North of 60 Mining News - The mining newspaper for Alaska and Canada's North

New Age Metals Inc. Oct. 8 reported that the 2019 Genesis exploration program has significantly expanded the platinum group element-nickel-copper exploration targets on this project in Southcentral Alaska.

"We are pleased to announce that this summer's exploration efforts have doubled the strike length of prospective mineralization at our road accessible Genesis PGE-nickel-copper project in Alaska," said New Age Metals Chairman and CEO Harry Barr.

Situated along the Richardson Highway about 75 highway miles north of the deep-water port city of Valdez, Genesis is an under-explored palladium-platinum-nickel-copper property with great infrastructure.

Previous sampling at Sheep Hill, one of the targets identified on the 10,240-acre Genesis property, returned up to 2.4 grams per metric ton palladium, 2.4 g/t platinum, 0.96 percent nickel and 0.58 percent copper.

Bernard Mountain, situated about 4.7 miles (7.5 kilometers) west of Sheep Creek, hosts a separate style of chromite mineralization containing up to 2.5 g/t palladium and 2.8 g/t platinum.

The summer 2019 field program at Genesis included a survey aimed at mapping hydrothermal alteration in order to identify the potential for district-scale PGE-copper-nickel sulfide targets.

This program began with ASTER (advanced spaceborne thermal emission and reflection radiometer) processing and interpretation to generate three false color images, as well as interpretation of NASA Landsat TM (thematic mapper) imagery.

This was followed up with a reinterpretation of 400-meter spaced airborne magnetic and resistivity surveys previously flown by the Alaska Division of Geological and Geophysical Surveys and limited ground-based induced polarization (IP) geophysical surveys conducted by a previous owner of the Genesis project.

This work identified 23 exploration targets across the 10,240-acre Genesis property. The most prospective targets include nine zones identified on Sheep Hill and seven on Bernard Mountain.

The mineralization at Sheep Hill is strongly magnetic and moderately conductive. New Age said the ASTER and LANDSAT8 imagery over this target area shows a remarkably consistent correlation between a distinctive iron oxide alteration signature and the geological and geophysical trace of the previously discovered PGE-nickel-copper sulfide mineralization found there. This imagery also identified at least two other sub-parallel alteration zones east of the known mineralization at Sheep Hill. These three zones are separated from each other by talus fields that have accumulated from unaltered and unmineralized ultramafic rocks falling from upslope of the PGM-copper-nickel mineralization.

The imagery and geophysical data indicate the mineralization at Sheep Hill extends for at least 2,000 meters, more than double the previously identified 850 meters, and is open under alluvial cover in both strike directions.

At Bernard Mountain, the ASTER and LANDSAT8 imagery, combined with airborne magnetics and resistivity geophysical data, indicate a well constrained northeast trending band of conductive and magnetic iron oxide alteration extending for at least 2,250 meters along the south flank of the mountain.

New Age says the stratigraphic position, alteration and geophysical signatures at Bernard Mountain are identical to those at Sheep Hill. But unlike Sheep Hill, there has been virtually no prospecting, mapping or geochemical sampling along the prospective target horizon at Bernard.

And, despite the intriguing PGE-nickel-copper-chromite mineralization that has been identified on surface at Genesis, no drilling has ever been carried out on this project that is less than two miles from a paved highway and an electric transmission line.

With the 2019 program more than doubling the exploration footprint at Genesis, the next stage of exploration should include additional prospecting, mapping and sampling to refine targets for the first drilling on this critical metals project.

"Our Alaskan geological consultant, Avalon Development, has outlined subsequent stages of exploration including reconnaissance level prospecting, geologic mapping and geochemical sampling for all of the newly identified PGE-copper-nickel targets," said Barr. "Ground-based geophysics and/or closely spaced airborne magnetics and EM (electromagnetic) surveys should also be conducted to provide better three-dimensional control on mineralization. Following these efforts, prioritization of targets is recommended followed by first-ever scout drilling."

New Age Metals said its management is actively seeking a partner for this road accessible PGE-nickel-copper-chromite project about 75 highway miles north of the deep-water port city of Valdez, Alaska.

–SHANE LASLEY