Sona Resources plans to begin gold production from its Blackdome-Elizabeth gold project in British Columbia by the third quarter of 2013. The company is taking a dual approach of expanding current resources at the project and moving existing inferred resources to measured and indicated categories to allow for prefeasibility studies. Sona has begun underground and surface drilling programs at the project and expects to increase current resources, recalculate the resource estimate by December 2011, and complete prefeasibility studies in the second quarter of 2012 before making production decisions. The fully permitted mill at the former-producing Blackdome mine could be ready to begin processing ore within four months.

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A Double Track To Success
Sona Plans Q3 2013 BC Gold Production
~ By Ted Niles - June 16, 2011
“Our goal is to be in production by the third quarter of 2013,” says Nick March 30 assays from Elizabeth include 134.9 grams per tonne over
Ferris of his Blackdome-Elizabeth gold project in BC. The Executive 0.9 metres, 12.5 g/t over 2.5 metres, 57.5 g/t over 0.8 metres, 10.6 g/t
Chairman of Sona Resources characterizes it as advanced exploration over 1 metre, 6.5 g/t over 6.7 metres, 19 g/t over 1.5 metres, 109.5 g/t
but adds, “We’re on a double-track. One, to move the resource from over 2.5 metres, 42.5 g/t over 1 metre and 77.9 g/t over 5.1 metres.
inferred to measured and indicated, so we can complete a prefeasibil- Assays of October 2010 include 17.4 g/t gold over 1.5 metres, 96.4 g/t
ity study. Two, to expand the resource as fast as we can.” over 2.5 metres, 85.4 g/t over 4 metres, 134.9 g/t over 0.9 metres, 12.5
g/t over 2.5 metres and 17.4 g/t over 1.5 metres.
Sona’s plan is to move Blackdome-Elizabeth to production as soon
as possible in order to generate the necessary revenue to expand the
company’s resources and increase mill feed thereby. Once Blackdome-
Elizabeth begins generating cash flow, Sona will “really spend some
money on exploration,” including on its Montgolfier project in Que-
bec—40 kilometres east of Aurizon’s Casa Berardi Mine—which Sona
has kept on hold since 2008.
A 2010 preliminary economic assessment forecast a base-case eight-
year mine life for Blackdome Elizabeth, producing 24,000 ounces an-
nually. According to Ferris, “The capital cost is about $21 million, which
would get paid off in a little over a year at current gold prices.” Ore
would come both locally from Blackdome and by truck from Elizabeth.
Ferris says, “As we find more resources at Blackdome we will increase
the throughput to 300 tonnes a day and produce about 33,000 to
35,000 ounces a year.”
Located about 200 kilometres north of Vancouver in the Lillooet Mining Sona has begun a 4,500-metre underground drilling program at Eliza-
District, the Blackdome Gold Mine and Elizabeth Gold Property com- beth, which will be followed by another 3,000 metres of surface drilling
prise 196 square kilometres and 124 square kilometres respectively. there and then 5,000 metres of surface drilling at Blackdome. “The
The 30 kilometres between them is bridged by a permitted connector first resource recalculation won’t be done until December of this year,”
road. Blackdome is a former producing mine—yielding 225,000 ounces Ferris says. “Probably second quarter of next year for prefeasibility, and
gold between 1986 and 1989—with a current resource estimate of probably shortly thereafter we’ll be doing production decisions.”
52,600 ounces gold indicated and 25,900 ounces inferred. However,
it is Blackdome’s fully permitted, 300-tonne-per-day mill that really Should the right offer come along, Ferris doesn’t dismiss the possibility
excites Ferris. “It’s in excellent shape,” he says, “and could be ready for of accepting it, but he concludes, “Longer term, as the resource grows
production in about four months’ time at a cost of about $2 million. And and the properties double the capacity, we’d like to become an interme-
we’re starting up under the Mines Act in BC, so we don’t have to go diate producer and a very aggressive exploration company.”
through an environmental review.”
Sona Resources has $2.7 million cash on hand and 22 million shares
Ferris believes Sona’s “real potential” is at Elizabeth. It was explored outstanding. Shares currently trade at $1, halfway between the 52-
“
extensively before Sona bought it in 2002. And it’s in a good neigh- week high of $1.65 and the 52-week low of $0.44.
bourhood, 25 kilometres north of the Bralorne camp, which produced
over four million ounces of gold between 1921 and 1971. According
to Ferris, “Elizabeth has pretty much the same geological setting and
mineralization type. It has never been mined, and it’s completely wide We’re starting up under the Mines
open.”
Act in BC, so we don’t have to go
Elizabeth currently has an inferred resource estimate of 206,000 through an environmental review
ounces gold. Ferris cautions, however, “That was calculated in 2009
and does not include a number of drill intercepts from last year, some – Nick Ferris
of which were really spectacular results. The resource, theoretically, is
a bit bigger than that. We think we can increase it fairly rapidly and, as
we begin our underground development, it will grow even faster.”
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