Space Technology

By: Alex Large
Yale Mines the Annals of History at La Verde Grande

By Christina Shah

Yale Resources’ (TSX-V:YLL) agreement to purchase 100% of the formerly-producing La Verde Grande Cu-Zn-Ag-Au Mine is the latest development in a case of solid detective work.

The La Verde Grande, which saw small-scale production in the 1900s and 1960s, is located 45 km northwest of Hermosillo, Sonora State, Mexico, and is within 2 km of a paved highway and the local power grid. The property, which consists of six contiguous mining concessions totalling 300 hectares, includes the La Verdecita and El Picacho prospects – both of which saw limited production in the early 1900s. The company has also staked 1900 hectares of prospective ground surrounding the mine.

La Verde Grande is on strike with the El Picacho prospect located 900 metres to the northeast. La Verdecita is 1.3 km south of La Verde Grande with a strike length of approximately 300 metres.

The company’s website describes the mineralization system identified so far at La Verde Grande as consisting of garnetized limestone beds in a series of skarn and veins intruded by granite and monzonite porphyries, dykes, and mineralized aplite dykes. The property is located near the southern end of a newly recognized copper-molybdenum porphyry district that trends north into the southwest Arizona copper district.

Historic (pre- NI 43-101) sampling within the 2,000 feet (~610m) of old workings at the La Verde Grande Mine has been reported by the Consejo de Recursos Minerales as: 2.06% copper, 1.91% zinc, 33.07 g/t silver and 0.3 g/t gold for the upper workings and 2.54% copper.

Ian Foreman, P.Geo., Yale’s president, believes in doing his homework. “Like finding more targets on the property, we’re also going to be on the hunt to find more historic information...we’re building a database, and we know that more historic data exists.”

One of the challenges of mining the mountain of historic data is determining what previous explorers meant when they used terms such as ‘mineralization’, ‘skarn’ and ‘vein’. The modern interpretation of these terms may vary greatly from historic representations, especially for the purposes of NI 43-101 compliance. Also, past producers, due to technological limitations, were simply not able to provide grade figures or grasp the overall structure of the deposit. In essence, they were unable to see the forest for the trees. In the case of La Verde Grande, “each of the various zones have been considered as separate bodies rather than part of a much larger mineralizing system”, explains Foreman.

There are several pieces of the due diligence puzzle that need to be put in place when evaluating the future potential of a past producer. First, old maps and reports need to be found, compiled, and converted to a digital format. Second, the data must be interpreted, and cross-referenced with other known data as well as with current geological understanding. Third, the findings must be correlated with the physical evidence, e.g. locations of adits and access roads.

Yale is applying the above principles in order to construct the big picture for La Verde Grande. The company has purchased the complete historical database from Scorpio Mining Corp., who held an option on the property between 1999 and 2002 but only performed limited exploration in the immediate area. “We have a mountain of data from past operators that we’re going through.” said Foreman.

The company can also build on the encouraging results of past drilling performed by Freeport McMoRan on the NE corner of the property. Eight holes drilled at essentially 1 km intervals showed intersected mineralized porphyry at several targets.

The satellite imagery provided by Google Earth has also proved to be a useful source of information in this case. Old workings that may not be obvious on the ground can be seen from space, lead to new valuable sampling locations, and ultimately, an expansion of the original reserve.

All of this information must be measured against a current (and projected) economic framework, while considering factors such as metal price fluctuations and processing costs. With this information in hand, the company can proceed with surface and underground sampling.

Although Foreman makes no guarantees of overnight success, he points out just how far

Yale has come in the course of a year. “We picked two high-potential projects to earn into when we were entering Mexico, because, at the time, we didn’t have a Mexican subsidiary, we didn’t have a Mexican staff, we didn’t have a foothold in the country.” Now, Yale has four projects in Mexico, one of which is at the diamond drilling stage – and a major asset in the form of La Verde Grande.

Foreman’s balanced risk-management strategy for Yale encompasses his breadth of experience at all stages of the exploration business – from grassroots to production. He envisions Yale’s evolution as fluid, with several possible positive outcomes. One such possibility is that the company could use La Verde Grande to launch itself as a small-scale producer. “There is a niche market to be filled in the small-scale producer, and in Mexico there are several examples of companies that have become small-scale producers – that their stocks trade at multiple dollars per share and they don’t have to go to the market to raise money, because they’re generating income. There’s a very real appeal to getting Yale to that stage.”

At this stage, Yale offers its investors several opportunities for significant return on their investment. It has a balanced, yet focused portfolio of projects at different exploration stages. Its other projects include the Zacatecas (which is at the drilling stage) the Urique (where 10 mineralized targets have been identified), and the Carol. The La Verde Grande represents a significant asset acquisition – with the possibility of becoming the company’s ‘internal combustion engine’ in terms of revenue.

This article is intended for informational purposes only and should not be considered as a recommendation to buy stock in any company. Although the author has made efforts to verify the information contained herein, the accuracy of all the information cannot be guaranteed. As always, it is recommended that you commit considerable time to completing your due diligence before buying stocks in publicly traded companies. A fee has been paid for the creation and distribution of this article.