Canterra Expands Land in NWT, Starts Diamond Exploration Program

Staff @ Geology for Investors August 14, 2014 - Last Updated: November 27, 2014

1 minute read

Regional map of the of the Slave Lake Region in the Northwest Territories, Canada

Though diamonds plays are always a long shot, Canterra Minerals has consistently remained focused on diamond exploration and has team with a proven track record of discovery.

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VANCOUVER, BRITISH COLUMBIA–(Marketwired – Aug. 13, 2014) – Canterra Minerals Corporation (TSX VENTURE:CTM) (the “Company”) is pleased to announce that it has commenced a diamond exploration program on its property portfolio in the Northwest Territories. These properties are located in the Southern Slave region, approximately 220 kilometres (km) northwest of Yellowknife in an area that continues to deliver significant diamond discoveries and development. The properties are strategically located between the Snap Lake Diamond Mine owned by De Beers and the Gahcho Kue Project owned by De Beers and Mountain Province Diamonds.

Canterra Minerals exclusively explores for diamonds. Although the company’s primary focus is in the Northwest Territories they also holds an interest in the Buffalo Hills project located in northern Alberta, Canada. In April 2014 the company made a large move in the Northwest Territories by increasing it’s claim holdings to 43,000 ha (~166 square miles) in the Slave Lake Region. The Northwest Territories currently has three operating diamond mines (Snap Lake , Diavik , Ekati) and one tungsten mine (CanTung). Canterra’s management team includes members who had direct involvement with the discovery of the Snap Lake mine.

The Company recently staked 13 additional claims at its Marlin Property (contiguous to the Kennady North Diamond Project) increasing the size of the property to approximately 25,838 hectares (“ha”) and 3 additional claims at the Hilltop Property for a total of approximately 11,064 ha. The Company’s aggregate claim and lease holdings in the Southern Slave now total 74,673 ha.

The company has increased the size of its Marlin Property by adding 13 additional claims. In order to stake claims in the Northwest Territories prospectors or exploration companies use traditional claim staking methods and manually stake the property. The company currently has five properties including the King, Gwen, Marlin, Prism and Hilltop. This year’s exploration program will be targeting all of them. Considering that they are nearing the end of the exploration window in this area, the company is going to have to hustle to get their work done. They don’t specifically say in this release why they’ve started their program so late (and why they just don’t wait until spring), but the recently closed $2-million private placement would seem to indicate a financial delay. The company may be under pressure from investors to get something done immediately. Some good results will buoy their stock and allow them to raise more funds.

A regional overview of Canterra Minerals diamond projects in NWT, Canada

Exploration crews have been mobilized to undertake a detailed basal till sampling program on the Hilltop, King, Marlin, Prism and Gwen properties – each of which hosts indicator mineral trains that comprise chromites, ilmenites and numerous G10 garnets, sourced from within the diamond stability field and which are potentially associated with diamond-bearing kimberlite sources. Till samples will target areas of interest within these known kimberlite indicator mineral trains as well as geophysical anomalies. It is anticipated that the compilation of this data will identify and prioritize potential drill targets for future programs. This exploration strategy has been designed using a systematic study of the Company’s proprietary kimberlite indicator mineral database, as well as detailed geophysical data sets which were compiled over a 15 year time period.

Canterra plans to run a till sampling program and explore known geophysical anomalies within the area. In previously glaciated terranes such as Canada’s north, diamond exploration methods include the tracing of kimberlite indicator mineral trains (KIM’s) and the use of specific geophysical techniques to locate diamondiferous (diamond-bearing) kimberlite pipes.

Mr. Randy Turner, President & CEO comments, “This exploration season will give the Company an opportunity to combine results from previous exploration with the more recently advanced techniques that improve interpretative accuracy and precision. As one of only a few explorers with a proven track record of mine discovery and development, we are dedicated to continuing our long history of diamond exploration success and with a recently closed Private Placement of $2,000,000 we are well positioned to achieve our objectives.”

About Canterra:

Economic diamond plays are always a long shot and are especially so when you include the logistical and economic challenges of exploration the far north. To their credit Canterra Minerals has remained consistently focused on diamond exploration and has team with a proven track record of discovery.

Currently Canterra Minerals is trading at $0.11 close to its 52-week high of $0.135.

Canterra Minerals is a Canadian resource company specializing in diamond exploration with a focus on the Northwest Territories. As leaders of exploration in the junior diamond sector for over 25 years, our team has been involved in the discovery of two of Canada’s four diamond mines including the Snap Lake Diamond Mine in the Southern Slave and the Ekati Mine in Lac de Gras.

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