08:09:19 EDT Fri 29 Mar 2024
Enter Symbol
or Name
USA
CA



Focus Metals Inc
Symbol FMS
Shares Issued 85,677,174
Close 2012-03-12 C$ 0.97
Market Cap C$ 83,106,859
Recent Sedar Documents

Focus Metals drills 48.8 m of 2.4% TREO at Kwyjibo

2012-03-13 13:14 ET - News Release

Mr. Gary Economo reports

FOCUS METALS AND SOQUEM REPORT SIGNIFICANT RARE EARTH ELEMENT RESULTS FROM THE FALL 2011 DRILLING PROGRAM AT KWYJIBO, NORTHEASTERN QUEBEC

Focus Metals Inc. and partner SOQUEM Inc. have released the results of the fall 2011 core drilling program on the Kwyjibo polymetallic property located in the Grenville geological province of northeastern Quebec.

Hole 10885-11-57, drilled on the Josette horizon, returned the best rare-earth-element-mineralized section:

  • 2.40 per cent total rare-earth oxides (i) over 48.8 metres (from 65.2 m to 114.0 m) including:
    • 3.40 per cent TREO over 24.3 m (from 68.5 m to 92.8 m) and 6.83 per cent TREO over 1.1 m (from 82.7 m to 83.8 m).

Ratios of critical rare-earth elements (REOc) (ii) in the mineralized interval range between 41 per cent and 42 per cent. The REE mineralization is hosted in a Mesoproterozoic iron-oxide-copper-gold (IOCG) zone consisting in a magnetite-rich hydrothermal iron formation (referred as a magnetitite) and in a stockwork of magnetite veins associated with a calcic alteration in a host rock composed mainly of foliated to gneissic leucocratic granite. REE- and yttrium-bearing minerals include apatite, britholite, allanite and bastnaesite.

(i) TREO means total rare-earth oxides, including yttrium oxide.

Drilling highlights

The fall 2011 core drilling program at Kwyjibo comprises 12 holes for a total of 2,604 m. The objectives of the drilling program were to test (a) an airborne VTEM geophysical anomaly as well as the extension at depth of the magnetitite horizon at the Gabriel showing (holes 10885-11-49 and 50), (b) the extension at depth of the copper-gold zone at the Grabuge showing (10885-11-51), (c) an off-hole pulse electromagnetic geophysical anomaly (hole 10885-11-59), and (d) VTEM anomalies along with the northeast extension of the Josette horizon (holes 10885-11-52, 53, 57, 58 and 60) between the Josette and Andradite showings. The best drill results were obtained on the Josette horizon including:

  • Hole 10885-11-56: 1.80 per cent TREO over 32.5 m (from 168.5 m to 201.0 m) including:
    • 5.88 per cent TREO over 1.0 m (from 169.7 m to 170.7 m);
  • Hole 10885-11-58: 1.64 per cent TREO over 20.6 m (from 75.4 m to 96.0 m) including:
    • 7.05 per cent TREO over 0.8 m (from 80.3 m to 81.1 m);
  • Hole 10885-11-60: 3.61 per cent TREO over 33.1 m (from 271.0 m to 304.1 m) including:
    • 8.68 per cent TREO over 1.0 m (from 290.0 m to 291.0 m).

REOc ratios for the above results range between 41 per cent and 44 per cent.

Complete results are shown in the company's website, and also include results for iron (Fe2O3) and phosphorus (P2O5) oxides, copper (Cu), REOc ratio and heavy-rare-earth-element-oxide ratio.

Summer 2012 exploration program

Focus and SOQUEM are currently working on the design of a two-phase, follow-up exploration program on the Kwyjibo property for the summer 2012. Phase I of this program (mid-June to mid-July) will include line cutting on the western part of the property; a ground time-domain electromagnetic (TDEM) geophysical survey targeting selected VTEM anomalies; a borehole pulse electromagnetic geophysical survey on the 12 drill holes of 2011; a mini bulk sampling for metallurgical testing on Josette; trench 95-29, 95-30 and smaller samples from selected drill holes. Phase II of the exploration program (mid-July to mid-September) will consist of a 4,000-metre core drilling program on the Josette horizon in order to better define the shape, size and REE-Fe-Cu grades. A National Instrument 43-101-compliant resource estimate will be considered following the results. The fieldworks are planned to start in June and to end late September.

The REOc ratio (ii)

Values of TREO (total rare-earth-element oxides, REE2O3) presented are the sum of all rare-earth oxides of the lanthanide series and yttrium oxide. Strictly not a rare earth element, yttrium is included in the total amount of REE because of the chemical behaviour and uses that are similar to the lanthanides.

