Vancouver-based Skeena Resources continues to drill high gold and silver grades at its Eskay Creek property in the province’s Golden Triangle. The longest and strongest recent intersection was 27.5 metres grading 6.75 g/t gold and 285 g/t silver (10.56 g/t gold equivalent).
Two other holes in the 21A zone returned exceptional gold grades – 27.37 g/t gold and 18 g/t silver over 9.40 metres and 9.86 g/t gold and 157 g/t silver over 28.5 metres.
Two other holes drilled at the 21A zone expanded the mineralization. They returned 2.18 g/t gold and 36 g/t silver over 28.0 metres and 9.86 g/t gold and 157 g/t silver over 28.5 metres. Skeena says this expansion correlates very well with the predicted geometries as well as the gold-silver tenor of the adjacent drill holes.
Exploration at Eskay Creek goes back to 1932, but it was 1995 before Homestake Canada officially opened the underground mine. Barrick Gold took over ownership in 2002, and operations continued until 2008. Since then, the property has been on care and maintenance. While it was active, the Eskay Creek mine produced 3.3 million oz. of gold and 160 million oz. of silver.
A resource estimate prepared this year put the pit constrained mineralization at 12.7 million indicated tonnes grading 4.5 g/t gold and 117 g/t silver, plus 13.6 million inferred tonnes grading 2.2 g/t gold and 42 g/t silver. Material that can be recovered by underground mining totals 819,000 indicated tonnes grading 7.1 g/t gold and 139 g/t silver, plus 295,000 inferred tonnes at 7.1 g/t gold and 82 g/t silver.
(This article first appeared in the Canadian Mining Journal)