Figure 1. Mich Property Location Map and Logistics
The Mich property is located 55 kilometres southeast of Whitehorse in the southern Yukon Territory. It lies just 18 kilometres off the Alaska Highway and 200 kilometres by road from the port of Skagway, Alaska (Fig. 1). It is accessible by an all-terrain vehicle trail. A large zone of disseminated awaruite mineralization was discovered in 2011 based on a first pass regional exploration program and the Mich property was subsequently staked.
Figure 2. Mich Key Target/Mineralized Zone and Trace of Holes 1 & 2.
Geological mapping and rock sampling have defined a 1.3-kilometre-long northwest-southeast trending zone of disseminated awaruite mineralization marked by a number of strong rock anomalies grading better than 0.08% Davis Tube magnetically-recovered (“DTR”) nickel. The key target is located on the southeastern end of a low-lying ridge and measures 540 metres long and 290 to 570 metres wide (Figs. 2 and 3). It remains open to the southeast towards the valley floor where overburden covers the bedrock. DTR nickel values for 75 surface rock samples collected in 2012 and 2013 from the key target area range from 0.046% to 0.143%. The northwest half of the mineralized zone was trenched in 2014 and results confirm the range in the key target area noted above and the awaruite mineralization was recognized to connect to the key target area (Fig. 3), which extended the mineralization several hundred metres further to the northwest where it is covered by talus.
Figure 3. Mich Geology, Awaruite Mineralization, Location of Holes 1 & 2 and Proposed Drill Holes
In the fall of 2014, FPX Nickel completed its first diamond drilling program at Mich, intersecting broad zones of magnetically-recovered nickel exceeding a 0.06% cut-off (Figs. 3-5). The helicopter-supported program tested the central portion of the key target area with two angled holes drilled at minus 50 degrees in opposite directions from the same set-up, for a total of 873 metres. The two holes tested one section of a 5.5-kilometre-long geophysical magnetic high target (Fig. 6), partially delineated by detailed mapping and rock sampling.
Figure 4. Mich Drill Holes 1 and 2, Geology and % DTR Ni (Magnetically Recovered Nickel) in A. Plan and B. Section.
Drill results included 255.2 metres averaging a grade of 0.087% DTR nickel from 3.0 to 258.2 metres in hole 1, including 156.1 metres of 0.096% DTR nickel at the very top of the hole, and the entire 453.6-metre length of hole 2 averaging 0.087% DTR nickel from 2.7 to 456.3 metres, with grades increasing to 0.123% across the bottom 32.2 metres of the hole (Fig. 4B).
The drilling intersected a disseminated nickel-iron alloy mineralized zone hosted in ultramafic rocks. Using a cut-off grade of 0.06% DTR nickel, the zone measures 345 metres vertically from surface, is an estimated 463 metres wide on the drill section and remains open to the northeast, beyond the end of the second drill hole, which bottomed in 32.2 metres of 0.123% DTR nickel. The revised horizontal dimension of 463 metres compares favourably to the earlier estimate of 290 metres, which was based upon surface rock samples taken within the key target area.
Hole 1 was drilled to the southwest and intersected pseudo breccia peridotite that contains variable, fine-to-coarse size (<50 to >300 microns) grains of disseminated awaruite mineralization, extending from 3 metres below surface to a down-hole depth of 258 metres while averaging 0.087% DTR nickel. The hole passed through a 12.4-metre wide, poorly mineralized zone of magnesium-iron carbonate alteration and into crackled-to-massive peridotite containing weakly mineralized awaruite at the 270.6-metre depth before it was shut down at a final depth of 417 metres.
Hole 2 was oriented in the opposite direction to the northeast and intersected disseminated awaruite mineralization beginning 2.7 metres below surface and extending to the end of the 456-metre long hole, where it was shut-down prematurely due to difficult drilling conditions caused by post-mineral fault zones. The hole is dominated by pseudo breccia peridotite containing mineralized awaruite and averages 0.087% DTR nickel across 453.6 metres. Increasing nickel grades at depth include 223 metres averaging 0.096% DTR nickel and 32.2 metres of 0.123% DTR nickel at the bottom of the hole.
