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Engineer Mine Property Exploration

 

2011/05/25 BCGold Corp. Files NI 43-101 Technical Report and Announces 2011 Work Program for Engineer Gold Mine  Read Release

2011/03/04 BCGold Corp. Announces First Resource Estimate for Engineer Gold Mine, B.C.  Read Release

2011/01/31 BCGold Corp. Provides Exploration Update  Read Release

2010/12/01 BCGold Corp. Confirms High Gold Grades at Engineer Mine Property, B.C.  Read Release

2010/10/04 BCGold Corp. Expands Land Position at Engineer Gold Mine Property, B.C.  Read Release

Read all related news releases

 

Engineer Mine Property, BC

A historic former gold producer and advanced gold exploration and resource development project located 32 kilometres west of Atlin, British Columbia, and 140 kilometres south of Whitehorse, Yukon. BCGold Corp. has been methodically advancing the Engineer Mine property since 2006.
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2011 Expoloration

The 2011 exploration program is scheduled to commence in early June and will entail limited underground rehabilitation and dewatering of the lower mine workings, bulk sampling from surface trenching and underground, test mining to optimize head grade, and evaluation and optimization of the 30 tonne per day pilot mill circuit. The proposed property-wide exploration program, which covers both the Engineer Mine property and the recently acquired Gold Hill property, will include airborne geophysics, mapping, prospecting, surface trenching, and a 1,500 metre diamond drill program.

Earlier this year BCGold Corp. announced the first-ever National Instrument 43 - 101 compliant Mineral Resource estimate for the Engineer Mine property (see March 4, 2011 and May 25, 2011 news releases)

Disclosure for the current resource estimate on the Engineer Mine property, as detailed in the technical report "BCGold Corporation: Engineer Gold Project, BC, Canada, Mineral Resource Estimate," dated April 6, 2011, by Dr. S. C. Dominy, FAusIMM(CP), FGS(CGeol), FAIG(RPGeo) and Dr. I. M. Platten, FGS(CGeol), of Snowden Mining Industry Consultants Ltd. and Qualified Persons for the purposes of National Instrument 43 - 101, is as follows in Table 1.1 and 1.2:

Table 1.1
ENGINEER MINE MINERAL RESOURCE ESTIMATE
(1)
at a 5 g/t Au Cut-off (2)

CategoryVeinTonnesAu (g/t)Au ozs
InferredEngineer
30,800
20.6
20,400
InferredDouble Decker
10,100
13.1
4,400
Total
41,000
19.0
25,000

Table 1.2
ENGINEER MINE MINERAL RESOURCE ESTIMATE
(1)
at a 25 g/t Au Cut-off (3)

CategoryVeinTonnesAu (g/t)Au ozs
InferredEngineer
10,400
60
20,100
InferredDouble Decker
3,600
30
3,500
Total
14,000
52.5
23,600

Notes:

  1. Mineral Resources that are not Mineral Reserves do not have demonstrated economic viability.

  2. The Mineral Resource estimate is reported on a nominal cut-off of 5 g/t Au where the resource margin is defined by historical pay limits/payability. It is assumed that should production ever commence, the veins would be extracted by standard air-leg based narrow vein methods. Grades are diluted to a 1-metre stope width.

  3. The Mineral Resource estimate is reported on a nominal cut-off of 25 g/t Au where the resource margin is defined by historical pay limits/payability. It is assumed that should production ever commence, the veins would be extracted by standard air-leg based narrow vein methods. Grades are diluted to a 1-metre stope width.

This estimate includes five partially explored and developed mineralized shoots of the Double Decker and Engineer veins, from surface to 15 metres below 8 Level, the lowest level of the mine, adjusted for historical production. Both the Double Decker and Engineer veins remain open along strike and down dip and all shoots are accessible from 5 Level, the main access level of the mine.

