North Arrow Minerals Inc (TSX-V:NAR) has taken a step further at its Naujaat diamond project in Nunavut, Canada, saying that a 2,000-tonne bulk sample in 2,500 bags was now on its way, via a sealift, to the lab in Saskatchewan.
The bulk sample was collected from the Q1-4 kimberlite - the largest and most diamondiferous of the eight kimberlites discovered so far at the project - in July and August this year.
"The 2021 bulk sample is an important step in the evaluation of the Q1-4 diamond deposit," Ken Armstrong, CEO of North Arrow, told investors in a statement.
"Diamonds recovered from the sample are intended to confirm the size distribution and character of an important population of potentially high-value, fancy yellow to orange-yellow diamonds. We believe these fancy-colored diamonds will be a key value driver for potential future development of the Q1-4 deposit," Armstrong added.
READ: North Arrow Minerals kicks off exploratory till sampling at Pikoo in Saskatchewan
The C$5.6 million bulk sample program is funded by the company's partner Burgundy Diamond Mines, which, under a 2020 option deal, can earn a 40% interest in the Naujaat project by doing so.
The sealift has left the community of Naujaat and is scheduled to arrive in Montreal in early October, when the bags will be shipped to the processing laboratory. The overall project remains on schedule for the start of sample processing in mid-October, said the company.
The Q1-4 kimberlite spans 12.5 hectares of surface area and hosts an estimated inferred resource of 26.1 million carats total diamond content in 48.8 million tonnes of kimberlite.
Delineation drilling at Q1-4 has suggested significant potential to expand the resource at depth with the deepest drill hole terminating in kimberlite at a depth of 376 meters (m).
The kimberlite is home to a potentially high-value, population of Type IaA - Ib fancy colored, yellow to orange-yellow, diamonds.
Away from Q1-4, the firm has also discovered and is evaluating diamond-bearing kimberlites at the Pikoo (Saskatchewan), Mel (Nunavut), Loki (Northwest Territories) and LDG JV Projects (Northwest Territories).
North Arrow also has a 100% interest in the Hope Bay Oro gold project in Nunavut, which is about 3 km north of Agnico Eagle’s Doris gold mine.
Contact the author at giles@proactiveinvestors.com