prices, the global financial crisis and a corresponding lack of financing.
When you connect the dots of the Greenwood Mill and the Kenville Gold Mine on a map, the result is a mere distance of around 150 km on Highway #3 and #3A. That’s not a long trucking distance, especially when talking about high-grade quartz vein material with up to an ounce of gold per tonne.
When the Kenville Mine ceased operations in the 1950s, a total production of more than 2 tonnes of gold (plus silver, lead, zinc, copper and cadmium) was recorded from the processing of 181,395 tonnes.
Ximen’s CEO, Chris Anderson, stated in today’s news-release that, “The Kenville Gold Mine has played a major role in the rich history of BC Gold mining. It was the first underground lode gold mines in British Columbia and was once the largest producer in the Nelson Mining Camp. There have been multiple new targets and veins discovered in the last several years and Ximen is looking forward to the potential opportunity that exists ahead.”
Successful drilling programs between 2009 and 2012 discovered additional high-grade gold quartz veins striking over several hundred meters beyond the historical footprint of the Kenville Mine, confirming potential for new gold resources with silver and copper enrichment. By 2012, the Kenville Mine was at a production-ready state, but the concurrent beginning of a bear market in gold put an end to that plan.
With gold prices on the rise again, the time could be ripe now for Ximen to write history in one of North America’s most prolific gold mining districts.
About the Kenville Gold Mine
According to Ximen’s news today:
“The Kenville Gold mine was discovered and staked in 1888 and was the first hard rock gold mine in British Columbia. It was mined intermittently until 1954, with recorded production of 2,029 kilograms of gold, 861 kilograms of silver, 23.5 tonnes of lead, 15 tonnes of zinc, 1.6 tonnes of copper and 37 kilograms of cadmium from 181,395 tonnes processed. The property is located 8 km west of Nelson, BC, is accessible by paved road and is connected to the power grid. Existing infrastructure includes mining equipment, offices, mechanic shop, core storage and accommodation.
The mine deposit consists of multiple, gold-silver quartz veins hosted by diorite. Between 2007 and 2008, 13,000 meters of diamond drilling was conducted that targeted previously un-tested areas southwest of the historic mine, and detailed sampling was conducted within the mine on the 257 Level. There are six other historical levels within the mine footprint; only this level was rehabilitated and remains open and accessible. Based on the mine sampling and drill hole information available at the time, new zones of gold mineralization were identified, and mineral resources were estimated (see table below).
A qualified person has not done sufficient work to classify the historic estimate as current mineral resources or mineral reserves. As such the issuer, Ximen Mining Corp., is not treating this historical estimate as current mineral resources or mineral reserves. Ximen considers this historic mineral resource estimate to be relevant and reliable in that it was based upon the results of underground sampling and diamond drill information available at the time. The historic estimate uses the categories of Measured, Indicated and Inferred mineral resources as defined by the Canadian Institute of Mining, Metallurgy and Petroleum. Measured and Indicated Resources are based on projections of mineralized veins exposed on the 257 Level. Inferred Resources in the historical estimate are based on assumed continuity beyond measured and (or) indicated resources. The inferred mineral resources are based on historical drill and assay information verified by underground channel samples collected in 2007/8. The resource tonnages were estimated using an assumed specific gravity. A cut-off grade of 1.1 grams per tonne was used. No allowance for dilution was included based on an anticipated “resue” mining method, which would separate mineralized material from waste rock.
Significant diamond drilling was conducted after the above mineral resource estimate was made between 2009 and 2012. At least 4 new veins were identified with potential strike lengths of over 700 metres. The results of this drilling have not yet been reviewed by the Company’s Qualified Person. A complete review of the technical information is required with the aim of completing a new resource estimate that includes the more recent diamond drill results.
In addition to the historic gold mine, elsewhere on the property historic soil geochemical surveys and results of scout drilling indicate potential for porphyry-type copper-molybdenum-silver-gold mineralization.”
Last week, Ximen announced the acquisition of more than 12,900 hectares of land near Greenwood in southern British Columbia, becoming one of the largest land holders in the mining-friendly Greenwood District besides Kinross Gold Corp., Grizzly Discoveries Inc. and Golden Dawn Minerals Inc.
“The claims cover or border several historic past producing mines and mineral occurrences. Included is the Providence mine that operated intermittently from 1893 to 1973”, Ximen noted in the news-release. “A total of 10,426 Metric tonnes of ore was mined, producing 183 kilograms of gold, 42,552 kilograms of silver, 183 tonnes of lead, 118 tonnes of zinc. The Combination mineral showing was also mined, with 11 tonnes yielding 60,340 grams silver and 653 grams of gold. There are a total of eleven known mineral occurrences covered by the mineral claims.”
Full size / Map showing Ximen/GGX‘s Gold Drop Property (orange) and Ximen‘s newly acquired claims (red) in proximity to the Greenwood Mill from Golden Dawn Minerals Inc. (TSX.V: GOM)
Full size / A golden opportunity: The Greenwood Mill is a modern processing facility with a daily throughput capacity of 212 t/day (72,000 t/year), upgradable to 424 t/day with the addition of a second primary grinding mill and modifications to existing rougher flotation circuit. The mill‘s conventional processing can produce a gold gravity concentrate and copper-gold flotation concentrate, both marketable to smelters for immediate cash-flow. The near-by tailings pond, pictured above in the background, has a permitted capacity of 400,000 t.
