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Message: Discovers New Mineral System at Victoria (19th Jan. 2010)
| January 19, 2010 | |
| FNX Discovers New Mineral System at Victoria | |
|
TORONTO, ONTARIO--(Marketwire - Jan. 19, 2010) - FNX Mining Company Inc. (TSX:FNX) ("FNX" or "the Company") reports that recent drilling at the Company's Sudbury Basin Victoria Property has discovered a new mineralized environment containing wide widths of mining-camp grade nickel, copper and precious metal mineralization within multiple mineralized zones associated with quartz diorite along the Worthington Offset Dyke (see Figures 1 and 2). All three mineralized zones discovered to date have been drill intersected and the initial drill results are disclosed in Tables 1 and 2 and shown in the Figures 4, 5 and 6. Zone 1 has nickel mineralization consistent with the central portion of an Offset Dyke environment (1.0% to 2.0% Ni) with associated copper (0.5% to 1.0% Cu) and total precious metals (0.5 to 1.5 g/t platinum plus palladium and gold). Zone 2 appears to occur in a typical Sudbury Basin Offset Dyke pinch environment where the quartz diorite intrudes a package of well developed Sudbury Breccia. The mineralization associated with this Zone contains very typical Offset Dyke copper, nickel and total precious metal values (e.g. FNX Hole # 1182 intersected 82.3 ft of 2.0% Cu, 1.7% Ni and 4.5 g/t total precious metal). Zone 3 occurs in Sudbury Breccia within the wallrock of the Offset Dyke. Typical of this type of environment, the precious metal content of the sulphides can be significantly high grade (e.g. FNX Hole # 1172B intersected 17.2 feet of 20.0 g/t total precious metal, 1.2% Ni and 2.1% Cu). Table 1: Highlights - Victoria Drill Results ----------------------------------------------------------------------------
From To Width Pt Pd Au TPM
Borehole Zone (ft) (ft) (ft) Cu % Ni % g/t g/t g/t g/t
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FNX1172 1 2259.9 2283.9 24.0 1.3 1.0 1.1 0.4 0.1 1.6
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FNX1172 1 2488.8 2563.8 75.0 0.5 1.8 0.3 0.3 0.1 0.7
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FNX1172B 1 2497.9 2552.7 54.8 0.5 2.2 0.4 0.3 0.0 0.7
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FNX1175 1 2785.1 2801.4 16.3 0.2 2.0 0.1 0.2 0.0 0.3
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FNX1184 1 2335.0 2339.3 4.3 0.8 5.0 0.3 0.3 0.2 0.8
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FNX1184 1 2421.2 2432.1 10.9 0.8 1.1 0.1 0.3 0.0 0.4
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FNX1184 2 3977.9 3984.2 6.3 13.2 1.5 15.7 15.0 1.1 31.8
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FNX1178 2 4170.3 4228.2 57.9 1.5 1.6 1.8 3.3 0.3 5.4
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FNX1182 2 4870.0 4952.3 82.3 2.0 1.7 1.4 2.4 0.6 4.4
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FNX1183B 2 5465.6 5502.0 36.4 2.9 0.9 2.3 4.3 2.3 8.9
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FNX1172B 3 3741.0 3758.2 17.2 2.1 1.2 2.9 16.3 0.7 19.9
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FNX1186 3 4021.5 4037.1 15.6 1.5 0.1 0.7 0.2 0.1 1.0
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1 Zone refers to each of the three distinct mineral areas shown in Figures
4, 5 and 6
2 TPM equals Total Precious Metal equals Platinum + Palladium + Gold
Geological and downhole geophysical interpretations were used to characterize the three distinct mineralized zones within the host rocks. The borehole UTEM geophysical surveys were conducted at a low frequency of 4 Hertz so as to detect and identify only the most highly conductive rocks and the most sulphide-rich zones. The mineralized zones do not appear to outcrop at surface, but occur between 2,500 and 5,500 vertical ft below surface. The limited amount of drilling completed to date is insufficient to determine the size and orientation of the mineralized zones, the true widths of the borehole intersections and if or how the multiple mineralized zones may be associated with each other. Extensive drilling will be required to fully understand the new mineralized zones. Mineralized Zones Zone 1 is located within the quartz diorite dyke where it starts to narrow and becomes choked with numerous gabbro and amphibolite inclusions, which is typical of Offset Dyke mineralized environments. The mineralization is dominantly nickel with associated