Thunder Mountain Gold has signed a strategic agreement with Newmont Mining to develop the Trout Creek Project in Lander County, Nevada.
The private mineral package of Newmont consists of approximately 9,565 acres along with 60 unpatented mining claims purchased in 2007, due to which the Trout Creek Project has been extended considerably. The area of exploration is located at Eureka-Battle Mountain trend in the Reese River Valley to the east of Newmont’s Phoenix Mine and Cove-McCoy Mines.
Under the agreement, the data package offers additional geophysical information with encouraging geochemical and drill statistics from Newmont’s prior exploration projects. Newmont data package has been inferred by Jim Wright of Wright Geophysics and advocates developing the initial target through additional geophysical work.
The company will be performing the exploration and is required to spend a minimum of $150,000 in the next two years. Drilling is carried out on Newmont lands, but the company can terminated of the agreement after the minimum expense commitment has been drafted. The Agreement summarizes the joint venture terms that is if Newmont can earn up to 70% of the project by spending 150% of the Company's expenses and decides to make a joint venture. The company can attain Newmont’s property, if it describes economic mineralization and Newmont rejects joint venture. Newmont will hold 3% of net smelter returns (NSR) as royalty interest.
The company plans to perform additional geophysical work for 2011 and 2012, which will identify significant structural trends below gravels, depth to bedrock. Newmont will offer geochemical, geophysics and drill data interpretation for drilling.