Eagle Plains Resources (EPL.V), a project generator with a specific focus on Western Canada, has entered into an agreement with Tri Capital whereby the latter can earn an 80% stake in the Pine Channel gold project in Saskatchewan.
Eagle Plains staked the claims in 2018 and 2020 and has continuously expanded the project to 6,500 hectares by staking additional ground and buying pieces of land from third party vendors. During 2019 and 2020, Eagle Plains had field teams to further advance the projects during the traditional summer exploration season (May-October, which is best for basic geological field work. Drilling can occur on a year-round basis).
The project has been explored numerous times in the past, as the government of Saskatchewan conducted its first mapping program over a hundred years ago, and the project has seen in excess of 6,000 meters of drilling in 115 holes. This means the average depth per hole was just over 50 meters, so previous operators were barely scratching the surface, and used an inefficient drill method as a thin diameter core is considered ineffective to explore nugget-type projects.
Eagle Plains did the ground work in the past few years and it will now be up to Tri Capital (which is in the process of getting a listing) to further advance the project. In order to earn an 80% stake in the project, Tri Capital will have to make C$150,000 in cash payments, issue 2 million shares and complete C$3M in exploration expenditures before June 30th 2025 to establish its 80% ownership.
On top of retaining a 20% stake, Eagle Plains will also retain a 2% NSR on the project, of which 1% can be repurchased by making a C$1M cash payment.
Eagle Plains remains very active in Saskatchewan where its affiliated company Taiga Gold (TGC.C) has established a joint venture with SSR Mining (SSRM, SSRM.TO) on the Fisher gold project, which is located within wheelbarrow distance from SSR’s Seabee production centre. Bob Moriarty recently provided a brief overview why Saskatchewan (and more specifically the Trans-Hudson Corridor) is attracting a lot of attention these days.
Disclosure: The author holds a long position in Eagle Plains Resources and Taiga Gold, but no position in SSR Mining. Taiga Gold is a sponsor of the website, Eagle Plains is a related company. Please read our disclaimer.