The U.S. Department of Energy estimated in a recent study that some rare earth elements such as neodymium (Nd), europium (Eu), terbium (Tb), dysprosium (Dy) and yttrium (Y) face a shortage on a short-term (present to 2015) to medium-term (2015 to 2020) basis (source: Critical Materials Strategy, December, 2011, U.S. Department of Energy). The ratio of critical rare earths elements is defined by the sum of Nd plus Eu plus Tb plus Dy plus Y oxides divided by the total REE oxides multiplied by 100. The REOc ratio is the expression of the importance of those REEs sought by the industry without considering the technological challenge to recover the REE and all the costs related to a mine development. Except for some holes with low-grade REE content, most of the REOc vary from 36 per cent to 47 per cent.

2011 drill program and methodology

The 2011 drilling program at Kwyjibo started at mid-September and ended on Nov. 17, 2011. The drilling was performed by G4 Drilling of Val d'Or under the supervision of SOQUEM, the operator of the Kwyjibo exploration program. Of the 15 holes planned, three holes were abandoned due to difficult topography, lack of time and/or harsh weather conditions in November.

A total of 852 samples, consisting of 804 half, NQ-drill-core samples from 12 drill holes, 13 duplicates, 17 standard and 18 blank samples were sent to ALS Canada (in Val d'Or and Vancouver), a certified laboratory (ISO 9001:2008 and ISO/IEC 17025:2005 for standards), for analysis for all rare earth elements, most traces and major elements. Except for one hole, between one and three standard samples and the same for blank samples were introduced in each hole according to the number of samples analyzed. Also, a duplicate sample was analyzed for each hole. The standard sample is an internal standard from the Josette showing. In order to be valid, the blank sample (a quartzite with silicon dioxide of approximately 96 per cent) had only trace amount of REE (less than 60 parts per million). Rare earths and trace elements were analyzed using lithium borate fusion of the sample prior to acid dissolution and analyzed by ICP-MS (inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry). This method is best suitable for minerals resistant to acid digestion, like some REE-bearing silicates. For high-grade REE samples, a reanalysis of the pulp was performed using high sample-to-volume ratios in addition to Class A volumetric glassware. ALS laboratory used certified high-grade rare-earth reference materials as part of the standard protocol. Major elements were analyzed using a lithium borate fusion of the sample prior to acid dissolution and analyzed by ICP-AES (inductively coupled plasma atomic emission spectrometry). REE, traces and major elements were analyzed at ALS laboratory in Vancouver. For sulphide-bearing samples, copper, gold, silver, lead, zinc and sulphur were analyzed. Copper, lead, silver, zinc and sulphur were analyzed using digestion in aqua regia, then analyzed by AAS technique (atomic absorption spectrometry). Gold was analyzed by fire assay and AAS with a 30-gram nominal sample weight. Base metals and precious metals were analyzed at ALS facilities in Val d'Or.

Property location

The Kwyjibo polymetallic iron-rare-earth-element-copper-(gold) (Fe-REE-Cu-(Au)) property, totalling 118 mining titles and covering 6,278 hectares, is located a few kilometres north of Manitou Lake and 125 km northeast of Sept-Iles, in the Cote-Nord administrative district of Quebec. The property is also located 25 km east of the Quebec North Shore and Labrador railway line and is accessible by air from Sept-Iles.

Terms of the agreement

On Aug. 3, 2010, the company announced the signing of an option agreement with SOQUEM, a wholly owned subsidiary of the Societe generale de financement du Quebec (SGF) (in April, 2011, the SGF merged with Investissement Quebec), to acquire a 50-per-cent interest in the Kwyjibo property.

Under the terms of the agreement, Focus Metals may acquire a 50-per-cent interest in the Kwyjibo property by spending up to $3-million in exploration work on the property over a period of five years, of which $1-million must be spent during the first two years.

SOQUEM will act as the operator for all exploration work carried out on the property for the first two years of the option period or until the first $1-million in exploration work expenditures have been spent. Focus will then have the option to become operator by paying $50,000 in cash or issuing a block of common shares valued at $50,000.

As of Dec. 31, 2011, Focus has spent approximately $2.6-million on the Kwyjibo project.

The technical content of this news release was reviewed by Tony Brisson, PGeo (Quebec), a qualified person as defined by NI 43-101.

We seek Safe Harbor.

© 2024 Canjex Publishing Ltd. All rights reserved.