The Boka gold project, located in Yunnan Province in
southern China approximately 110 km north of the capital city of Kunming, is a
newly discovered area of gold mineralisation. The favourable stratabound
mineralised horizon has attracted artisanal miners to develop more than 200
tunnels (adits) into the mountainside since gold was discovered in the area in
1999.
Southwestern Resources Corporation is conducting a major exploration
program including detailed surveying and sampling of the existing tunnels, excavating
new tunnels, trenching, geological mapping, lithogeochemical and soil sampling,
and diamond drilling.
Gold mineralisation is hosted by Middle Proterozoic
carbonaceous shales and calcareous siltstones within a stratabound thrust zone
of ductile-brittle shearing, which is characterized by extensive multi-phase
breccia/shear development and accompanied by quartz-carbonate and sulphide
(pyrite) replacement. There are eleven known gold zones within the Boka Project
Area, all of which occur within a 25 kilometre long structural zone and
confined to a specific stratigraphic horizon. The Boka 1 Gold Zone has been
traced along surface in trenches and tunnels along a 1,800 metre strike length
and is open both to the north and south. Drilling to date has shown that the
surface mineralisation continues down-dip for at least 500 metres in the Boka 1
South Gold Zone and 300 metres down-dip in the Boka 1 North Gold Zone. Drilling
to date has shown that the surface mineralisation continues down-dip for at
least 500 metres in the Boka 1 South Gold Zone and 300 metres down-dip in the
Boka 1 North Gold Zone.
Subsequently, John Patterson, ex-CEO of Southwestern Resources Corp., has been
sued by the company on charges of fraud, breach of fiduciary duties and insider
trading after an investigation showed alteration of assay results. Southwestern
Resources announced that, while there were still indications of gold
mineralisation in drill samples and historical mine workings, mineral resources
were less than previously reported.
(Source: Southwestern Resources Corp., 2004. Toronto Star, 28 August 2007)
