source：Junior Mining Network
COEUR D'ALENE, ID / ACCESSWIRE / July 7, 2020 / New Jersey Mining Company (OTCQB:NJMC) ('NJMC' or the 'Company') is pleased to announce the expansion of its strategic land holdings to include the Roberts Rare Earth Element (REE) Project in Lemhi County, Idaho.
The Roberts REE Project is comprised of 12 unpatented mining claims covering an area of approximately 89 hectares (219 acres). This Project is located within the Mineral Hill Mining district, approximately 48 kilometers (30 miles) northwest of the town of Salmon, Idaho. Recent sampling by Company geologists returned grades in excess of 12% combined rare earths elements.
NJMC's VP of Exploration, Rob Morgan commented, 'I consider 1% to be the threshold of REE ore grade mineralization, so to see grades exceeding 12% is extraordinary. As with many higher-grade project's, if our initial sampling holds true as we advance the property, an economic ore deposit could be defined within a relatively small footprint.
In Idaho, most of the lode REE occurrences lie along a northwest trending line from Lemhi Pass, through Diamond Creek, to the Mineral Hill district, before crossing the Idaho-Montana state line. This lineament stretches at least 100 miles across central Idaho and the Roberts Project (and Diamond Creek) are on this trend. In our opinion the Roberts is the next best REE mineralized occurrence along this trend and lies northwest of NJMC's Diamond Creek Project.'
The mineralization at the Roberts Project belongs to a unique group of mineral deposits known as Carbonatites. Carbonatites are carbonate rocks sourced from magmatic origins, with primary carbonate compositions exceeding 50%. These Carbonatite-type deposits are almost exclusively associated with continental rift-related tectonic settings. Out of the eight known carbonatite occurrences within the Mineral Hill District, the Roberts Project covers what NJMC geologists consider the two best occurrences.
At the Roberts, one carbonatite occurrence can be found in a northwest trending seam, which measures approximately 400 meters (1,300 feet) long and 90 meters (300 feet) wide; the second occurrence is a small carbonatite plug, measuring about 200 meters in diameter. Studies conducted by A.T. Abbott (1954) and A.L. Anderson (1958) from the Idaho Geological Survey (IGS), and E.P. Kaiser (1956) with the U.S. Geologic Survey (USGS) pioneered recognition of these unusual deposit types in the Mineral Hill District. Abbott reported cutting a 2.5 foot sample across the Roberts lode which returned 21.5 per cent combined rare earth oxides and thoria.
The unusual carbonatite seam and intrusive plug occurring on the Roberts property are characterized by an exceptional REE concentration. REEs like; neodymium, praseodymium and samarium occur on the property in abundance. Similarly, as with NJMC's Diamond Creek project, REE's are not the only valuable commodities found on the properties; gold and niobium are also present according to historic information and NJMC sampling, and both may prove to be desirable by-products should these properties advance to production. Recently collected samples from the Roberts property show assays with gold values up to 8.8 grams per tonne (0.25 ounce per ton) and niobium as high as 0.50 %.
Mr. Morgan further commented, 'Grade is king in our industry, and the grades of the combined total rare earth elements at our Roberts prospect equals and/or surpasses the grades found at many other world-class REE ore deposits. The commercial potential of these types of REE deposits was first recognized in the 1950's, however clean energy, battery and defense-related technologies had not matured, with negligible demand until decades later.'
NJMC President and CEO John Swallow stated, 'With one asset already in production and preparing for the next stage of its expansion/development, we are in the unique situation of utilizing our existing skillsets and expertise to secure a position in REE's that we have long considered for their potential to add to the growth of the Company (should opportunity and timing converge). Furthermore, the rigorous assault on the U.S.'s supply chains during the COVID pandemic has shown the general public the strategic importance of developing domestic supplies of all resources needed by the United States.