Fenelon Project is owned by Wallbridge Gold Corp., which acquired 100 % of Balmoral Resources Ltd. on May 22, 2020, holds title to 100 % of the Detour East Block (subject to Agnico Eagle Mines Limited’s option to earn up to 75 %), and holds an option to earn up to 65 % of the Casault Block from Midland Exploration Inc.
- subscription is required.
Summary:
Deposit Types
The ore deposits and mineralized occurrences on the various claim blocks of the DetourFenelon Trend Property share many characteristics with the following deposit types: orogenic gold (e.g., Fenelon deposit, Bug Lake, Martiniere West and Grasset Gold), intrusion-related gold (“IRGS”) (e.g., Fenelon deposit, Martiniere) and volcanogenic massive sulphide (“VMS”) (e.g., Martiniere host stratigraphic sequence).
Mineralization
Fenelon Block
Gold The Fenelon gold deposit has been subdivided into five (5) zones defined by a combination of host lithology and structure: the Gabbro Zone hosted in the gabbro sill complex, the Tabasco, Cayenne and Contact zones hosted in sedimentary rocks, the Area 51 Zone hosted in the Jeremie Diorite and adjacent sedimentary rocks, and the Ripley Zone hosted in the southern extension of the Jeremie Diorite along the northern contact of the SLDZ. As it is currently delineated by exploration drilling, the Fenelon gold system extends approximately 1,700 m in a northwest-southeast direction by 1,000 m in a northeast-southwest direction across the five main zones and to a vertical depth of 1,200 m from surface. The system remains open in all directions.
Gabbro Zone
The Gabbro Zone (also referred to as the Main Gabbro Zone or Discovery Gold Zone) was the only known mineralization of significance before Wallbridge discovered the Contact-Tabasco-Cayenne (C-T-C) and Area 51 zones. The Gabbro Zone consists of sheeted gabbro, pyroxenite and leucogabbro dikes that crosscut a sequence of alternating argillaceous and greywacke sediments, felsic siliceous rock units, and feldspar porphyry dikes. It has been divided into seven (7) mineralized subzones (from northeast to southwest): Trinidad Scorpion, Fresno (formerly Zone B), Chipotle (formerly Zone C), Anaheim, Cayenne 3 (formerly zones D and E and Naga Viper), Habanero and Serrano.
The Gabbro Zone centers on a structural flexure where the strike direction of the mafic dikes changes from WNW-ESE to E-W. Individual zones occur predominantly at the inflection of shear zones, where the dip changes from 70° to vertical and where individual shears intersect. Mapped kinematic indicators support a south over north reverse-dextral displacement along both wider and smaller scale deformation zones (Couture and Siddorn, 2002).
Two different styles of mineralization are distinguished: 1) massive, laminated or brecciated silica-sulphide zones occurring along mafic dike contacts or as isolated, irregular, metre-scale lens-shaped bodies inside the mafic dike complex, and 2) narrow, lenticular or commonly tabular zones of silica-sulphide sericite alteration associated with small-scale (1-30 cm) shear zones primarily positioned along narrow dike contacts.
Contact-Tabasco-Cayenne Zones (now ‘C-T-C Zone’)
The Contact, Tabasco and Cayenne zones were discovered by Wallbridge in 2019. They are bounded by the Main Gabbro to the northeast and the Jeremie Diorite to the southwest. They correspond to a northwest-striking system of anastomosing ductile shears. The three zones have similar geological characteristics but with different structural controls. Tabasco and Cayenne trend WNW-ESE and dip steeply to the south from 70° to 90°. They largely follow pre-existing geological structures, such as bedding planes and the contacts of mafic dikes. The Contact Zone trends E-W, dips subvertically, and follows the E-W trending Jeremie Fault, which defines the contact between the Jeremie Diorite to the south and the host sedimentary sequence to the north.
Area 51 Zone
The mineralization in the Area 51 Zone is dominantly hosted in the Jeremie Diorite but also extends into the sediments to the south and southwest. It is bounded by the Contact Zone to the north and northeast. The highest concentration of gold occurs where the Jeremie Diorite intrusion forms narrower stocks bounded by sediments or by sediments and a more mafic phase of the Jeremie Diorite.
Gold mineralization is mainly associated with isolated or regularly spaced, subparallel, sheeted translucent grey quartz veins that are generally 1-2 cm thick and rarely up to 5 cm thick. It is uncertain under what structural conditions these veins formed. The current interpretation is that the vein formed in response to stresses during the emplacement of the Jeremie Diorite or the early stages of deformation and foliation development. Subsequent deformation events (local foliation and shearing) may have localized along the inherent anisotropies caused by the sheeted veins within the Jeremie Diorite. Vein contacts are usually sharp and sheared, with chlorite selvages. The veins have also been observed to be overprinted by a sulphide-rich stage, forming composite veins.
Ripley Zone
The Ripley Zone straddles the contact of the SLDZ. The majority of its mineralization is hosted within a felsic phase of the Jeremie Diorite, which is surrounded (and intercalated with) the more mafic phase. The mafic phase of the Ripley diorites and the surrounding sedimentary rocks contain some mineralization but are less endowed. Mineralization is associated with a pervasive replacement silica-sericite alteration of the host intrusion that yields a relatively consistent distribution of gold grades. Higher-grade intervals are associated with quartz veins containing visible gold. There is a spatial association with arsenopyrite, although the gold-bearing veins themselves are typically sulphide-poor.
Martiniere Block
Diamond drilling on the Martiniere claim block has partially defined a well-developed system of gold mineralization controlled by cross-cutting zones of brittle-ductile style fault and shear deformation associated with a multiphase suite of intrusive dikes and sills. These include the northwest-trending BLDZ, which hosts the bulk of the currently defined mineral resource, and the northeast-trending Martiniere West Gabbro Zone (“MWGZ”). The BLDZ and MWGZ terminate to the north along strike where they intersect the eastwest-trending Lac du Doigt Deformation Zone. To date, exploration drilling along the BLDZ has delineated gold mineralization in a series of sub-parallel over an approximate 1,500 m by 700 m area, and to an average vertical depth of approximately 350 to 400 m below surface. Likewise, drilling along the MWGZ has delineated gold mineralization over an approximate 1,200 m by 100 m area and to a vertical depth of approximately 250 to 300 m from surface. The BLDZ and MWGZ remain open along their respective strike directions to the south, however, no information exists that would suggest they extend beyond the main SLDZ break that extends across the southern portion of the Martiniere claim block. All zones comprising the Martiniere gold system remain open vertically at dept.
Gold
Gold mineralization in the Martiniere deposit is closely associated with increased amounts of (1) disseminated to (rarely) semi-massive pyrite; (2) carbonate and/or quartz alteration and veining; and (3) brittle to ductile structural features. However, it can be classified into three distinct styles based on host structure and lithology:
1. Porphyry-associated mineralization, which is spatially related to porphyry dikes and sills intruded along the BLDZ. This style occurs within and along the contacts of intrusive dikes and sills and extends into the volcano-sedimentary host sequence, often along stratigraphic contacts with older gabbro sills. Porphyry-associated mineralization is characterized by silica and sericite alteration halos around diffuse quartz-carbonate + pyrite vein sets, which locally exhibit colloform textures.
2. Gabbro-hosted mineralization, which occurs within the Martiniere gabbro itself and along its contacts with the host volcanic and sedimentary units. Mineralized structures within the gabbro are characterized by elevated silica and sericite alteration, coupled with higher pyrite contents (5-15%).