Global Nickel Investments makes strategic JV acquisition of Mt Venn project, WA

Global Nickel Investments (ASX: GNI) has entered into a joint venture agreement with ASX-listed company Platina Resources (ASX: PGM), Global Nickel Investments Ltd 80% - Platina Resources Limited 20%, on the Mt Venn nickel sulphide project, located directly south of the existing Jutson Rocks tenements in Western Australia.

In a strategic move which now locks up the majority of the ultramafic units in the greenstone belt, GNI’s agreement with Platina allows the previously discovered nickel and copper anomalism to be immediately advanced with further exploration by GNI. 

“The Mt Venn project acquisition is significant to GNI for a number of reasons,” said Managing Director, Benjamin Heath Cooper.

The Mt Venn project is favourably situated geographically to Jutson Rocks, as it literally attaches to the southern borders of two of the existing Jutson Rocks tenements.

More importantly however, Mt Venn contains extensions of the same geological units as occur at Jutson Rocks, where recent soil sampling conducted by GNI returned elevated levels of gold, nickel and copper.

Previous RC drilling results at Mt Venn include 2m at 1.2% nickel from within a 4m wide zone grading 1.3% copper.

Mt Venn attracted significant market attention in the 1970’s and 1980’s after very high grade nickel, copper and platinum results were reported to the ASX by previous owners of the project Tasminex Resources NL and Helix Resources Limited respectively.

However, very little follow up exploration has occurred at Jutson Rocks or Mt Venn for several decades, which is precisely the reason why the exploration potential of the GNI portfolio is so highly regarded by the Company.

GNI has worked for almost three years on this campaign to consolidate the Jutson Rocks area, resulting in a substantial project package of regional significance.

It is the belief of Global Nickel Investments, that both the Jutson Rocks and Mt Venn tenements have potential for nickel sulphide discoveries.

GNI is expecting to report in the coming days on the results of a widespread helicopter VTEM geophysical survey completed across the Jutson Rocks and Mt Cornell projects in January 2010.

GNI has entered into an agreement to acquire 80% of the Mt Venn project for consideration as follows:

(a) The allotment to Platina Resources Ltd of 500,000 fully paid ordinary shares in GNI.

(b) The allotment to Platina Resources Ltd of 500,000 GNIOA options.

(c) GNI responsible for expenditure on the Mt Venn project in exchange for 80% interest.

The Mt Venn project consists of granted exploration licence E38/1000 which covers an area of 61km2 at the southern end of the Mt Venn (Jutson Rocks) Greenstone Belt.

WA Portfolio Global Nickel Investments now has new licence applications and joint venture agreements covering the majority of the Mt Venn Greenstone Belt.

Details of the tenement status are given below.

Mt Venn Joint Venture with Platina Resources Limited – E38/1000
Mount Cornell Joint Venture with Graynic Metals Limited – E38/1850
Jutson Rocks Joint Venture with Cazaly Resources Ltd – E38/1540 & E38/1541
Chapman’s Reward East (100%) - E38/2405
Chapman’s Reward West (100%) - P38/3880, P38/3881
Jutson Rocks West (100%) - E38/2351, E38/2352, E38/2353

Previous RC drilling at the Mt Venn Project has intersected nickel and copper mineralisation. Results from hole MVRC10 intersected 2 metres grading 1.2 per cent nickel (including 1m at 1.8% nickel) from within a 4m wide zone of mineralisation grading 1.3 per cent copper from 33 metres depth.

The hole was drilled to target a latestage northwest trending shear zone where previous surface sampling identified nickel and copper rich gossanous outcrops.

Twenty four holes were drilled for a total of 3,031 metres with most holes drilled to depths of between 120 – 160 metres. The targets for the drilling were the EM and Magnetic anomalies situated below the gossan outcrops along a 6 kilometre strike length of the Mt Venn intrusion.

The Company’s future exploration strategy will be determined by the outcome of the VTEM survey – which is now in the final stages of verification and assessment and will be released to the ASX within days.