RAPAPORT... The Chidliak joint venture, between Peregrine Diamonds Ltd. and BHP Billiton, was approved for a $17.7 million exploration program in 2011. The Chidliak project on Baffin Island in Nunavut, Canada, has identified 50 kimberlites since 2008, with seven of those having characteristics consistent with economic potential in Arctic settings. Peregrine Diamonds has commenced field work as operator of the 2011 program and it holds a 49 percent stake in the project.
The 2011 program is expected to set the stage for the collection of bulk samples in 2012 to obtain initial parcels of diamonds sufficient to estimate the diamond value of the most promising kimberlites. To achieve this goal, the main work action this year touches upon core and reverse circulation drilling of high-priority geophysical anomalies with large surface footprints that have been selected from airborne geophysical surveys. Core drilling of the known high-interest kimberlite bodies will increase the understanding of their size, geology and diamond content. Peregrine expects to collect mini-bulk samples from the CH-31 and CH-28 kimberlites.
Tom Peregoodoff, vice president of exploration for BHP Billiton, said, "BHP Billiton is encouraged by the initial results from the Chidliak project. With our partner Peregrine Diamonds we have made good progress since the first kimberlite discovery in 2008 and we look forward to a successful 2011 campaign."
Brooke Clements, president of Peregrine, stated "We are confident that the $17.7 million 2011 exploration program will allow us to advance the Chidliak project substantially this year, building on our very successful 2010 program during which 34 kimberlites were discovered. There is real potential to discover additional large kimberlites which, if found to have coarse diamond size distributions, would add significant value to the project."
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