Projects
Finland
"Research and exploration over the past two decades have shown that the Fennoscandian Shield (Northern Finland) has the potential to become a significant gold producer"
- Mining Journal, February, 2005
Conroy Gold and Natural Resources Plc (“Conroy”) is active in the Sodankyla area of Lapin Lääni province (Lapland) and has identified the area as highly prospective.
Finland is a mining-friendly country within the European Union offering the exploration industry a favourable operating and investment climate, with significant potential for new discoveries. The province of Lapin Lääni (Lapland) covers an area of 98,946 km². There are 21 municipalities in this region and the largest city is Rovaniemi. The majority of this region is above the Arctic Circle and is sparsely populated with 186,917 inhabitants (2003) but with excellent infrastructure.
Sodankyla - Proven Gold Potential:
Till sampling values in current licence areas up to 117ppb Gold. Drilling by Conroy has proven the presence of a sulphide-rich hydrothermal system.
Active Mining in the Region:
Conroy's interests lie on the same NW-SE trend and in similar terrain to the major Pahtavaara Gold deposit and Agnico-Eagle's 3 million oz Kittila mine at the Suurikuusikko deposit to the North-West.
Expertise in the field:
Conroy's directors and staff have extensive experience in Finland and have complemented this in-house experience by contracting the services of the Geological Survey of Finland (GTK) to undertake much of the exploration work in the field. The GTK has invaluable expertise and experience in Finland, as well as access to state of the art laboratories and facilities in Helsinki and Rovaniemi.
Ease of Access:
The Sodankyla area of Lapland is easily accessible via the E63 and E75 euro-routes, domestic flights and rail connections serve the major centres.
Exploration history in Lapland:
Gold exploration in Northern Finland has a long history, with gold first being recognised in the early 19th century in the Kemi area near the Gulf of Bothnia. Small placer deposits were found by prospectors in northeastern Lapland in 1868, in the Ivalojoki area. Over the following decades, small-scale operations produced from a few hundred grams to several dozen kilograms of gold. Small vein-style gold occurances in the panning areas were located in the 1900s, leading to exploration shafts being sunk with gold grades found to reach several grams per ton.
During the 1950s, geologists closely examined the vein-style occurances, and noted that all of the identified deposits fell within the Lapland Granulite Belt, comprised of psammitic and pelitic sedimentary rock, with some volcanics and metamorphosed intrusives subjected to granulite facies metamorphism.
The Geological Survey of Finland (GTK) established a regional office in Rovaniemi in the 1970s, coinciding with a spike in gold prices, resulting in increased mapping and exploration activity in Northern Finland. Three economic deposits were discovered with the assistance of vast improvements in geochemical and geochemical methods, and better understanding of Lapland’s orogenic gold - Saatopora (mined 1988-1995), Pahtavaara (1996-present) and Suurikuusikko, where Agnico-Eagle aim to start production at their Kittila Mine in September 2008.
(image - gold mineralisation from Saatopora mine in Northern Finland, sourced from GTK website, www.gtk.fi)
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