Gold Finder Explorations: High grade gold at Emerald Lake and development of Crescent Silver Mine Attract Investors

Gold Finder Explorations (TSX-V:GFN), formerly  SNS Precious Metals, recently change its name and consolidated its capital on a 10 old for 1 new basis with 9.137 million shares now on issue. Gold Finder has approximately $2 million in the bank.

The company holds a 100% interest in the Golden Rose Property near Sudbury, in Ontario, retains a 20% interest in the redevelopment of the Crescent Silver Mine in Idaho, and is seeking to add advanced precious metals properties to its portfolio in Asia through its relationship with Holloman Corporation, a large integrated engineering company based in Houston, Texas.

Gold Finder has optioned an 80% interest in Crescent to the United Mining Group (TSX:UMG) for a $9 million commitment to bring the project back into production within 3 years. The mine is located in the Coeur d’Alene Mining District, which is the second largest silver district in the world having produced more than one billion ounces of silver, and is centered between the Historic Sunshine and Bunker Hill Mines that together produced 500 million ounces of silver and vast amounts of lead and zinc.

The project currently hosts a NI 43-101 Compliant Indicated Resource of 324,000 tons at 18.7 oz/t for 6.1 million ounces of silver, and an Inferred Resource of 211,000 tons at 19.5 oz/t for 4.1 million ounces of silver, for a total of 10.2 million ounces of silver. The Crescent Mine had historical production of 25 million ounces of silver at an average grade of 27.3 oz/t, and has potential to continue production well into the future from a large array of undrilled targets located around the Alhambra and South Veins, and the Hooper extension.

The United Mining Group (TSX:UMG) is a vertically integrated mining company that offers a full suite of mining services including contract mining to silver miners in the district. The Company owns its own custom welding and fabrication shop allowing it to repair and rebuild equipment for its own use, and for outside mining companies, and is upgrading current milling capacity for Crescent ore from 100 tons to 360 tons per day, for a planned restarting of mining and production of silver in February of 2012. New Jersey Mining Company (OTCBB:NJMC) is the mill owner and will provide contract services to operate the mill.

The Countess decline has already advanced 1,500 feet from the portal and will access the first silver vein system for development by the end of the first quarter of 2011.  Initial metallurgical bench testing of drill cores from these veins has been completed. This is being followed by testing from larger bulk samples of drill core ore to verify concentrate characteristics so that flotation equipment and milling capacity can be optimized for maximum recovery rates and throughput. The projectedl production rate from the facility is targeted to be 4 million ounces of silver per year, which should produce annualized revenues of US$116 million based on current silver prices. 

Gold Finder’s iniitial exploration program is ongoing at the 100% owned Emerald Lake Property in northern Ontario, containing 32 contiguous staked mining claims, and 8 contiguous leased mining claims, measuring approximately 330.53 hectares in area. Free milling gold was first discovered in weathered iron formation on the shores of the lake in 1897. Golden Rose Mining Company built a small mine on the property and recovered undisclosed amounts of gold from 1915 to 1919. In 1935 to 1941 Consolidated Mining and Smelting Company of Canada deepened the shaft to 749 feet, with a total of 15,795 feet of lateral development and excavated on 7 levels and 5 sub levels, supplying a 100 ton per day mill with ore that operated until 1941. In 1987 Noramco Mining Corp. constructed a 400-ton per day mill at the mine and carried on production from 1987 to 1988. 

Gold mineralization at the Golden Rose occurs mainly as free gold associated with quartz and coarse pyrite crystals, and gold tellurides. Mineralized zones occur as quartz veins within and next to a pre-Cambrian aged jasper and magnetite iron formation that has been traced for four miles across the property and continues on strike to the east of the property. A second band of the iron formation also crosses the property and has a number of known, but not yet explored, gold occurrences. Iron formation hosted gold deposits are known to contain large volumes or ore that have great depth, and are prolific gold producers.

Initial drilling targets were defined around the old Golden Rose Mine and formed the basis for a Phase One drilling program completed in early 2010 for 6,717 meters in 30 drill holes. Best intersections included 171 g/t or 5 oz/ton of gold over 6 feet in GR09-29, and 55 g/t or 1.6 oz/ton of gold over 2 feet in GR09-23. This drilling confirmed the historically reported stratigraphy and structure of the property as well as mineralogy and alteration data and defined targets for the Phase Two drilling program.

Phase Two drilling commenced in mid November of 2010 and has now been completed. This program consisted of 7 holes for 2,204.4 meters of drilling, which targeted the projected extensions of the historically mined ore zones in the old Golden Rose Mine. Infill drilling on this zone recorded multiple gold zones in GR10-37 including 0.34 meters at 48.70 g/t, 0.57 meters for 19.45 g/t, and 0.36 meters for 9.73 g/t., GR10-42 hit two high grade zones of 5.10 meters at 15.62 g/t and 2.60 meters at 70.05 g/t, including an extremely high grade 0.3 meters at 543 g/t or 17 ounces of gold over one foot.

From the most recent drilling, the company has  completed an upward looking down-hole Induced Polarization and Resistivity Survey that will allow the creation of a three dimensional model for definition of follow up drilling targets around these very high grade gold intersections.   It is not possible to perform the survey from above, as would normally be done,  as there is a conductive zone overlying the potential gold bearing zone which significantly interferes with the geophysical surveys.  Therefore the final set of drill holes were drilled sufficiently deep to pass completely through the zone of interest in order that the survey could be performed from below.  This provides for the first time an up close look at the mineralization and will provide far better drill siting than was previously possible.

The company is seeking new projects via a relationship established with Holloman Corporation to identify gold projects in Central Asia. Holloman has a substantial presence in Asia connected with engineering for all types of resource projects, and conducts mineral exploration, drilling and heavy equipment supply and rental and can support joint venturing and corporate development.

Gold Finder additionally owns 2.4 million shares of United Mining Group currently valued at $2.5 million, and 3.65M shares of Andover Ventures Inc (TSX-V:AOX) currently valued at $2.45 million, which will help underpin the financial strength of the company as its seeks to continue development of high grade results at Emerald Lake and looks for new projects.