The newly acquired claims surround Ximen’s Gold Drop Property which is currently under an option agreement to GGX Gold Corp. The Gold Drop Project recently made headlines with record-breaking drill results of “129 g/t gold and 1,154 g/t silver over 7.28 meter core length“, which ranks as the world‘s 7th best drill intercept of 2019.
Moreover, these assays showed that tellurium grades have exceeded the upper analytical limits at the lab (i.e. 500 g/t tellurium), which prompted Ximen’s option partner to re-analyze the core for tellurium, also “due to multiple industry inquiries” as Ximen stated. On March 18, the exact tellurium grades were announced with “up to 3,860 g/t tellurium”, including “823 g/t tellurium over 7.28-meter core length” and “640 g/t tellurium over 6.90-meter core length”.
Fortis Metals, the world’s leading producer of minor metals, recently forecasted a tellurium supply deficit that, “as of 2020 could be as big as a staggering 370 metric tonnes.” Noting the rapidly-growing use of tellurium for thin-film solar panels, Fortis stated: “At the moment, we are still seeing (tellurium) inventories in China but these are being eaten away by the two main suppliers of First Solar (the world’s largest thin-film solar manufacturer). It is only a matter of time before the market will understand the new dynamics and prices will start to reflect the growing deficit. We would not be surprised to see prices break the previous record seen in 2011.”
Ximen’s option partner has produced some of the highest grade tellurium drill intercepts in the world over the 2018 drill season.
See also Rockstone Report #8 “Industry inquiries persuade Ximen‘s partner to re-assay drill core for tellurium“ for more information on the importance of tellurium for the solar industry as well as Ximen’s note on “Tellurium’s Unique Value”.
Interview with Chris Anderson, CEO of Ximen, at the PDAC 2019:
YouTube
Previous Coverage
Report #8: “Industry inquiries persuade Ximen‘s partner to re-assay drill core for tellurium“
Report #7: “Ximen Hires B.C. Mining Expert Dr. Mathew Ball“
Report #6: “Location is Key for Ximen‘s Treasure Mountain Project in Southern British Columbia“
Report #5: “The Unprecedented Gold-Silver-Tellurium Strikes in the Historic Greenwood Mining Camp Continue“
Report #4: “Record-Breaking Gold Hit in Southern British Columbia“
Report #3: “Strong drill results and appreciating precious metals prices may herald golden times for Ximen Mining“
Report #2: “Ximen Mining reveals striking drill core observations ahead of assays“
Report #1: “Ximen Mining: Hunting for Multi-Million Ounces in British Columbia“
Technical Perspective
Link to updated chart (15 min. delayed): https://schrts.co/nVvegNqV
Company Details
Ximen Mining Corp.
888 Dunsmuir Street – Suite 888
Vancouver, BC, Canada V6C 3K4
Phone: +1 604 488 3900
Email: office@ximenminingcorp.com
www.ximenminingcorp.com
Shares Issued & Outstanding: 32,459,025
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Canadian Symbol (TSX.V): XIM
Current Price: $0.75 CAD (04/05/2019)
Market Capitalization: $24 Million CAD
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German Symbol / WKN (Frankfurt): 1XMA / A2JBKL
Current Price: €0.498 EUR (04/05/2019)
Market Capitalization: €16 Million EUR
Disclaimer: This report contains forward-looking information or forward-looking statements (collectively "forward-looking information") within the meaning of applicable securities laws. Forward-looking information is typically identified by words such as: "believe", "expect", "anticipate", "intend", "estimate", "potentially" and similar expressions, or are those, which, by their nature, refer to future events. Rockstone Research, Ximen Mining Corp. and Zimtu Capital Corp. caution investors that any forward-looking information provided herein is not a guarantee of future results or performance, and that actual results may differ materially from those in forward-looking information as a result of various factors. The reader is referred to the Ximen Mining Corp.´s and Zimtu Capital Corp.´s public filings for a more complete discussion of such risk factors and their potential effects which may be accessed through the Ximen Mining Corp.´s and Zimtu Capital Corp.´s profile on SEDAR at www.sedar.com. Please read the full disclaimer within the full research report as a PDF (here) as fundamental risks and conflicts of interest exist. The author, Stephan Bogner, holds a long position in Ximen Mining Corp., Golden Dawn Minerals Inc. and Zimtu Capital Corp. and is being paid by Zimtu Capital Corp. for the preparation, publication and distribution of this report, whereas Zimtu Capital also holds a long position in Ximen Mining Corp. and Golden Dawn Minerals Inc. The author currently does not hold any equity positions or other kind of interest in GGX Gold Corp. or any other mentioned company. Ximen Mining Corp. has paid Zimtu Capital Corp. to provide this report and other investor awareness services.
Contact:
Rockstone Research
Stephan Bogner (Dipl. Kfm.)
8260 Stein am Rhein, Switzerland
Phone: +41-44-5862323
Email: info@rockstone-research.com
www.rockstone-research.com