Aben Resources CEO: We’re Eager to Duplicate Forrest Kerr Drill Results

Aben Resources (TSXV:ABN,OTCQB:ABNAF,FWB:E2L2) CEO James Pettit believes that the company can duplicate its previous drill results at the Forrest Kerr project in British Columbia’s Golden Triangle.

After phenomenal drill results in the past two drill seasons, Aben Resources is looking to replicate its past successes at Forrest Kerr. In 2017 and 2018, the company was able to intersect over 30 grams per tonne (g/t) gold in the first hole of the season. While the company has not encountered those same results so far, Pettit believes that the results will turn up sooner rather than later as drilling continues.

So far, Aben Resources has recovered broad low-grade gold/copper intersections rather than the short intersections of high-grade mineralization it was expecting. Most of the intercepts recovered to date are grading between 1 and 2.5 g/t gold, pointing towards the need to vector into a feeder system.

Pettit also mentioned that the company is looking for new projects to allow it to drill during the winter. The Chico project has previously fulfilled this desire, but since Aben Resources pulled out of the project, Pettit has been looking for new opportunities. Pettit commented that the company could revisit the project in the future as the First Nations community wants the project to move forward.

Below is a transcript of our interview with Aben Resources CEO James Pettit. It has been edited for clarity and brevity.

Investing News Network: Please give our investor audience an overview of Aben Resources and its flagship Forrest Kerr project in British Columbia’s Golden Triangle.

Aben Resources CEO James Pettit: Aben Resources is a junior resource company that is strictly focused on gold exploration. Our flagship property is the Forrest Kerr project in Northwestern British Columbia in the Golden Triangle. The Golden Triangle is a great place for gold, silver and copper discoveries. Very high grades usually come out of the region and we acquired Forrest Kerr because of this over three and a half years ago. We took three large properties and put them together. The properties all lie along the Kerr fault, which is believed to be the major control feature for the area.

INN: Please tell us about your recent exploration work at Forrest Kerr.

JP: We got off to a great start in the first couple of years. We drilled nine holes in the North Boundary zone for the first time and hit some tremendous gold grades right out of the gate. Three of the holes hit high-grade gold, up to 30 g/t. Last year the same thing happened. Our first hole returned three fantastic intersections. Our best intersection in that hole was 10 meters grading 38 g/t gold. The market loved it. If you looked at our chart, it went up very quickly as we drilled through the summer. The chart settled back down in the fall before it built again.

This year, we didn’t see the big jump in our stock price after we released our initial results because they didn’t match what we got in previous years. We’re extending the high-grade Forrest Kerr area, which resides in the North Boundary zone. We’ve extended this area to the south, and we’re drilling longer, deeper holes that tie into the geophysics that we’ve mapped. We’re gaining a better understanding of the high-grade mineralization at the North Boundary zone. It’s somewhat discontinuous, and I think as we learn more about the structural features and orientation, we’ll get better at finding the mineralization.

As we move south, we’re hitting lower grades, which is good. Every hole is hitting mineralization, and we’ve only released the results for three holes. We’re only through one hole out of 20, so there will be more to report. We’ll be releasing assay results probably into November as the labs are backed up.

Most of our drilling is further to the south, and we’re finding new alterations and mineralization. It’s looking good, but we haven’t hit those 30 g/t gold intersections. We’re coming up with a lot more copper and broad low-grade intersections rather than short intersections of high-grade mineralization. We’re getting 50 to 100 meter intersections that grade between 1 and 2.5 g/t gold. It looks like we may have bulk tonnage potential here. It’s an interesting place that we’ll be drilling until the end of the month.

INN: How is work on the Justin project progressing?

JP: We finished a quick four hole drill program at the Justin project at the end of June. The project is located in the Yukon along the border with the Northwest Territories, which sits to the east. We’re also next to Golden Predator Mining’s (TSXV:GPY,OTCQX:NTGSF) 3 Aces project.

Over the last couple of years, we’ve completed some soil sampling and uncovered a substantial coarse-grained gold-in-soil anomaly. We trenched that area and found that it was similar to the 3 Aces orogenic environment. It was much older than what we discovered in 2012, which hinted at a younger intrusion-related gold system. We thought that the enrichment was moving from the older system into the younger.

We had trouble with the RAB drill and instead trenched to get in 35 meters above the older formation. Then we ran into some water issues, which affects how the percussion drill works. You don’t want water; you want it dry. This may have affected our sampling and assays. When we were diamond drilling, one of the holes gave us exactly what we wanted.

The other three holes — not so much. We came up with stuff that only a geologist would love. The market was disappointed, but we’re not giving up. We’re going to look at what happened and what we did. We only gave the program 30 days, and it was over quickly. The analysis came out slowly, and the results were less than stellar. Either way, the Forrest Kerr project is what has our attention right now.

INN: How has the recent rise in gold prices affected Aben Resources’ operations?

JP: Between May and now, gold prices have gone up C$300, which is a spectacular increase. Analysts are predicting that it’ll go higher, which would be great. As for our operations, the prices don’t change anything. We’re in an area where the potential to hit high-grade gold is substantial.

The market and investors love it when you hit high grade, and analysts are more enthused when you have a broader range. It looks like we may have both at Forrest Kerr. This also heightens a retail investor’s awareness and expectations because we’re in a strong gold market.

Why is the stock going the other way? Well, we didn’t repeat what we did over the last couple of years. The first hole was a barn burner. We still got some activity off of other people’s news because we have an area play up there. We’ll have more news coming, and I honestly think that the year will end well.

INN: What’s next for Aben Resources, and how does that fit into the company’s long-term goals?

JP: We’re going to finish this season and then we’re going to study, which is what we usually do in the off season. We are actively looking for more projects that will allow us to drill in the winter, which is where the Chico project came in before we pulled out of the project. We may revisit that project in the future as the First Nations community wants us back, but moving forward, our energy is focused on gold. We have a few things in the pipeline that we’re analyzing, and I think there’s a good future here.

This interview is sponsored by Aben Resources (TSXV:ABN,OTCQB:ABNAF,FWB:E2L2). This interview provides information which was sourced by the Investing News Network (INN) and approved by Aben Resources in order to help investors learn more about the company. Aben Resources is a client of INN. The company’s campaign fees pay for INN to create and update this interview.

INN does not provide investment advice and the information on this profile should not be considered a recommendation to buy or sell any security. INN does not endorse or recommend the business, products, services or securities of any company profiled.

The information contained here is for information purposes only and is not to be construed as an offer or solicitation for the sale or purchase of securities. Readers should conduct their own research for all information publicly available concerning the company. Prior to making any investment decision, it is recommended that readers consult directly with Aben Resources and seek advice from a qualified investment advisor.

This interview may contain forward-looking statements including but not limited to comments regarding the timing and content of upcoming work programs, receipt of property titles, etc. Forward-looking statements address future events and conditions and therefore involve inherent risks and uncertainties. Actual results may differ materially from those currently anticipated in such statements. The issuer relies upon litigation protection for forward-looking statements. Investing in companies comes with uncertainties as market values can fluctuate.