Several significant work programs are planned
or underway on Almaden Minerals Ltd.'s ("Almaden")
Canadian projects. Almaden currently has eleven active joint
venture projects including seven in which a partner is earning
an interest in an Almaden property through spending, a royalty
on a porphyry copper exploration project in Sinaloa, Mexico,
and a regional exploration joint venture with BHP Billiton World
Exploration Inc. (BHPB) underway to explore for copper-gold deposits
in Mexico. In addition, Almaden has shareholdings received as
payments from partner companies that total more than 4,000,000
shares in fourteen companies.
Sam Au-Ag Project, B.C., Canada (Skoonka Creek)
Almaden has optioned the Sam property to Strongbow Exploration
Inc. under terms whereby Strongbow can earn up to a 60% interest
in the 10,765 hectare (26,598 acres) SAM property, located 25
km northeast of Lytton in southern British Columbia. The property
hosts two gold bearing epithermal vein showings and a number
of untested gold soil anomalies. The showings were discovered
by Almaden over the preceding two years and represent part of
a new, previously unexplored epithermal gold district located
in a mature mining region that has excellent infrastructure.
The northern part of the property hosts two gold bearing epithermal
vein showings located approximately three kilometres apart. The
high grade JJ showing consists of two closely spaced veins separated
by approximately 0.5 metres of altered volcanic wall rocks, forming
a mineralized zone grading 22.8 g/t gold over an estimated true
width of approximately 2.0 metres. Large channel samples collected
by Almaden in 2004 from a hand dug trench exposure have returned
from 12.8 g/t gold to 53.4 g/t gold from vein material and 4.5
g/t to 9.2 g/t gold from altered wall rock. Eleven rock float
samples have returned elevated gold values ranging from 0.19
g/t gold to 8.68 g/t gold, defining a prospective trend extending
1500 m to the east-northeast of the JJ showing.
The Discovery showing is located northeast
of the JJ showing and consists of a 250 m long zone of quartz
float and a wide but low grade in-situ quartz breccia vein partly
exposed by an old roadcut. Sampling of a hand excavated trench
by Almaden in 2004 returned a weighted average gold value of
380 ppb (0.38 g/t) over a width of 4.2 metres. A June 2005 field
evaluation by Strongbow confirmed the assay results previously
reported by Almaden for the JJ and Discovery showings. A gold
soil anomaly identified by Almaden approximately 50m across strike
from the JJ showing was also confirmed with three samples returning
233 ppb gold, 675 ppb gold, and 1450 ppb gold. This soil anomaly
suggests the mineralized system may have significant width in
the JJ showing area. The property also hosts a number of additional
anomalous soil and stream silt anomalies suggesting the potential
presence of an extensive low sulphidation epithermal gold system.
Under the terms of the agreement with Almaden,
Strongbow can earn a 51% interest in the SAM property by issuing
to Almaden 600,000 shares and completing exploration expenditures
of $2 million prior to December 31, 2008. Strongbow can increase
its interest to 60% by spending an additional $2 million and
issuing a further 400,000 shares to Almaden over the ensuing
two years. Under certain conditions, Strongbow may elect to pay
Almaden $300,000 in cash in lieu of the final 200,000 share payment.
The agreement includes a commitment to issue 150,000 shares to
Almaden upon regulatory approval and to spend $150,000 exploring
the property prior to December 31, 2005. Strongbow has started
a program of soil and stream silt sampling, including detailed
sampling along strike from the JJ and Discovery showings. Ground
geophysical surveys and further trenching are also planned in
anticipation of a fall 2005 drilling program. The 2005 exploration
program on the SAM property will be conducted under the supervision
of David Gale, P.Geo. (BC), a Qualified Person within the meaning
of National Instrument 43-101. [Go
to Sam/Skoonka +]
PV Au-Ag Project, B.C., Canada
Almaden has optioned the PV project to Consolidated Spire Ventures
Ltd. (Spire). Spire can earn a 60% interest in properties by
issuing 1.1 million shares of Spire to Almaden and expending
C$1.3 Million on the property. The property covers gold prospects
discovered by Almaden in an area not previously known for epithermal
gold mineralisation. Reconnaissance prospecting has found numerous
surface boulders of quartz veins and breccias. Grab samples from
these have returned values ranging up to 43.3 g/t Au. Almaden
has carried out early stage work including a small IP geophysical
survey. Hand trenching on the Discovery Showing exposed a quartz
vein/breccia in bedrock that returned significant values including
7.7g/t Au over 0.5m. Spire has informed Almaden that a large
geologic mapping and sampling program designed to define drill
targets is currently underway. Exploration on the PV project
is being carried out under the direction of Mr. George Gorzynski,
P.Eng., a Qualified Person under the meaning of Canadian National
Instrument 43-101 and a director of Spire. [go
to PV +]
Elk (Siwash) Au Deposit, B.C., Canada
The Elk Gold deposit is located roughly two kilometres (km) south
of Highway 97 and 45 km southeast of Merrit in the Okanagan area
of Southern British Columbia. The mine is known for its very
high gold grades and in the 1990's; 51,750 ounces of gold were
produced from 18,400 tons of quartz vein ore extracted from the
B vein system in open pit and underground operations. A resource
estimate carried out by Giroux Consultants in May 2004 based
on data up to and including the 2003 drill program reported global
resources as shown below.
