The mining newspaper for Alaska and Canada's North
The mining newspaper for Alaska and Canada's North
Mining Explorers 2023 - January 18, 2024
An aerial view of the Whistler exploration camp established by Kiska Metals during its exploration a little over a decade ago.
With the successful completion of a US$20 million initial public offering in April 2023, U.S. GoldMining Inc. immediately set out to explore Whistler, an advanced staged copper-gold-silver project in Alaska.
Lying adjacent to Nova Minerals Ltd.'s Estelle gold project about 100 miles northwest of Anchorage, the 42,000-acre Whistler property hosts 118.2 million metric tons of indicated resource averaging 0.51 grams per metric ton (1.94 million ounces) gold, 2.19 g/t (8.3 million oz) silver, and 0.16% (422 million pounds) copper; plus 317 million metric tons of inferred resource averaging 0.46 g/t (4.67 million oz) gold, 1.58 g/t (16.1 million oz) silver; and 0.1% (711.4 million lb) copper.
These resources are based on 70,247 meters of diamond drilling completed in 257 holes from 1986 to the end of 2011.
The most recent of these past explorers of Whistler was Kiska Metals, which significantly expanded the mineralization and prospectivity in and around the Whistler deposit, as well as discovered Island Mountain and established a resource for this satellite deposit.
In addition to extensive drilling, Kiska established an airstrip and camp near Whistler and Raintree, and roads that allow for easy access to these deposits at the north end of the 53,700-acre property. Island Mountain, which lies about 14 miles south of the camp, must be reached by helicopter.
GoldMining Inc., then known as Brazil Resources, acquired the Whistler project from Kiska Metals in 2015. The Alaska copper-gold company was then spun out into U.S. GoldMining Inc., which listed on Nasdaq last year with a US$20 million public offering.
Immediately following the April closing of the IPO, the new company went to work at Whistler with renovations and expansion of the exploration camp ahead of its inaugural drill program that got underway in August.
"Whistler has not been actively explored in more than a decade, and by utilizing new technology and applying our team's technical expertise, we aim to gain a better understanding of the mineral systems and the potential development options for Whistler," said U.S. GoldMining President and CEO Tim Smith at the onset of the company's initial phase of drilling. "The program will explore extensions along strike and to depth, as well as prioritize the improved delineation of higher-grade zones within the existing Whistler gold-copper deposit."
In addition to supporting an updated resource estimate, the 10,000-meter drill program that will be completed this year, is collecting geotechnical and geometallurgical data to support a preliminary economic assessment for Whistler slated for completion before the end of the year.
Shortly after the start of the 2023 drilling began, Alaska Gov. Mike Dunleavy visited Whistler. The Dunleavy administration has been advancing work on the proposed 100-mile West Susitna Road that would connect Whistler to Port MacKenzie on Alaska's Cook Inlet, which would offer a means of delivering copper-rich concentrates to global markets.
"Alaska's policy under Governor Dunleavy's administration of investing in critical infrastructure to stimulate growth in Alaska's economy, was an important catalyst for U.S. GoldMining to launch its highly successful IPO in April 2023," said Smith.
Over his more than 16 years of covering mining and mineral exploration, Shane has become renowned for his ability to report on the sector in a way that is technically sound enough to inform industry insiders while being easy to understand by a wider audience.
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