It will spend well over $1 million and drill enough rock to span the length of more than 70 football fields.
But it remains to be seen whether Callinex Mines’ upcoming exploration campaign at the Pine Bay Project will yield results worthy of a mine.
The junior miner announced Monday it will continue exploration at Pine Bay, located 16 km east of Flin Flon, with about 10,000 metres of drilling in 2016.
Work is expected to commence in January with two drill rigs. This follows drilling earlier this year that Callinex said revealed volcanogenic massive sulphide (VMS) mineralization.
“The objective of the 2016 campaign is to identify additional high-grade VMS mineralization rich in copper, zinc, gold and silver that has potential to be associated with a large deposit,” the company said in a news release.
In the 1990s, the now-defunct Placer Dome mining company explored the Pine Bay area and recommended locations for additional drilling.
As part of its work, the Vancouver-based Callinex said it plans to test newly identified targets in areas where Placer Dome called for drilling.
Callinex did not formally announce a budget for the 2016 exploration, but a spokesman said drilling costs in 2015 were about $150 per metre, so next year’s work will cost roughly $1.5 million.
Next year’s drilling will include winter and summer phases, the company said.
Callinex’s 2015 summer drilling campaign included three holes totaling 3,111 metres.
The Pine Bay Project covers an area totaling about 6,000 sq hectares consisting of both mining claims and a mineral lease.
Editor’s note: Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its regulation services provider accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of information supplied by Callinex.
