Ontario Mineral Inventory

Ontario Geological Survey
Permanent Link to this Record: MDI42D09SE00005

Record: MDI42D09SE00005

General

Commodities

Primary Commodities: Molybdenum

Secondary Commodities: Copper, Lead, Silver

Location

Township or Area: Mussy Lake Area

Latitude: 48° 34' 53.54"    Longitude: -86° 13' 49.41"

UTM Zone: 16    Easting: 556761   Northing: 5381225    UTM Datum: NAD83

Resident Geologist District: Thunder Bay South

NTS Grid: 42D09SE

Point Location Description: AMIS location

Location Method: Based on Assessment

Exploration History

Prior to 1930: Prospector H.J. Johnson first discovered molybdenum mineralization while exploring for gold. and subsequently trenched an up to 11 m thick quartz vein containing pyrite, galena, and chalcopyrite. During the late 1930s, Consolidated Mining and Smelting Co. Ltd. acquired the property and completed trenching and bulk sampling. No data are available for the results of the bulk sampling program. Exploration of the area remained in hiatus until the early 1960s.1968-1972: Citadel Mines Ltd. optioned 80 claims in 1968 that included the Playter molybdenum prospect. Citadel's work focused on the molybdenum occurrence and in 1969 they completed prospecting, line cutting, geological mapping, ground magnetometer and EM surveys. A 14 hole closely-spaced diamond drill program, totalling 1,410 m was completed on what is now known as the Playter Mo-Re Property. The property was acquired in 1971 by Galex Mines Ltd. who drilled a further 6 diamond drill holes, totalling 945 m. 1980: The bulk of pre-1981 exploration focused on the Playter massive quartz vein.1982-1991: Maple Leaf Petroleum Ltd. acquired a 166-claim property in 1982 and entered into a joint venture (JV) agreement with Valhalla Resources Ltd. The JV completed line cutting, geological mapping, soil sampling, magnetometer and VLF-EM surveys, a limited IP-EM survey, and 14 diamond drill holes, totalling 2,085 m were drilled to the east of the Playter Mo occurrence. Golden Trio Minerals Ltd. optioned the property during 1987 and immediately added 166 claims to the property. During the remainder of 1987 and into 1988, Golden Trio completed 16 diamond drill holes, totalling 1,954 m, that tested IPEM anomalies occurring within the western half of the property. Noranda Exploration Company Limited signed a JV agreement with International Maple Leaf and Golden Trio late in 1988. Noranda completed a DIGHEM111 airborne EM, resistivity, magnetometer, and VLF survey, in early January 1989, over an area that included the southern two-thirds of the present Big Lake Property. 2005: MetalCORP completed limited channel sampling on the Playter Mo occurrence including a work program of prospecting. 2007: Shallow drill testing along a 400 m strike of the large Mo-Re bearing quartz vein down to a depth of .300 m was completed using six drill holes (BL07-81 to 86). 2008: An additional 17 drill holes were completed below the 90 m level for an overall total of 12,055 m drilled by MetalCORP, and geological mapping was carried out. 2009: MetalCORP contracted AMEC Americas Ltd to write a NI 43-101-compliant report and resource estimate of the Playter zone. They outlined an Inferred Resource of 0.9 million tonnes grading 0.25% molybdenum, 1.67 g/t rhenium and 3.38 g/t silver.

Assessment Work on File

Geology

Province: Superior

Subprovince: Wawa

Terrane: Wawa-Abitibi

Belt: Schreiber-Terrace Bay

Geological Age: Archean  

Geology Comments

Jul 11, 2016 (Andrew Tims) - Steeply dipping, east-west striking quartz vein that varies between 1 metre and 10 metres in width and is of approximately 1 kilometre in length within an ultramafic I mafic volcanic lithology

Lithology

Lithology Comments

Dec 21, 2018 (Therese Pettigrew) - The Playter showing is comprised of a large, shear zone-hosted, Mo-rich quartz vein flanked by ultramafic intrusive rocks. The quartz vein is in contact with biotite schist on the northern margin. This contact is strongly sheared with tight isoclinal and sheath folds. The planer shear fabric of the biotite schist is parallel to the margins of the quartz vein (Assessment file 20000006275).

