North Bay Resources Inc. (OTC:NBRI) has entered into a 50-50 joint venture earn-in agreement with MGX Minerals Inc over the Fran Gold project in British Columbia.
This will see North Bay earn up to an initial 30% interest in the project through completing a resource estimate and producing 2,500 ounces of gold within a year.
North Bay’s stake will then climb to a total of 50% after mining an additional 2,500 ounces of gold within two years.
Following the earn-in agreement, the project will then be run as an equal joint venture, with North Bay acting as the operator.
The 34,360-acre project is located 20 miles from Centerra Gold’s 60,000 ton per day Milligan mine, North Bay highlighted.
Some 50,000 feet worth of diamond drilling has been carried out in 104 holes at Fran, the company added, mainly in the Bullion Alley Zone.
The project houses a gold deposit containing three to four well-defined parallel veins, showing grading of up to 2.6 troy ounces of gold per ton, alongside copper and silver.
A near-surface sub-zone where the gold-bearing veins swell was also identified.
“There is property-wide potential for additional discoveries of gold and copper with numerous showings outside of the Bullion Alley Zone,” the company said.