Table 1. Results of holes 1 and 2 based on 0.06% DTR Ni cutoff and rock type.
| Hole # |
Intersections (m) | DTR Nickel (%) |
Comments | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| From | To | Intercept | Rock Type – Textures | ||
| 1 | 3.0 | 258.2 | 255.2 | 0.087 | Peridotite – pseudo breccia |
| including | 3.0 | 159.1 | 156.1 | 0.096 | Peridotite – pseudo breccia |
| including | 159.1 | 186.0 | 26.9 | 0.055 | Dunite – pseudo breccia |
| including | 186.0 | 258.2 | 72.2 | 0.079 | Peridotite – pseudo breccia |
| and | 258.2 | 270.6 | 12.4 | 0.037 | Mg-Fe carbonate alteration |
| and | 270.6 | 416.7 | 146.1 | 0.045 | Peridotite – crackled to massive |
| 2 | 2.7 | 456.3 | 453.6 | 0.087 | Peridotite – pseudo breccia |
| including | 2.7 | 84.0 | 81.3 | 0.079 | Peridotite – pseudo breccia |
| including | 84.0 | 104.0 | 20.0 | 0.046 | Peridotite – pseudo breccia |
| including | 104.0 | 169.0 | 65.0 | 0.073 | Peridotite – pseudo breccia |
| including | 169.0 | 179.0 | 10.0 | 0.033 | Fine – grained ultramafic |
| including | 179.0 | 402.0 | 223.0 | 0.096 | Peridotite – pseudo breccia |
| including | 402.0 | 424.1 | 22.1 | 0.038 | Peridotite – post mineralization alteration & faults |
| Including | 424.1 | 456.3 | 32.2 | 0.123 | Peridotite – pseudo breccia |
Figure 5. Dimensions of ground magnetic features in Relation to Awaruite Mineralization and Proposed Drill Holes
The key target area coincides with a moderate ground magnetic geophysical feature, which lies on the shoulder of a well-defined, ground magnetic high response (red color), measuring 5.5 kilometres long (Fig. 5). This magnetic high feature extends along strike 3.5 kilometres to the southeast of the key target into overburden covered areas. The overburden is estimated to be less than 25 metres thick. The magnetic response also extends the width of the key target area a further 1,100 metres to the northeast beyond the end of hole 2 where overburden has reduced magnetic readings.
The pattern of awaruite (Ni-Fe alloy) based on rock sample analyses, structural data, distribution of crackle fracturing, pseudo breccia and the ground magnetic signature are all dominated by sub-vertical northwest-southeast orientations that controlled the mineralization zone in ultramafics as shown in Figs. 3 to 5. Also, the results of holes 1 and 2 with increasing grade towards the bottom of drill hole 2 (Fig. 4B) indicate a broader zone of mineralization which extends towards the northeast where bedrock is covered by overburden. Both portions of the dimensions warrant further drilling and a proposed 2-stage drill hole program is illustrated in Figs. 3 and 5. Stage 1 involves extending the drill section of holes 1 and 2 by drilling several 200-metre spaced holes to the northeast to locate the highest grade along the section. Then, stepping out, 400-metre spaced drill sections on either side of the section holes 1 and 2 would be drilled to track the highest grade portion of the system. Stage 2 would be adjusted depending on stage 1 results; stages 1 and 2 would test a ~2 kilometer long strike length of the system.
Cautionary Notes
Investors are cautioned that the exploration target at Mich is an early-stage exploration prospect. There has been insufficient exploration to define a mineral resource and it is uncertain if further exploration will result in the target being delineated as a mineral resource.
The above technical information and all the other technical information on this website pertaining to geology and drill hole data was prepared under the supervision of FPX Nickel’s Chairman Dr. Peter Bradshaw., P. Eng., a Qualified Person as defined in National Instruments 43-101 – Standards of Disclosure for Mineral Projects.