Arc Exploration reports Indonesian mining ops
Thursday, October 29 2009 - 03:23 AM WIB
Trenggalek Project, East Java (ARX - 95%)
The Company operates a joint venture with P.T Sumber Mineral Nusantara, which holds the Trenggalek Exploration KP license covering an area of 30,044 ha in the Southern Mountains of East Java. The Southern Mountains comprise an older segment of the Sunda-Banda magmatic arc (?Southern Mountains Arc?) and hosts numerous gold, silver, and base metal prospects, including Intrepid Mines? Tujuh Bukit porphyry copper-gold project located about 250 km east of Trenggalek.
The geology of Trenggalek comprises Oligo-Miocene intermediate-felsic volcanic and volcaniclastic rocks, fossiliferous limestone and sedimentary rocks intruded by intermediate-felsic volcanic plugs and flow domes. Erosional remnants of mineralised hot-spring depositional features (i.e. sinters, hydrothermal breccias and low sulphidation epithermal gold-veins) are widespread in the project area. Other than epithermal gold, there may be potential for porphyry-style mineralisation beneath the shallower vein targets.
Geological mapping, rock chip and soil geochemical sampling were conducted on various parts of the KP during the quarter. Significant results from this work are summarised as follows:
Mapping over the southern segment of the Sentul West vein at Sentul Prospect confirmed that outcropping vein-width is between 3 to 8-m and extends over at least 300-m strike-length. Assay results from continuous-chip sampling completed across one vein outcrop returned 2.5-m at 4.2 g/t Au & 85 g/t Ag, including 1-m at 7.6 g/t Au & 200 g/t Ag. This outcrop occurs about 130-m along strike from a previously reported outcrop which assayed 3-m at 7.6 g/t Au & 35 g/t Ag.
Continuous-chip sampling across a new vein-splay about 100-m east of the Sentul West vein returned 4.1-m at 0.9 g/t Au & 2 g/t Ag in strongly colloform-crustiform textured rnicrocrystalline quartz.
Results from two lines of orientation soil sampling completed over silica cappings and breccias on the Gregah Prospect returned low gold (up to 0.083 ppb Au) but strongly anomalous pathfinder geochemistry, with up to 1170 ppm As and 97 ppm Sb; anomalous arsenic (+100 ppm As) and antimony (+10 ppm Sb) geochemistry occurs across the entire 500-m width of each line, suggesting the presence of a shallowly eroded epithermal system with potential for blind gold-veins at depth.
Further target definition work will be undertaken during the next quarter in preparation for scout drilling that is planned to commence in early 2010.
The Company entered into a strategic alliance during the quarter with a leading drilling contractor in Indonesia with extensive experience in the conduct of major drilling projects throughout the country. As a result of this alliance the drilling contractor will undertake a 5,000 metre diamond core scout drilling program at the Trenggalek Project at its own cost in exchange for shares and options in ARX. The Drilling Agreement is a fixed priced contract valued at US$825,000 (approximately A$900,000).
Subject to shareholder approval ARX will pay for the drilling services to be provided by the issue of fully paid ordinary shares and options on the same pricing and terms referred to above in respect of the placement and rights issue and for the value of the contract as it is performed. The shares issued to the drilling contractor will be voluntarily escrowed until 30 June 2010.
The Company continues to liaise with local government to prepare for the conversion of the KP to a mining business license (IUP).
Exploration expenditure at Trenggalek during the quarter totalled A$ 40,283.
Bima Project - East Sumbawa, West Nusa Tenggara (ARX - 95%)
The Company operates a joint-venture with P.T. Sumber Mineral Nusantara, which holds the Bima General Survey KP license covering an area of 24,980 ha in East Sumbawa, West Nusa Tenggara Province.
This highly prospective terrane extends into the Bima project area, which is underlain by Early Miocene to Pliocene intermediate-fetsic volcanic and volcaniclastic rocks, fossiliterous limestone and high-level intrusions.
Assay results were received for 19 rock chip samples (BR266-BR284) collected in the previous quarter from Kowo Prospect. Twelve of these samples returned significant silver results ranging from 42 to 482 g/t Ag, and multi-element results ranging up to 0.66 g/t Au, 0.28% Pb, 0.69% Zn, 7.6% Ba, 125 ppm Mo, 341 As and 57 ppm Sb. The multi-element geochemical anomalies highlighted in soil and rockchip sampling completed at Kowo todate are associated with a broad stockwork zone of quartz-baryte-sulphide veins and veinlets and suggests a possibly distal position to a blind or buried porphyry source.
The Company continues to liaise with local government to prepare for the conversion of the KP to a mining business license (IUP). Infill soil geochemical sampling will commence on the Kowo Prospect and further regional sampling will be conducted over the remaining project area once the KP is converted.
Exploration expenditure at Bima during the quarter totalled A$ 4,410.
Aisasjur Project -Anglo Strategic Alliance (ARX - 20%)
The Company has a 20% interest in a strategic alliance with the Anglo American Group (Anglo) to explore for large porphyry copper-gold deposits in the Papua and West Papua provinces. The interest is fully funded by Anglo through to a development decision.
This strategic alliance contains three KP?s covering a total area of about 610 square-kilometres in the Bird?s Head of West Papua. These KP?s form the Aisasjur Project and are located on the western end of the Medial Papua New Guinea magmatic arc, which hosts the giant copper-gold deposits of Grasberg and Ertsberg further east along the arc. The original Exploration KP, covering 9,486 ha, was recently extended for a 12-month period commencing in July 2009. The other two KP?s have General Survey status and are valid until the end of 2009.
It was previously reported that Anglo planned to do an airborne magnetics survey over the Aisasjur Project area in the current quarter. This survey was unfortunately cancelled due to equipment failure that occurred after the Contractor had mobilized to site. Anglo will consider flying the survey in 2010. (end of edited excerpt)