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Overview

A significant strategic mineral sands resource has been identified and confirmed by Oregon Resources Corporation ("ORC"), an Oregon corporation 100% owned by Industrial Minerals Corporation Limited. This resource is located in southwestern Oregon and occurs along a number of ancient elevated terraces that range over a 150 square mile coastal plain. The minerals contained in the Oregon deposits are chromite, garnet, zircon, ilmenite, magnetite, leucoxene and rutile. These minerals have many industrial, medical, environmental and scientific applications.

The unusual combination of minerals affords greater market flexibility than provided by a typical mineral sands suite. The 1991 drill program by ORC in 1991 confirmed three categories of reserves within four deposits containing significant grades of chromite, garnet and zircon.


Brief History:

The region has a long and varied mining history. Gold was first produced in this locale in the mid-1800's. In the 1940's the U.S. Bureau of Mines initiated detailed investigations of the region and these investigations continued intermittently until 1980. Production of chromite from the higher grade mineral deposits occurred during World War II. In 1947 the U.S. Bureau of Mines identified an estimated 8.9 million short ton heavy-mineral sands resource having an average chromite content of 12%.

In 1991, ORC undertook a major drilling and sampling program. The program entailed exploration and development drilling of 550 holes for a total of 16,000 feet with 3,995 samples collected and 2,603 samples assayed by Bondar Clegg in Vancouver, B.C., primarily for chromite and zircon. The results were compiled and reported by engineering consultants, The Mineral Sands Consultancy, of Queensland, Australia. In addition, an 8.2 ton bulk sample was shipped to Australia for assessment. By processing this bulk sample of ore, confirmation was obtained that the material was amenable to separations using Standard Mineral Sands Industry techniques. This work also provided samples of the various products for market testing.


Current Activities:

In early 2007, ORC determined that a 700,000 tpa extraction and production model was feasible. This was the result of many years of comprehensive work undertaken in the area delineated. The work included data compiled from mapping, aeromagnetic survey, bulk beneficiation sampling, exploratory drilling and mineral lease acquisition. This work and data compilation was followed and further confirmed by detailed metallurgical analysis and product testing.

During the past year the Company has added significant resource extraction and processing expertise together with financial skills in project financing and operations to its management team.

These hires have made significant contributions to the total project plan and are the core group responsible for taking the project to production in the coming 8 months.

A significant milestone in the project requirement was the need to secure an industrial site large enough to site the two main processing components and all the associated ancillary facilities. This has been a lengthy process resulting in a lease / purchase agreement with Teck Cominco Americas Inc. for the former Glenbrook Nickel processing facility in Coos Bay, Oregon. The 28 acre site is ideal for our operation as it has a ship loading dock, storage silo and water treatment facility and is divided by a rail spur. It has access to the main interstate routes, natural gas supply and is in close proximity to ORC's heavy mineral sand deposits.



In the first half of 2005 ORC acquired a 10tph mineral processing plant which was utilized in the pre production first stage wet separation of extracted mineral sands and in the final flow sheet design for the main larger scale operating plant. This Pilot Plant was assembled and modified with additional spirals that ORC had manufactured specifically for the Oregon sands. The Pilot operation provided data that has proved invaluable for the flow sheet design and potentially saved hundreds of man hours of future operational down time if this key element in the process was not incorporated.



In addition the product produced during this process was further separated and defined by Hazen Laboratories through their dry (magnetic) mill. This end product will be provided to potential end users and distributors.

The investment in the pilot pant will not be lost as it will be integrated into the main plant and add to the overall capacity of the full scale operation.

The surface excavation methods used to extract the mineral sands from the Oregon deposits are environmentally safe, with complete reclamation. Mineral processing and beneficiation technology for the separation of heavy minerals is well tried and tested. No chemicals are used in the extraction process, making it environmentally friendly.

The southwestern Oregon district contains a valuable mineral resource. The economics of the resource are enhanced by the multiple co-association of minerals, an established local infrastructure, including a deep-sea international shipping port. The operation will have a neutral to friendly impact on the environment and a favorable socio-economic impact on local government and community.


Exploration Plan & current development:

The exploration plan is over five years and commenced in 2006. It comprises bi-annual elements of exploration and development drilling. The initial program commenced in late 2006 and covered some of the unexplored marine terraces as well as the earlier defined resource. This program provided an increase in the JORC compliant resource. Drilling is undertaken utilizing the Pro Sonic technology and drilling equipment which is optimized in the type of unconsolidated sands that exist throughout these deposits. Ongoing programs, using a central hub as a starting point, will be drilled on a 1000' x 1000' grid. Recently completed drilling indicates that mining will commence at the high grade/low stripping ratio North and South Seven Devils' deposits. Exploration targets will fan out along the terraces from this hub. Second, drill hole samples will be assayed for complete mineral analysis. The samples will be analyzed for magnetic and non-magnetic splits of chromite, zircon, Al-silicates, and U + Th. The results will allow for complete economic assessment of the geologic model using Surpac mining software's Lerchs Grossman analysis.

Greenfield Exploration

50% of the exploration budget in 2006 was applied to greenfield drilling. Using the 'geologic model' as a guide, greenfield drilling was undertaken on the high grade/low stripping ratio Seven Devil's Terrace. Initial mining is planned to be centered on the north and south Seven Devil's deposits, this gives a great starting point for exploration activities. Exploration targets are located on parcels of land that are owned or controlled through mineral leases.

Drill Hole Analysis

An estimated 25% of exploration budget funding will be used to assay existing drill hole samples for additional saleable mineral and metallurgical information. In addition to existing chromite and zircon assays, testing will supply data for garnet, ilmenite, rutile, etc. as well as metallurgical information that will be crucial for blending, metallurgical processes, and 'model -- actual' reconciliation (a gauge of how exact the model is -- used to determine future drill spacing).

By garnering this data, ORC will be able to develop complete geologic models that can utilize the full potential of an economic evaluation (Lerchs Grossman). In other words, the more material you can sell from a cubic foot of ore, the more likely it is that more cubic feet can be mined (mining costs aside), which amounts to increased reserves.

Step-out Drilling

The current drilling is typically on 50' x 250' spacing. This is more than adequate for a mineral sands deposit of this nature. Inspection of the edges, however, reveals that further drilling should be completed to ensure that the deposit edges are located.

Because the north and south Seven Devil's deposits are targeted to be the initial mining areas, step-out drilling will be focused on the edges of these deposits. An estimated 25% of exploration budget will be consumed by this drilling.

Future Exploration

Beyond 2007, exploration will focus on the continuation drilling of the terrace areas, primarily along the Seven Devil's terrace, given its high grade and low stripping ratio potential. The Pioneer Terrace will also be explored, as mining expands towards the Westbrook/Shepherd deposits. Whiskey Run Terrace will be studied, but not explored in the current project area.

Current development

The Company is proceeding with the construction of a full scale extraction and processing operation currently scheduled for completion in August 2008. This process will be complimented with a resource enhancement program consisting mainly of surface exploration, sampling, analysis and additional drilling.  
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