This technical report describes the Lost Sheep Property, a fluorite mining property in Juab County, Utah, including its historical production, proposed exploration programme, and processing infrastructure.
Report context
This NI 43-101 technical report was prepared for Lithium Energy Products, a British Columbia company trading on the Venture Exchange as LEP.V, and is dated 30 June 2019. The Lost Sheep Property, totalling 5.856 km², is located in the Spor Mountain area, Juab County, Utah, approximately 214 km south-west of Salt Lake City. The report covers regional and local geology, mineralisation, exploration history, and proposes an exploration programme and budget for fluorite exploration and development on the property.
Processing route
Delta warehouse and bagging plant
The property acquisition includes a nine-acre plant site by a Union Pacific railroad siding in Delta, Juab County, Utah. On Sugar Factory Row, a three-port warehouse with a processing plant for the mining operation is located in the SW.NW. and NW.SW. section 6, T.17S., R.6W., SLBM, Delta. The property consists of parcel D3864-3-1 (registered in the names of joint tenants Michael and Gail Provstgaard [2/3] and Steven Long [1/3]) and parcels D3864-3, D3864-4 and D3864-7 registered in the names of Michael Provstgaard and Gail Provstgaard (deceased). On privately held land, these four parcels total 8.84 acres (3.5 hectares). Taxes on these parcels were current and paid to 2017. The assessed valuation of the parcels totals $20,853 in land and $77,950 in buildings. In 2016, taxes on all these parcels and improvements totalled $1,217.32.
Sited at the three-port warehouse is a small bagging plant in which 50 pound sacks of beneficiated fluorite are prepared for shipping. The Delta warehouse contains a final sorting system and bagging equipment, with bags approximately 50 lb. The author's 2019 visit verified the same set-up.
On-site facilities and equipment
The following on-site facilities and equipment related to the Lost Sheep mine property were listed. All or some may be included in the final acquisition agreement. The author visited the warehouse but did not inspect all of the items and cannot verify the condition or suitability of any of the following:
- Powder magazine
- Trailer
- Hoist building
- Tool shed
- Head frame
- Bus (storage)
- Cabin
- Shipping container
- Dried product storage building
- Air compressor/generator building
- Drying shed/equipment storage building
- Mobile crushing, screening and drying equipment
- Welded pipe gate
- Wire rope gate
- Horse corral
- Jaw crusher and ore bin (not used recently)
- Ore bin
Proposed exploration and development
A programme of exploration and development is recommended, including advancing development of the Little Giant Pipe at the Lost Sheep Mine, by surface drilling and underground development with continuation of historic adit work. Exploration should cover a re-assessment of the geology on all the properties as there was a lack of systematic work over the past 60 years. Geological mapping and prospecting are recommended, with follow-up shallow drilling of prospects be they fluorite showings or deeper diamond drilling of potentially buried targets. A budget of US$669,000 is proposed for future, near-term exploration, drilling, drive and adit development.
Historical mining and processing
Fluorite mining dates back to 1943, with over 350,000 tons of ore shipped from 29 deposits, with the vast majority from the Lost Sheep Mine (260,000 tons). The Lost Sheep Mine is the only remaining fluorite producer in the District. Mined material was characteristically described as high grade, with low impurities, and was favoured by steel mills for these reasons. Over 90% of extraction across Spor Mountain came from mineralised brecciated pipes located within or adjacent to faults and shear zones, and often with a spatial relationship to Tertiary rhyolitic to rhyodacitic intrusions and breccias.
Key reported parameters
| Parameter | Value | Basis |
|---|---|---|
| Property area | 5.856 km² | Design |
| Total mineral claims | 67 | Design |
| Historic fluorite ore shipped (entire district) | Over 350,000 tons | Historical operating data |
| Historic ore shipped from Lost Sheep Mine | 260,000 tons | Historical operating data |
| Original claims purchase price | US$1 million | Design |
| Purchase price payment terms | 9% of average monthly sales from fluorspar materials | Design |
| Proposed exploration budget | US$669,000 | Proposed design |
| Number of historic mining deposits in district | 29 | Historical operating data |
| Delta warehouse property area | 8.84 acres (3.5 hectares) | Design |
| Delta warehouse assessed land value | $20,853 | Design |
| Delta warehouse assessed buildings value | $77,950 | Design |
| Delta warehouse annual tax (2016) | $1,217.32 | Design |
| Bag size at bagging plant | 50 lb | Design |
Project website: https://www.aresmining.com/lost-sheep-mine
Technical qualifications
This report was prepared according to the specifications outlined in Form 43-101F1 for the Standards of Disclosure for Minerals Deposits, National Instrument 43-101. Any mineral resources that were sourced and reviewed by the author are for historic purposes only and do not meet the requirements of NI 43-101. The author has not independently verified ownership or mineral title beyond information that has been provided by the Issuer. The property description presented in this report is not intended to represent a legal or any other opinion as to title or current ownership.
Source: Technical Report on the Lost Sheep Property, Utah, dated 30 June 2019, prepared for Lithium Energy Products, Sections 1, 2, 4, 13, 16, 17, 18, 26.
