Great American Energy, Inc. is a publicly traded (OTCBB: SRBL) mineral exploration and development company focused on supporting America's growing clean energy and clean tech industries.
Based in Denver, Colorado, Great American Energy is dedicated to responsibly identifying, acquiring and developing mineral assets in America and US-friendly countries.
The Company's portfolio of projects currently targets lithium and rare earth element (REE) production, both of which are essential to America's clean energy and clean tech industries.
Leading the Company is a management team that represents the core set of experience and connections required for the rapid startup and growth of an emerging energy-related venture.
Great American Energy has an option to acquire a 100% interest* in the Big Smoky Valley (BSV) lithium property. The property represents 48 unpatented placer mining claims comprising ~7,680 acres (~3,108 hectares) in and around Esmeralda County, Nevada.
The BSV property lies halfway between Reno and Las Vegas, and is adjacent to Clayton Valley's lithium deposit, which may exceed 700 million kg (Source: Price/Lechler report).1 The Clayton Valley brines have some of the highest lithium content of brines anywhere in the world.
It is also adjacent to America's only producing lithium mine, Chemetall Foote's (subsidiary of Rockwood Holdings, Inc. | NYSE:ROC | Market Cap: $3.19B) Silver Peak Mine in Clayton Valley.
The Silver Peak Mine has been producing for 40+ years at a rate of ~5,000 lithium carbonate equivalent (LCE) tonnes per year.1
The lithium-bearing rhyolites (i.e., fine-grained extrusive volcanic rock) contained in the surrounding playa floor are among the richest in the world according to US Geological Survey (USGS) information.1
In September 2009, the private geotechnical consulting firm Coast Mountain Geological Ltd (CMG) prepared a National Instrument 43-101 compliant technical report on what is now the Company's BSV lithium property.
The CMG report found similar geology to that of the Silver Peak Mine in the adjoining Clayton Valley, and recommends a non-contingent multi-staged program be carried out to test the resource potential of the BSV property.2
Great American Energy is currently developing an initial exploration plan.
Lithium exploration work will include reconnaissance and grid sampling along with geophysics surveys designed to identify drilling targets and inform hydrogeological tests for the purpose of resource estimation.
The Silver Peak Mine and the surrounding area, including the Big Smoky Valley, are located in what is geologically referred to as the Basin and Range Province, which extends from southern Oregon to Mexico.
In the 1970s and 1980s, the USGS carried out a series of reconnaissance programs in the region, which included sampling and drilling programs conducted in several valleys including 2 holes in Big Smoky Valley.
Both holes intersected geochemically anomalous concentrations of lithium in water and sediments while yielding lithium values averaging 160 ppm. One of those holes is located on the Company's BSV property.
A gravity survey was also completed through Clayton Valley and the saddle connecting Big Smoky Valley.
Another more extensive gravity survey was subsequently conducted in Big Smoky Valley for the US military.
The regional gravity surveys confirmed the existence of various structures that may have created topography favorable for evaporite accumulation and subsequent traps, which potentially could host mineral rich brines.2
In addition to its proximity to Clayton Valley's lithium deposit and the producing Silver Peak Mine, the Big Smoky Valley property represents several additional strategic location advantages:
Great American Energy has an option to acquire an undivided 60% interest** in the Bear Creek Rare Earth Property. The property consists of 10 mining claims totaling ~7,311 acres (~2,959 hectares) a few miles northeast of the mining community of Trail, British Columbia (BC), Canada.
The option agreement also identifies an Area of Mutual Interest encompassing all mining claims and property within a ~12.4-mile (20-km) radius of the property.
According to a report by Dr. Stewart A. Jackson, PhD, P, GeoI. (Feb. 2011), the Bear Creek Property contains potential for significant resources of rare earth elements (REEs) and may contain rare earth oxides.3
The Company feels that the potential in-place value of REEs and other rare elements is sufficient to warrant examining the possibility of developing a large-scale open-pit mining operation, dependent on a process being developed to concentrate the rare earth minerals.
As such, the Company is currently developing a two-phase evaluation program plan designed to better determine the mineral and economic potential of the property.
Samples collected from 32 locations on the Bear Creek property provided indications of four elements as major potential contributors to value: Scandium (4 g/t), Neodymium (33 g/t), Samarium (6 g/t) and Europium (1.78 g/t).
Lesser potential contributions are represented by Holmium (0.51 g/t), Gadolinium (5.5 g/t), Yttrium (17 g/t), and Ytterbium (1.5 g/t).
Levels indicated to date for Dysprosium (3.2 g/t), Erbium (1.5 g/t), Lutetium (0.22 g/t), Praseodymium (9 g/t) and Thulium (0.21 g/t) point to those elements potentially contributing to smaller extents.
The Jackson report notes that the REE values are based on surface samples only, and due to the type of deposit on the property, there is potential for higher grades at depth.
According to the report, the Bear Creek property warrants further work due to the geological formations in the area as well as the discovery of Carbonatite-affiliated rock type at two sites.
This type of carbonatized rock is possibly an epizonal intrusive with unlimited depth. The two discoveries cover an area of 100+ meters by 350+ meters each, and lie 2,000 meters apart with the obvious topographical formation connecting the two sites.
Further exploration of the area would focus on determining potential size and depth of the sites.
At presumed depth extent of 500 meters, the Jackson report suggested a tonnage in the order of 1 billion tonnes for the Bear Creek Property.
The suggested tonnage equates to substantial potential value even at a modest profit margin, and warrants considerable exploration effort to determine the possible presence of such a resource.3
The Company's exploration program will be designed to measure the distribution and amounts of the property's various rare earth elements in a three dimensional array.
Initial exploration activities will include a surface sampling program on both a grid and geological parameter basis, and a geophysical survey to indirectly map the variations with depth within the host rock.
The Bear Creek Property is located in rolling uplands a few miles northeast of the mining community of Trail.
Excellent infrastructure, full support services, accommodations and supplies exist at the entrance to the area just 3 miles (5 km) from the site. Abundant power and water are also available as needed.
The property also lies within what has been dubbed the Rocky Mountain Rare Metal Belt, which runs from southeast to northwest BC.4 In total, the BC Geological Survey has mapped 106 rare metal and/or REE occurrences in the province, most of which fall within the belt.5
*dependent on the Company making scheduled cash payments and funding improvement and mineral exploration projects on the property totaling an agreed upon dollar amount no later than July 1, 2015.
**dependent on the Company making scheduled cash payments and funding mineral exploration work on the property totaling an agreed upon dollar amount no later than April 30, 2015.
1. Big Smoky Valley Lithium Project executive summary, GeoXplor Corp.
2. Coast Mountain Geological Ltd., Canadian National Instrument 43-101 Report, Sept. 2009. (as cited in GeoXplor Corp. executive summary).
3. Bear Creek Rare Earth Project Report. Dr. Stewart A. Jackson, PhD, P, GeoI., Feb. 12, 2011.
4. Resource World Magazine, Aug. 2010.
5. BC Ministry of Energy and Mines website, July 4, 2012.
Great American Energy, Inc.
999 18th Street
Suite 3000
Denver, Colorado
80202
Tel: +1 303 242 5376
Fax: +1 303 993 1208
E-mail: info@gamericanenergy.com
INVESTOR RELATIONS
Phone: 1 800 673 5088
E-mail: ir@gamericanenergy.com
OTCBB: SRBL