Doubleview Gold Corp (TSX-V:DBG, OTCQB:DBLVF) CEO Farshad Shirvani talked with Proactive about the company's maiden mineral resource estimate on the Hat project in British Columbia.
Shirvani shared insights into the significant progress and hard work put into the project since its inception in 1993. Highlighting the transition from exploration to mining development, Shirvani emphasized the project's importance for shareholders.
Proactive: Can you discuss the work that has gone into the maiden mineral resource estimate for the Hat project in BC and provide more details about the project itself?
Farshad Shirvani: This project has been on our radar since 1993. We have been actively working on it since 2011, and a lot of hard work has gone into it. Over time, it has progressed significantly. Now, the company is transitioning from exploration to mining development, marking a major step forward for our shareholders.
Given the significant effort that has gone into this project, how do you view the strength of the numbers in the resource estimate?
At this stage, it's a very large deposit. We have explored approximately 15% of the project, with only a very minor portion in blue flow. The deposit contains about 627 million tonnes at 1.50% indicated and 477 million tonnes inferred, which is quite significant.
Within the finished portion, we have about 970 million tonnes of material. We selected this number because it highlights a higher-grade portion of the deposit. We plan to advance this further and aim for even higher grades by the end of the year.
You have copper, gold, and some cobalt in the project. Are you satisfied with the current metallurgical results?
The numbers we're seeing are absolutely impressive. The quantities of gold, copper, cobalt, silver, and especially scandium, which has potential, are very significant. We aim to process the scandium by the end of the year. I encourage everyone to review the new release for the detailed figures, as they're extensive and I haven't memorized them all yet.
Can you elaborate on scandium? We've discussed it before, and it's one of those elements that has people reaching for their dictionaries. Why is scandium becoming so important and lucrative?
Yes, North American industries are increasingly moving towards using scandium in fighter jets and advanced aerospace materials because it makes them lighter and faster. Currently, there is no significant scandium production in North America, and this deposit could be the largest. We plan to conduct extensive metallurgical tests to extract pure scandium from this deposit.
I'm confident that with the preliminary work we've done, we will achieve this soon. We aim to include scandium in the resource estimate by the end of this year. If we can successfully produce scandium, it will be a major development for North America, especially considering the current reliance on China and Russia for this critical material. They may choose not to sell it to the United States and Canada, creating a significant need for domestic production.
With this report in hand, what else will the company be focusing on over the next few months?
We are now planning several actions, including smart drilling and repositioning some of the materials that were not included in the initial bid to increase the size of the deposit. We are geared up to move forward. Additionally, we are planning baseline environmental studies, which we have already initiated this year, and we aim to complete these studies with serious and well-understood plans.
Quotes have been lightly edited for style and clarity