Veta Negra Project
- 100% Ownership
- Copper-Gold
Location
The Veta Negra property consists of the Exxon and VetaNegra mining concessions and 18 exploration concessions totalling 5300 hectares in the Cerillos mining district located approximately 24 kilometres northeast of Vallenar city. The property is easily accessible year round by dirt roads that criss-cross the property and is located approximately 25km from the ENAMI crushing and processing facility.
Access
The Veta Negra is located at the UTM coordinates East 348,433 North 6,842,137; at an altitude of 1,282 meters above sea level. This is on the western side of the Cordon de Cura and directly east of Sierra La Chinchilas.
Access to the Veta Negra from Vallenar: take the Relincho, San Antonio, Los Morteros road out of Vallenar, along the Quebrada Jilgeuro Canyon, after about 21km and before one reaches the village of San Antonio, one will see black spray paint on the rocks indicating the way to the Veta Negra and Exon mines at the UTM coordinates: East 338,097, North 6,839,203 at an altitude of 1,079 mts above sea level. At this point turn left (north) and follow the road for about 4 km until one arrives at the Veta Negra mine.
Geology & Mineralization
Veta Negra mineralization is hosted in the middle Cretaceous Cerrillos formation composed of brecciated, flow, tuff, microcrystalline andesite, arenites and conglomerates. As the name 'Veta Negra' or 'black vein' implies mineralization is found in veins or 'mantos'deposited at the upper contact of a black microcrystalline volcanic (or possible meta-sediment) and an overlying vesicular iron oxidized andesite (some vesicular volcanics in the area exhibit hornfel metamorphic facies). Younger upper Cretaceous - Eocene intermediate composition Granodiorites and Monzonites are found in the Eastern and Northern region of the Veta Negra claim in contact with the Cerillos volcanics to the South and West. Beyond the claim boundaries to the West lies the lower Cretaceous Pabellon and Totoralillo bioclastic carbonates, volcanic and conglomerate Formations. Beyond these formations - a few kilometers still - lies the lower Cretaceous Punta Del Cobre or Bandurrias formation composed of Dacites, andesites and carbonates.
Epidote, chlorite, magnetite, specular hematite, manganese wad, actinolite, and shorl tourmaline arecommon alteration and indicator minerals found around the mantos while the manto peripheriesexhibit kaolinite clay halos. The mantos themselves show persistent copper oxide staining - with chrysocolla, malachite and azurite always present with lesser amounts of cuprite and chalcocite.
Mineralization is hosted in two main mantos, the East and West Mantos. The West Manto extends for 2kilometre along strike and exhibits a fairly consistent dip of 30 - 50 degrees to the East and a fairly constrained thickness of 4-6 metres where exposed on surface. The East Manto runs parallel to the West Manto but 400m further East. Where the East Manto is exposed on surface the manto is 2 metre wide and dips steeply to the east.
History
The Veta Negra has been artisanally mined on the two mining concessions on the property, the VetaNegra and Exxon concessions. Many small pits and excavations on the property do not have records of tonnage or grade. However, two locations along the West Manto on the VetaNegra concession show evidence of mining activity using small machinery and dynamite. Another area of excavation is located on the Exxon property where the manto being mined is not visible from surface and the dimensions of the mineralization are not clearly defined.
The tables below show the sales to ENAMI for the two mining concessions, the Veta Negra and the Exxon.
| Exxon | Veta Negra | ||||||||
| Date | Tonnes | Grade % Cu | Date | Tonnes | Grade % Cu | ||||
| May 9 2007 | 23.56 | 2.36 | Dec18 2009 | 48.66 | 1.67 | ||||
| Jun 22 2007 | 24.46 | 1.78 | Dec 31 2009 | 43.75 | 1.70 | ||||
| July 30 2007 | 20.98 | 1.49 | Jan 29 2010 | 78.13 | 1.25 | ||||
| Aug 20 2007 | 76.70 | 1.62 | Feb 1 2010 | 14.84 | 2.41 | ||||
| Aug 27 2007 | 35.11 | 1.80 | Feb 16 2010 | 61.47 | 1.20 | ||||
| Aug 30 2007 | 26.42 | 1.60 | Feb 26 2010 | 48.71 | 1.31 | ||||
| Sept 7 2007 | 22.57 | 1.55 | Mar 22 2010 | 16.25 | 2.09 | ||||
| Sept 14 2007 | 24.15 | 1.75 | May 27 2010 | 46.76 | 1.36 | ||||
| Sept 28 2007 | 12.18 | 1.53 | Jun 17 2010 | 29.75 | 1.57 | ||||
| Oct 26 2007 | 25.69 | 1.50 | July 22 2010 | 14.31 | 1.79 | ||||
| Nov 2 2007 | 24.80 | 1.80 | |||||||
