Exploring for tantalum.

• Author: GOULIQUER, DIANNE

The search is on for tantalum in northwestern Ontario, and at least one junior exploration company is reporting "encouraging" results.

Avalon Ventures is currently undertaking a $1-million diamond-drilling program on its Lilypad Lakes property located 150 kilometres northeast of Pickle Lake, Ont. The tantalum-cesium project consists of 14 claims covering a field of rare metal pegmatites.

"(The drilling program) will be ongoing until August," says Ian Campbell, Avalon's vice-president of exploration. "we're currently doing diamond drilling at 3,000 metres in about 13 holes. We're very encouraged by the results to date."

The Lilypad Lakes area saw previous exploration activity in the 1950a, when Standard Lithium Corp. was searching for lithium. Between 1979. and 1981, the area was explored for tantalum by Tantalum Mining Corp. of Canada (Tanco).

Standard drilled at least a dozen holes totaling 968 metres in two targets, but the company did not assay for tantalum or cesium.

Tanco carried out geophysical surveys and lithogeo-chemical sampling results in the identification of 10 tantalum targets. The company did not assay for cesium, rubidium or lithium.

In 1999, Avalon, through an initial reconnaissance mapping and sampling program, confirmed the presence of economically significant tantalum mineralization at several locations, on the property and also discovered high-grade cesium mineralization in association with the tantalum.

Tantalum, Campbell says, is currently in high demand around the world, particularly by the electronics industry. It is used to make electronic...