copper and total precious metals (e.g., FNX Hole # 1172B, which contains two intersections of 54.8 ft and 78.1 ft grading 2.2% and 1.0% nickel and 0.5% and 0.5% copper, respectively). Current geologic and geophysical modeling indicates that Zone 1 may have a minimum strike length of 500 ft and a dip extent of over 800 ft and is open along strike and down-dip. Zone 2, which has been intersected with four boreholes to date, is also within a major narrowing of the quartz diorite dyke and in conjunction with Sudbury Breccia as the wallrock. This is a classic mineralized environment for Offset Dyke deposits. Mineralization in Zone 2 is characteristic of Offset Dyke mineralization with good copper, nickel and total precious metal values. For example, FNX Hole # 1182 intersected 82.3 ft of 2.0% Cu, 1.7% Ni and 4.5 g/t total precious metals. The most detailed information is available for this Zone which through a combination of drill information and borehole geophysical responses, has current interpreted dimensions of 2,000 feet dip extent and 300 feet of strike length. Zone 2 is also characterized by a number of still undrilled offhole borehole geophysical responses, spatially located within this part of the Offset Dyke. The polymetallic grades of Zone 2 borehole intersections are very similar to Vale Inco's Totten Mine reserve grades. Zone 3 has been intersected by two boreholes and occurs within highly recrystallized Sudbury Breccia adjacent to the south wall of the Offset Dyke. The precious metal content can be high in Sudbury Breccia hosted environments within the wallrocks of the dyke, as typified by FNX Hole # 1172B, which contains 17.2 ft of high grade precious metal mineralization averaging 20.0 g/t precious metals with 2.1% Cu and 1.2% Ni. The borehole geophysics from FNX Hole # 1172B indicates significant conductivity over a considerable size associated with this Zone. The borehole geophysical response was modeled with a conductive plate measuring 1,000 ft along strike and 2,000 ft of dip length. This Zone remains open at depth with only the upper part of the modeled conductive environment having been drill tested to date. The multiple mineralized zones occur within a previously unknown mineralized environment at Victoria and are located south of the historic Victoria Mine's contact nickel orebodies and north of the former producing Totten Mine Offset Dyke orebodies (see Figure 2). The historic Victoria Mine's contact nickel deposits are located within the Company's Victoria property and produced approximately 1.5 million tons averaging 2.2% Cu, 1.5% Ni and 2.3 g/t of total precious metals. Vale Inco's Totten Mine, with a published reserve of 7.85 million tons grading 2.0% Cu, 1.5% Ni and 4.3 g/t total precious metals, is a typical Offset Dyke type deposit and is located about four kilometers to the south and is currently under renewed development and being brought into production by Vale Inco. The Victoria Property contains one of four major productive Offset Dyke environments known in the Sudbury Basin. Apart from the Copper Cliff Offset Dyke, which is almost entirely controlled by Vale Inco, FNX controls most of the proximal portion of three of the four major Offset Dykes, which are: the Worthington Offset Dyke on the Victoria property, the Whistle Offset Dyke on the Podolsky property and the Foy Offset Dyke on the Foy property. The Company is actively exploring on all three properties with the greatest effort currently on the Victoria property. The Company's exploration activities were adversely affected in 2008 and the first half of 2009 by the economic downturn, but were dramatically increased in the second half of 2009 utilizing funds from the Company's flow-through financing in the spring of 2009. This renewed activity has enabled FNX's exploration team to aggressively expand its exploration activities for new deposits on its non-producing properties in the Sudbury mining camp, particularly on the Victoria Property, and this has helped lead to the discovery being announced today. The current drilling at the Victoria property is focused on the multiple mineralized zones associated with a quartz diorite pinch within Victoria portion of the Worthington Offset. The Company currently has five surface drill rigs on the Victoria Property and plans to spend about $7.2 million exploring the Victoria property during 2010. |
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