May 6 2015
North Arrow Minerals Inc. is pleased to report final diamond recoveries from the Qilalugaq Diamond Project bulk sample. The sample was collected in July and August 2014 from the Q1-4 kimberlite located just nine kilometres from the Hamlet of Repulse Bay (Naujaat), Nunavut for the purpose of recovering commercial sized (approximately +0.85 mm) diamonds to undergo a formal valuation in Antwerp Belgium and provide a preliminary indication of Q1-4's overall diamond value.
A selection of +9 DTC white diamonds and a +11 DTC yellow stone from the Q1-4 kimberlite near Repulse Bay, Nunavut
Diamond recoveries from the sample have been compiled and include 11,083 diamonds greater than +1 DTC (~1 mm) weighing 384.28 carats from 1,353.37 dry tonnes of kimberlite for an overall sample grade of 28.4 cpht (carats per hundred tonnes). The recovered diamonds include 30 diamonds larger than the 3 grainer (~0.6 carat) size and 15 diamonds larger than 1 carat. Yellow diamonds, representing a range of hues and tones, comprise approximately 9.0% by stone count and 21.5% by carat weight of the +1 DTC diamonds recovered to date. The three largest diamonds recovered remain the 4.42, 4.16, and 3.53 carat diamonds reported in February, 2015 (please see news release dated February 26, 2015 for details). Representative photographs of the diamonds reported in this news release can be found here.
Ken Armstrong, President and CEO of North Arrow, commented "These final diamond results from the Q1-4 sample confirm earlier indications that the yellow diamond population in the Q1-4 kimberlite is significant and that the proportion of yellow diamonds increases, both by stone count and carat weight, as the diamonds move into the larger size classifications. We are also pleased to report that the diamond parcel has been shipped to Antwerp in preparation for the upcoming diamond valuation exercise. The purpose of the valuation will be to provide an indication of the value of the diamonds hosted within the Q1-4 kimberlite, and, if positive, could provide the basis for a preliminary economic assessment of a potential mine development at the Qilalugaq Project."
Mr. Armstrong continued, "It is important to note that this point source sample was not intended to confirm the overall diamond grade of the Q1-4 kimberlite. Diamond grade is best determined by the development of a good, spatially representative dataset generated through drilling, and plans are currently being developed for extensive follow up 2015/2016 drilling programs at the Qilalugaq Project. For further details about the Q1-4 inferred diamond resource, please refer to the NI 43-101 Technical Report dated May 13, 2013."
The diamond results reported in this release are based on DMS processing work completed by Microlithics Laboratories, Thunder Bay, Ontario, an independent mineral process laboratory, and subsequent concentrate upgrading and diamond extraction completed at Stornoway Diamond Corporation's (TSX: SWY) diamond recovery and sorting facility in North Vancouver, British Columbia. The sample was processed at Microlithics through a 1.5 tonne per hour DMS plant configured to recover diamonds retained on a 0.8 mm square mesh sieve. Kimberlite was fed directly into the DMS plant with plus 150 mm oversize material first crushed to 75 mm. All plus 10 mm material was subsequently reduced through staged, secondary jaw and cone crushing circuits and re-introduced into the plant. DMS concentrates were shipped from Microlithics to the Stornoway diamond recovery facility where they were further processed through x-ray sorter equipment ("XRS") with a grease table finish to generate final concentrates which were then hand sorted to extract +1 DTC diamonds. Quality assurance protocols, security and actual operating procedures for the processing, transport and recovery of diamonds conform to industry standard Chain of Custody provisions. As part of North Arrow's ongoing QA/QC programs, DMS tails, XRS and grease tails, and other materials are subject to audit. Any significant changes in recovered diamond contents will be reported when available.
North Arrow is currently working to earn an 80% interest in the Qilalugaq Diamond Project from Stornoway, subject to a one-time back-in right of Stornoway's, by collecting and processing the current bulk sample (please see North Arrow news release dated April 29th, 2013 for additional details on the option agreement with Stornoway). For more information on the Qilalugaq Project please visit our website www.northarrowminerals.com/projects/qilalugaq.
North Arrow's diamond exploration programs are conducted under the direction of Kenneth Armstrong, P.Geo., President and CEO of North Arrow and a Qualified Person under NI 43-101. Mr. Armstrong has reviewed and approves of the scientific and technical content in this news release.