2010 Exploration

BCGold Corp.’s 2010 exploration program at the Engineer Mine property included a two-phase underground diamond drill program designed to confirm high-grade gold-bearing extensions of the Engineer and Double Decker veins, between5 Level and 8 Level, which were partially defined by historic mining (Brinker Report, 1927) and recent (see March 3, 2010 news release) sampling.

The results of the drill program demonstrated that the Engineer and Double Decker veins are continuous structures along strike and dip, which host shoots and pockets of erratically distributed high-grade, multi-ounce gold and silver mineralization outside of previously mined areas. The results substantiated gold and silver grades of historic chip and channel samples and provided the confidence required to incorporate historic assay results into an Inferred Mineral Resource estimate compliant with National Instrument 43 - 101.

2010 Phase I drilling at Engineer Mine consisted of five holes (640 metres) from a single underground setup on 5 Level. For detailed results see August 25, 2010 news release.

2010 Phase II drilling at Engineer Mine consisted of eight short HQ holes (578 metres) from two setups on 5 Level. For detailed results see December 1, 2010 news release.

Also in 2010, BCGold Corp. entered into an option agreement to acquire a 100% interest in The Gold Hill Property, which partially surrounds the Engineer Mine Property. The Gold Hill property consists of five mineral claims (2,104 hectares), and includes the Happy Sullivan high-grade gold epithermal prospect and a 2.2 kilometre long segment of the highly prospective Shear Zone “B” structure. For details of the agreements see October 4, 2010 news release.

2009 Exploration

BCGold Corp. suspended exploration efforts at the Engineer Mine property in 2009 due a shortage of exploration funding and other exploration priorities. In 2009 the Company applied for and received a permit from the British Columbia Ministry of Environment to fully dewater the three lowermost levels of the mine.

2008 Exploration

In 2008, BCGold Corp. conducted a $1.2 million exploration program at the Engineer Mine property. The Company drilled seven holes (1,846 metres), targeting a 400 metre long segment of Shear Zone “A” for low-grade, bulk tonnage gold mineralization. Drilling confirmed that Shear Zone “A” is a major structural feature that hosts significant widths of hydrothermal breccia with low grade gold and silver values. For detailed results see December 2, 2008 news release.

Additional work in 2008 included mapping and sampling of surface and the 5 Level workings (a total of 72 rock samples were collected as evenly-spaced channel samples over a cumulative strike length of 41 metres from seven accessible vein segments on 5 Level), limited underground restoration work, and rock sample and core analysis using a ASD TerraSpec (350-2500nm) spectrometer. All exploration work results were compiled, interpreted and modeled 3-dimensionally using VULCANTM software (see Maps).

2007 Exploration

Exploration work at Engineer Mine in 2007 included a preliminary environmental review by Golder Associates Ltd., a comprehensive geological overview, rock sampling, re-logging of select drill core, and confirmatory underground mapping and sampling of the 5 Level workings. The Company compiled all available historic mine data and developed a 3-dimensional model of the Engineer Mine using VULCAN™ software (see Maps).

Sampling of the Shaft vein on 5 Level returned bonanza-grade gold and silver assays (see February 28, 2008 news release). A select grab sample, taken from a narrow vein exposed in the drift back assayed 860 g/t Au (25.08 oz/ton) and 1,774 g/t Ag (51.74 oz/ton). The sample was retrieved from more than 85 metres below any previous development on the Shaft vein. At this time the Shaft vein was largely unexplored and had received minimal historic development.

Access/Conditions

Access to the Engineer Mine property is by helicopter, floatplane or boat from Atlin, or by boat/barge from the village of Tagish, 55 kilometres north. Road access is possible along Tagish Lake by ice road during the winter months. There are eight levels of underground workings at the mine. 5 Level is the main tracked access level with a portal near the shore of Tagish Lake. The lowermost three levels (6 Level to 8 Level) are currently flooded.

A trailer camp with kitchen and housing facilities is established at the old town site on the Engineer Mine property. Seasonal tent frames are used for core-logging and processing. Many old roads provide good access to the various showings and developed sites on the property.