Owner: Seabridge Gold

The original Kerr-Sulphurets project was comprised of two contiguous claim blocks in the Iskut-Stikine region in British Columbia, approximately 20 kilometres southeast of the Eskay Creek Mine.

 

The project consisted of two distinct deposits which were modelled separately by Placer Dome (CLA) Limited ("Placer Dome"). At the two deposits, Placer Dome had estimated a total indicated gold resource of 2.1 million ounces, with an additional 1.3 million ounces of gold in the inferred resource category, which was a historical resource estimate.

 

At Sulphurets, Placer Dome had estimated an indicated gold resource of 1.3 million ounces of gold and 277 million pounds of copper contained in 39.3 million tonnes grading 1.05 grams of gold per tonne and 0.32% copper, at a 0.50 gram per tonne cut-off. In the inferred category, Placer Dome estimated an additional 458,000 ounces of gold and 113 million pounds of copper contained in 15.5 million tonnes grading 0.92 grams of gold per tonne and 0.33% copper. The Sulphurets gold zone was the collective name for at least four intrusive centred gold-rich zones spanning approximately 3 kilometres of strike length. The resource calculations made by Placer Dome were confined to 1,000 metres of the 3 kilometre strike length. Geologic consultants to Seabridge confirmed the potential to significantly expand the known gold resource within the Sulphurets zone.

 

The Kerr deposit was modelled by Placer Dome as a copper-gold porphyry system containing an indicated resource of 809,000 ounces of gold and 1,208 million pounds of copper in 74.0 million tonnes grading 0.74% copper and 0.34 grams of gold at a 0.40% copper grade cut-off. In the inferred category, Placer Dome estimated an additional 794,000 ounces of gold and 1,119 million pounds of copper contained in 66.8 million tonnes grading 0.37 grams of gold per tonne and 0.76% copper.

 

Option Agreement

In September 2002, Seabridge optioned the property to Noranda Inc. (which subsequently became Falconbridge Limited and then Xstrata plc.) which could have earned a 50% interest by spending $6 million on exploration within 6 years. Noranda was entitled to earn a further 15% by funding all costs to complete a feasibility study on the project. If after earning its 50% interest, Noranda elected not to proceed with a feasibility study, Seabridge had the option to acquire Noranda's interest for $3 million. After having earned its 50% interest, Noranda had the right to delay its decision to proceed with a feasibility study for up to 3 years by either spending $1.25 million per year on the property or making payments to Seabridge which would total $1.5 million over the 3-year period. During 2003 and 2004, Noranda conducted geophysics, surface mapping, surface sampling and target delineation at the project. Falconbridge completed a $1.3 million drill program on six new targets during the summer of 2005.

 

In April 2006, Seabridge announced that it had reached agreement with Falconbridge whereby Seabridge would re-acquire Falconbridge's option to earn a 65% interest at KSM for 200,000 common shares of the Issuer and 2.0 million conditional common share purchase warrants of Seabridge with an exercise price of C$13.50 per share. One warrant became exercisable for each new ounce of gold resources discovered at KSM, up to the maximum of two million. The transaction closed in August 2006. With the announcement of an initial mineral resource at the Mitchell zone, the full 2.0 million warrants became exercisable in February 2007. During 2007, all two million warrants were exercised and the Issuer received $27 million in proceeds.

 

Seabridge Work Program

Seabridge has completed six major drill programs since reacquiring 100% of the KSM project in April, 2006. These first five of these programs discovered two new zones, Mitchell and Iron Cap, and substantially expanded and upgraded resources for all four zones. A Preliminary Economic Assessment was subsequently completed in December, 2008 and updated in July 2009. Three successive Preliminary Feasibility Studies (PFS) were then completed, each of which refined and improved upon project design and reported an increase in reservesAn Environmental Assessment Application was then submitted to the provincial and federal regulatory authorities in early 2013 and was subsequently accepted into the formal review process. In August, 2013, during its sixth drill program, Seabridge announced a major discovery of high-grade core zone at Deep Kerr