Mineralization

Mineralization Comments

Jul 11, 2016 (Andrew Tims) - Molybdenum mineralization is associated with pervasive vertical fractures at the vein margins and shears that run through the quartz vein. Rhenium is of specific interest to this deposit where rhenium substitutes for molybdenum in the crystal lattice of molybdenite

Dec 21, 2018 (Therese Pettigrew) - The Playter Mo-Re deposit is mainly housed in pervasive vertical fractures within a steeply dipping (~90 degree) east-west trending westward plunging (60 degree) tabular massive quartz vein. Based on surface outcrop and diamond drilling data, this vein extends ~900 m along strike and has an average true thickness varying from <1 m to 16 m, with an average true thickness of 7 m. The vein has been intersected down to 600 m below surface and is open at depth. Molybdenum (Mo) mineralization is ubiquitous throughout the vein with an average grade across the vein of 0.10-0.13%. Higher grades are found along the western edge of the vein and going down plunge. Average rhenium (Re) grades are on the order of 1.0 gpt and minor silver (Ag) has also been observed. The historic Playter Mo-Re Prospect was sampled during the 2004-2005 sampling programs. A sample taken during 2004 from a 10 m thick, rusty-weathering, crack-seal quartz vein contained coarse-grained pyrite, molybdenite veinlets, disseminated to blebby galena, and blebby chalcopyrite. The sample was analyzed to contain 112 ppm Ag, 6790 ppm Pb, 2440 ppm Cu, and 651 ppm Mo. Channel sampling of the prospect completed during the spring of 2005 obtained up to 2780 ppm Mo, 29.2 ppm Ag, 4620 ppm Pb, and 18 ppm Se over 1 m (Assessment file 20000006275). Surface samples taken across the width of the exposed vein during 1968 by Kennco Explorations (Canada) Limited graded 0.21% MoS2 over 12 m and 0.56% MoS2 over 10 m, respectively. The 1969 drill program outlined a 460 m long, shear zone-hosted, mineralized quartz vein up to 9 m in thickness that graded between 0.08% MoS2 over 3.1 m and 0.47% MoS2 over 1.6 m. Citadel calculated that the vein contained 665 short tons/vertical foot grading 0.24% MoS2 over an average width of 3.0 m (Assessment report 42D09SE0045).

Mineral Record Details

Mineral Zones - Size and Shape

References

Map - Geological Compilation of the Eastern Half of the Schreiber-Hemlo Greenstone Belt

Publication Number: M2614 Scale: 1:50,000    Date: 2000

Author: Muir T.L.

Publisher Name: Ontario Geological Survey

Location:

Part - Geology of the Heron Bay area, District of Thunder Bay

Publication Number: ARV40-02.002 Page: 32  Date: 1998

Author: Thomson J.E.

Publisher Name: Ontario Dept. of Mines

Location:

Publication - Playter Molybdenum-Rhenium Deposit, Marathon, Ontario, Canada

Publication Number: 2010 NI 43-101 Date: 2010

Author: Kilpatrick, R., Grieco, N.

Publisher Name: AMEC for MetalCORP

Location: SEDAR

MonoMap - Geology of the Heron Bay area, District of Thunder Bay

Publication Number: R218 Page: 73-74  Date: 1982

Author: Muir T.L.

Publisher Name: Ontario Geological Survey

Location:

Report an Error

We are continuously updating our assessment file / technical report information. If you notice errors in the data, please contact us.

Terms of Use

Please review our Terms of Use agreement for this data product.

Ministry Contact Information

For detailed information regarding this mineral record please contact the Thunder Bay South Resident Geologist District Office