Osisko Metals expands landholdings in New Brunswick base metals camp

VANCOUVER (miningweekly.com) – The base metals-focused arm of the Osisko group of companies, Osisko Metals, has signed a definitive option agreement with two vendors to acquire the Mount Fronsac zinc/lead property, located within the Bathurst Mining Camp of New Brunswick.

The TSX-listed company on Wednesday said the property, previously owned by mining giant Glencore, is “highly prospective”.

Mount Fronsac hosts an historical, noncompliant resource of 1.2-million tonnes grading 7.7% zinc and 2.2% lead.

The property comprises 34 claim units covering about 748 ha and is located in Northumberland County, roughly 40 km west of the City of Bathurst.

Under the terms of the deal, Osisko can earn a 100% interest in the property by making scheduled payments of C$300 000 in cash and issuing 200 000 shares of the company over a four-year period. The vendors will retain a 1.5% net smelter royalty (NSR) from the proceeds of any commercial production. Osisko Metals will also have the right to buy back up to 1% of the remaining NSR for the sum of C$1-million at any time.

"It is an excellent addition to our portfolio of properties in the Bathurst Mining Camp, and we remain focused on acquiring additional ground within this camp. The Mount Fronsac deposit is a relatively recent discovery of massive zinc/lead sulphides in the western portion of the Camp,” Osisko Metals president and CEO Jeff Hussey said in a news release.

The deposit occurs in a similar stratigraphic location to the Brunswick No 12 Horizon and offers excellent potential for discovery. The short-term objective will be to upgrade and expand the known resource to National Instrument 43-101 standards, Hussey said.

Osisko Metals’ initial entry in the sector was through the consolidation of the largest land package comprising more than 40 000 ha in the prolific Bathurst Mining Camp, the third largest volcanogenic massive sulphide camp in the world.

The company, formerly known as Bowmore Exploration, also holds an extensive land package in Quebec, comprising twelve grassroot zinc exploration targets of more than 42 000 ha.