Conquest Resources Secures Uranium and Ni-Cu-PGE Property in Black Sturgeon Lake Area, Lake Nipigon

Conquest Resources Limited has entered into a Purchase and Sale Agreement with Stevens Geophysics Inc., whereby Conquest will acquire a 100% interest in the Nipigon Rift Property located south of Black Sturgeon Lake, Nipigon. 

Conquest can earn a 100% interest in the Nipigon Rift Property, comprised of 100 contiguous cells by issuing 200,000 shares per year over 4 years, and spending $400,000 on exploration of the Property, subject to a 2% NSR with a buy-back of 1% at any time for $1,000,000.

Nipigon Rift Uranium/Ni-Cu-PGE Property, Lake Nipigon, Ontario

Conquest Resources is targeting high-grade Uranium deposits associated with veins and faults at or near the Archean-Proterozoic unconformity, and Proterozoic rift mafic intrusive Ni-Cu-PGE deposits near the unconformity south of Black Sturgeon Lake, in the Lake Nipigon Basin (LNB). As exemplified in the Athabasca Basin, unconformity related Uranium deposits are all associated with faults and fracture systems proximal to the regional unconformity. The Sibley Group of continental sedimentary rocks have been identified above the unconformity with the pre-Cambrian basement in the Lake Nipigon area. Uraniferous veins of the unconformity type are found at the Split Rapids Dam and Canyon occurrences, both located to the north of the Property. Historical intersections at Split Rapids Dam range from 0.012% U3O8 over a core length of 0.30 m in drill hole BS05-13, to 2.99% U3O8 over a core length of 1.5 m in drill hole BS05-30. Other occurrences, such as Greenwich Lake occur regionally, resemble the Athabasca unconformity type and have the best potential for the presence of uranium deposits. In the Lake Nipigon Basin, the most probable source area for uranium deposits associated with veins and faults that are proximal to the Proterozoic/Archean unconformity is the granitoid and associated meta-sedimentary rocks of the Quetico Gneiss Belt (Figure 1). The Quetico Gneiss Belt's signature is one of anomalously high uranium background levels, as identified from Ontario Geological Survey (Scott,1987), highlighting the similarities of the Athabasca basin and the Sibley Basin geological and structural histories.

Early Proterozoic rift related mafic and ultramafic intrusive rocks are prospective for PGE-Ni-Cu deposits in the Lake Nipigon region as exemplified by the many occurrences or deposits discovered ie. Seagull, Disreali, and more recently, Thunder Bay North and Sunday Lake. Conquest believes the continental basement rocks have been subjected to intense regional faulting related to extensional basin style deformation or rifting southwest of Lake Nipigon, possibly representing a part of the Nipigon Rift system itself and consequently revealing a large extensional rift below the unconformity. In 2000-2001, 31 magnetotelluric (MT) data sites were collected across a regional northwest to southeast mapped fault system, south of Black Sturgeon Lake, and within the Nipigon project area (Figure 1). These data have recently been reprocessed and used to generate an estimate of the resistivity distribution below the profile of sites. The interpreted results are shown in Figure 2. The 31 MT site positions along the west to east profile are plotted above the color contoured resistivity estimate. Within the top 0-500m depth a low resistivity layered geologic sequence has been interpreted, reflecting a combination of Sibley sediment horizons are variably intruded by the high resistivity Nipigon diabase sills on/in the near surface layer, as observed in outcropping geology. Below 500m to greater than 2000m the resistivity increases significantly on the west and eastern parts of the profile (interpreted as resistive basement) while a large central region, 3-4 km wide, indicates lower resistivity rocks continuing to depth. Conquest interprets this to be a probable area of basin extension and/or intensive north to south fracturing/deformation on a multi-kilometre scale that may be permissive for the presence of a variety of deposit types including fault and unconformity related uranium veins and PGE-Ni-Cu bearing Proterozoic mafic and ultramafic intrusions.

Building on the Athabasca Uranium exploration and early Proterozoic rift related PGE-Ni-Cu deposits exploration models, Conquest is exploring the SW Lake Nipigon region in search for economic minerals deposits of the type formed in rifted or extensional environments (Figure 3), and employing extensive use of deep-penetrating geophysical techniques including natural field magnetotellurics and ground time domain electromagnetic geophysics. Other field work will include structural mapping as a thick cover of Sibley Group sediments, intruded by Nipigon sills, blankets the area. 

Tags: Northern Ontario / Exploration / Metals / All Articles