Kaisers take last year.
Although the niobium resource is the official target, the real prize is an associated rare earth zone whose
significance became apparent on March 28 when Pacific Wildcat published assays for 14 shallow holes of a a 31 hole due diligence batch
drilled in September 2010. The results confirm that Pacific Wildcat has on its hands a high grade, light rare earth dominated resource
comparable to Mt Weld and Mountain Pass which will likely deliver a resource in the 20-30 million tonne range with a 3.0%-6.0% TREO
grade plus a significant open-pittable high grade niobium deposit. While delivering a 43-101 resource estimate will be largely a mechanical
process, the critical milestone for Pacific Wildcat will be to establish a cost-effective metallurgical recovery process. Previous work
suggested that a niobium recovery of only 50%-60% was possible. The Mrima Hill niobium and rare earth mineralization has been enriched
through weathering processes similar to Mt Weld in Australia and Frontier's Zandskopdrift deposit in South Africa. If a resource with a grade
similar to the 4.67% TREO weighted average of the initial drill holes at a 1% cutoff can be established, and a recovery in the 50%-60%
range similar to that of Mt Weld and Mountain Pass can be established, Mrima Hill would be a contender to deliver a future supply of rare
earth oxides. Most of the historical work has focused on the niobium potential, but it has yielded TREO grades in excess of 14%. It is thus
conceivable that a new round of detailed drilling that assays for rare earth oxides could establish a smaller tonnage similar to Mt Weld's
measured resource of 3,550,000 tonnes of 14.4% TREO. Pacific Wildcat has been added to the Kaiser Rare Earth Index effective
March 25, 2011. The bottom-fish recommendation is converted to a Spec Cycle Hold 100% recommendation as of March 28, 2011
Confirmation of the 14%+ grades Kaiser references.
PAW Intersects Highest Grade Rare Earth
Intersection to Date from Mrima Hill.
Wide zones of TREO intercepts from surface and at depth. Intercepts include 23m at
14.80% TREO from 77m (open at depth), 65m at 4.02% TREO from surface and
91m at 4.78% TREO from 21m
? Niobium mineralisation intersected by this drilling has yielded 62m at 1.07% Nb2O5
from surface (including 10m at 2.08% Nb2O5 from 25m), 93m at 0.88% Nb2O5 from
10m (including 38m at 1.28% Nb2O5 from 21m), 23m at 1.44% Nb2O5 from 77m,
12m at 1.30% Nb2O5 from 22m, 14m at 1.35% Nb2O5 from 15m, 11m at 1.65%
Nb2O5 from 46m, and 12m at 1.66% Nb2O5 from 97m.
? New intrusive system identified on the south western ridge on Mrima Hill (named
“Camp Hill”).
A great mine in the making. |
