Strait Gold has announced that Teck Peru, a subsidiary of Teck Resources, has given the approval for a primary 15 hole drilling program at its Alicia project in Peru. The total cost of the exploration is $2 million. Based on the results, the company has planned to drill additional 30 holes.
The company possesses 55% interest in the project property. It has given an option to Teck to earn a 75% interest in the project, and spends $30 million in exploration for a period of seven years or spend $10 million for exploration and provides a pre-feasibility study.
According to the option contract’s first year commitment, Teck will offer funding for the 2012 drilling program. Strait Gold’s preliminary drill program during 2010-2011 focused on many skarn mineralization outcrops in the central region. The company encountered 0.14 g/t gold, 1.26% copper and 6.7 g/t silver over 25.7 m, 0.13 g/t gold, 1.27% copper and 7.5 g/t silver over 33.0 m, 0.04 g/t gold, 0.33% copper and 1.3g/t silver over 129.5 m, grading 0.02 g/t gold, 0.16% copper and 1.7 g/t silver over 198.5 m.
Mapping identified five stages of the property’s porphyritic intrusion. Rock sampling conducted on porphyry outlined an anomalous copper zone that measures around 800 x 600 m. Soil sampling program expanded the anomalous zone to 3,400 x 600 m.
The 2012 proposed drill program will examine the porphyry potential of the property. Planned holes are oriented towards the north-south on the segments spaced 200 m apart, along with six holes drilled in the central zone and the balance in the geochemical anomalies. The depth is anticipated to be an average from 350 to 400 m.