Mining’s old guard needs strong medicine
A new report details subpar investor returns in the mining industry over the last decade, particularly big cap diversified companies which have not adapted to new realities.
Nighthawk Gold (TSX: NHK) has entered into a binding option agreement with a subsidiary of natural gas and oil-focused Pine Cliff Energy (TSX: PNE) to acquire a 100% interest in the 31-sq.-km Kim & Cass property, adjacent to its existing Indin Lake gold property in the Northwest Territories.
The added grounds lie 15 km southwest of Nighthawk’s Colomac deposit and, according to president and CEO Keyvan Salehi, “represent quality targets that fit our immediate strategy of looking for near-surface, higher-grade opportunities proximal to Colomac.”
Kim & Cass is adjacent to the Albatross claim block that features the 4-km Albatross trend, where surface samples returned up to 20.6 g/t gold.
These new grounds include a historic resource of 2.9 million tonnes grading 2.66 g/t gold, with over 32,000 metres of historic drilling completed within 75 metres of surface. Drilling completed by Nighthawk in 2014 on this property extended the Cass corridor by 700 metres; historical drilling traced mineralization over 360 metres of strike.
Notable intercepts from the 2014 program include 51 metres of 2.25 g/t gold from 121 metres; 26 metres of 2.86 g/t gold starting at 143 metres; and 36.2 metres of 2.89 g/t gold from 112.8 metres.
To acquire this property, Nighthawk has agreed to pay a total of C$1.1 million and grant the vendor a 2.5% repurchaseable net smelter return royalty. The payments, in cash or shares, are divided into three tranches with the last due on or before Feb. 17, 2023. The first, C$400,000 share payment has been met.
Nighthawk expects to release details on work planned for Kim & Cass with its 2021 exploration program announcement.
(This article first appeared in the Canadian Mining Journal)
