Major Development
Nunavut, often ignored in past mineral exploration, is turning out to have significant and exceptional mineral resources. The Kivalliq area has seen major exploration projects in recent years, especially with gold, uranium and other minerals. The Repulse Bay area currently has significant exploration activity with gold and diamonds.
Qilalugaq Project
Stornoway Diamonds is currently exploring diamonds near Repulse Bay. This 183,000 hectare property lies approximately 10 km north of Repulse Bay and the property extends across the Rae Isthmus to Committee Bay. Various exploration efforts have occurred on the property since the initial discovery in 2001. Geological modeling has demonstrated the possibility of 81 million tonnes of kimberlite to a depth of 330 m, grading 27 to 33 carats per hundred tonnes.
In May 2010, Stornoway Diamonds increased its ownership of the property to 100% by allowing its previous joint venture partners, BHP Billiton, a 3 per cent gross production royalty and a three per cent net smelter return royalty on any products. (http://www.stornowaydiamonds.com)
Committee Bay Project
North Country Gold (a wholly-owned subsidiary of CBR Gold Corp.) is the 100 per cent owner of the Committee Bay project. This property is located 100 km northwest of Repulse Bay.
North Country Gold Corp. controls one of the largest under-explored greenstone belts in Canada with numerous drill-ready high-grade gold targets. The gold-rich Committee Bay Greenstone Belt is located 180 km North-East of the of Agnico Eagle's Meadowbank gold mine. Three Bluffs carries a similar grade, type of mineralization and age as Agnico Eagle's Meadowbank mine. The Company holds 100% interest in 530,631 acres along the 300 km belt and has identified 5 distinct mineral development centers, focusing in on the Three Bluffs deposit.
North Country Gold Corp. mounted its largest exploration program to date in 2011 at the Three Bluffs high-grade gold deposit in Nunavut, Canada. The Company spent $25 million on an extensive drill program along the Walker Lake Trend while significantly expanding project access and camp infrastructure. A comprehensive drill program of 7 rigs in operation completed 30,000 metres of drilling on numerous targets along the trend. The company is focused on delivering a substantially updated resource estimate in Q1, 2012. North Country Gold's 2012 program will be equally aggressive, with the potential for 8 to 10 drill rigs targeting over 40,000 metres. (http://northcountrygold.com)
Melville Gold Project
In February 2010, Anglogold Ashanti Holdings acquired 62 prospecting permits on the Melville Peninsula. Ground selection was based upon target generation work completed on a regional scale in selected parts of Nunavut during 2009. A number of the permits cover areas with known gold anomalies identified by the Geological Survey of Canada during the 2009 field season and released in November of that year. Helicopter-supported field reconnaissance work has been completed by AngloGold Ashanti and information is currently being interpreted in preparation for more detailed follow-up work. (http://nunavutgeoscience.ca)