American West samples high-grade copper, gold at Nunavut’s Tempest

Samples assayed up to 38.2% copper in an underexplored area. It’s fast becoming the focus of an aggressive exploration program planned for next year at the project on Somerset Island near the Northwest Passage in Canada’s far north.

“The copper and zinc grades we’ve found are exceptional. We’re looking at major potential here at Tempest,” American West managing director Dave O’Neill said in a release.

American West, which this summer earned an 80% interest in the project from 20%-partner Aston Bay Holdings (TSXV: BAY; US-OTC: ATBHF), has traced rich gossans over 4 km, hinting at a large-scale mineralized system. Ground electromagnetic surveys align these gossans with anomalies detected from the air, presenting clear drilling targets, American West Said in the release.

Since gossans result from the oxidation of sulphide mineral deposits, they can guide geologists to sulphide-rich ore bodies that may be economically viable for mining. The presence of a gossan can lead to more detailed exploration techniques to determine the size and grade of the ore body.

American West says it believes the Tempest discovery is on a structural unconformity, a setting ripe for base metals discovery since the contact between two geological terranes is highly prospective. The basement rocks are an important potential source of metals and the contact is a zone of high permeability for mineralizing fluids, the company said.

The upcoming exploration agenda is busy, with geochemical sampling and advanced EM surveys on the books targeting the anomalies.

The program for the Storm project includes ongoing ore sorting and beneficiation, resource modelling and estimation, environmental reporting, and logistical planning for exploration next year.

The partners reported in August a major copper discovery at the property. New drilling aims to uncover hidden gravity targets beneath the established near-surface mineralization.

American West’s Sydney-traded shares opened Tuesday down 2% at A12.7¢ per share, valuing the company at A$44.5 million. They’re up 9% this year and have touched 4.3¢ and 37.5¢ in the past 52 weeks.