Bunce Prospect

Site Name

Primary: Bunce Prospect
Secondary: D B Claim
Secondary: D B Nos. 1-17 Claims
Secondary: Bunce Lease
Secondary: Discovery Zone
Secondary: North Zone
Secondary: Santa Fe East Zone
Secondary: Santa Fe West Zone

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Commodity

Primary: Gold
Secondary: Silver

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Location

State: Nevada
County: Pershing
District: Velvet District

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Land Status

Land ownership: BLM Administrative Area
Note: the land ownership field only identifies whether the area the mine is in is generally on public lands like Forest Service or BLM land, or if it is in an area that is generally private property. It does not definitively identify property status, nor does it indicate claim status or whether an area is open to prospecting. Always respect private property.
Administrative Organization: WInnnemucca BLM Administrative District

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Holdings

Not available

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Workings

Not available

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Ownership

Owner Name: AuEx, Inc.
Home Office: 940 Matley Lane, Suite 17 Reno, NV 89502
Info Year: 2004

Owner Name: Newmont, the Gold Company
Info Year: 2004

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Production

Not available

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Deposit

Record Type: Site
Operation Category: Producer
Deposit Type: epithermal dissemination; hot-spring gold-silver
Operation Type: Surface
Discovery Year: 1930
Years of Production:
Organization:
Significant: Y
Deposit Size: S

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Physiography

Not available

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Mineral Deposit Model

Model Name: Epithermal vein, Comstock

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Orebody

Form: blanket, irregular

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Structure

Type: L
Description: faulting and fracturing

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Alterations

Alteration Type: L
Alteration Text: High-level alteration consisting of chalcedonic and opaline silica, argillization and anomalous pathfinder geochemistry appears widespread and suggests that the mineral system is large. Silicification is prevalent.

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Rocks

Name: Pyroclastic Rock
Role: Associated
Description: explosion breccias
Age Type: Associated Rock
Age Young: Tertiary

Name: Tuff
Role: Host
Description: rhyolite
Age Type: Host Rock
Age Young: Tertiary

Name: Rhyolite
Role: Host
Age Type: Host Rock
Age Young: Tertiary

Name: Mixed Clastic/Volcanic Rock
Role: Associated
Description: fossil hot spring sinter
Age Type: Associated Rock
Age Young: Tertiary

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Analytical Data

Not available

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Materials

Ore: Gold

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Comments

Comment (Commodity): Ore Materials: free gold

Comment (Workings): trenches, drilling, surface exploration

Comment (Identification): This record includes material from MRDS record M242881, an earlier record for the deposit.

Comment (Location): The Bunce project consists of 96 unpatented lode mining claims owned by AuEx Company, 640 acres of fee land optioned by the Company, 80 acres of fee land leased by the Company, 54 leased unpatented lode claims and 4,100 acres of sub-leases of fee land all located in Pershing County, Nevada. UTM is to a point within the DB claims in the SE 1/4 of sec. 26 T28N, R28E.

Comment (Economic Factors): In 1989, the Bunce Deposit in the Velvet district was reported to contain a geologic reserve of 600,000 tons of material grading 0.04 ounces of gold per ton and 500,000 tons of material grading 0.04 ounces of gold per ton in 1990. The Discovery Zone was reported in 1990 to contain a geologic reserve of 238,279 tons of material containing 0.052 ounces of gold per ton; and 444,887 tons of material containing 0.034 ounces of gold per ton.

Comment (Deposit): Bunce contains a low sulfidation, epithermal gold-silver target hosted within Tertiary volcanics. Significant drilling by previous explorers has defined a moderate to small sized zone of gold mineralization in one area but only limited drilling has been performed elsewhere on the property. High-level alteration consisting of chalcedonic and opaline silica, argillization and anomalous pathfinder geochemistry appears widespread and suggests that the mineral system is large. Numerous faults with post-mineral movement have complicated the geology but may also mark the location of the mineralizing structures that can guide future exploration.Gold occurs as fine particles disseminated in rhyolite. Emplacement appears to be related to silicification and hydrothermal alteration in a near-surface environment characterized by hydrothermal explosion breccias and extensive fossil hot spring sinters. Mineralization occurs in silicified zones controlled by north-trending faults and thought to be related to hot spring activity. Model name could also be: hot-spring gold-silver.

Comment (Development): The Bunce property was discovered in the 1930s, but remained undeveloped until the advent of heap leach technology. In 1984, Hillside Energy leased 80 acres of private land from the Bunce estate and joint ventured it with Noramex Minerals. Additional land was acquired by staking. Also in 1984, trenching exposed gold mineralization over widths of 30 and 25 m, open on both ends, in 2 trenches 120 m apart. In April 1987, Calvada Resources optioned the property and drilled 4970 feet before dropping the option. In late 1988, Noramex increased its interest from 56% to 100% by buying out the Hillside interest. In 1989, Noramex finalized an agreement with Santa Fe Pacific Minerals Inc. to consolidate the respective mineral lands in the area. In May 1990, Noramex granted Annabel Gold Mines Inc. The right to earn 44% relative to Noramex by incurring $800,000 in exploration expenditures. Prior to the Santa Fe agreement, 6420 feet of drilling had been done on the Bunce lease plus 1600 feet by Santa Fe on its adjoining ground. The best drill intercept was 70 feet grading 0.107 opt gold. A 6090-foot drilling program was completed on the Santa F and Bunce lease ground in 1990. A 15,000-foot reverse circulation drilling program was scheduled for completion by mid-1991, followed by metallurgical and feasibility studies. Newmont acquired the Bunce property when it took over Santa Fe Pacific's properties, and it was leased from Newmont by AuEx, the current operator (2004). Under the lease agreement with Newmont, AuEx is obligated to spend $75,000 during the first year of the agreement and additional amounts thereafter to maintain the agreement. Newmont retains the right to back in to a 51/49 joint venture but with specific expenditure requirements on its part.

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References

Reference (Deposit): Masterston, Wilmer D. IV, 1981, Kyle, J. R., 1981, Epithermal Gold Mineralization in the Velvet District, Pershing County, Nevada, MA Thesis, Univ. of Texas at Austin.

Reference (Deposit): AuEx website: http://www.auex.com/projects/bunce/bunce.mgi
URL: http://www.auex.com/projects/bunce/bunce.mgi

Reference (Deposit): Lovelock Land Status, 1978

Reference (Deposit): MASMILS 0320270873

Reference (Deposit): Noramex News Releases, 1989-1990

Reference (Deposit): Amer. Mines (1991-1992), 1991

Reference (Deposit): Amer. Mines (1990), 1990

Reference (Deposit): Amer. Mines (1989), 1989

Reference (Deposit): NBMG MI-89 thru MI-03

Reference (Deposit): "Noramex Focusing on Gold Deposits in Nevada", The Mining Record, April 24, 1991, p. 9.

Reference (Deposit): NBMG Bulletin 89, Pl. 1.

Reference (Deposit): BLM Mining Claim Data.

Reference (Deposit): MineSearch Annual, 1984-85, vol vii, p. 69-70.

Reference (Deposit): Hillside Energy Corp News Release, 2/15/85, 3/21/85.

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Nevada Gold

Nevada has a total of 368 distinct gold districts. Of the of those, just 36 are major producers with production and/or reserves of over 1,000,000 ounces, 49 have production and/or reserves of over 100,000 ounces, with the rest having less than 100,000 ounces. Read more: Gold Districts of Nevada.