Mining group Minco gained Monday on news it started drilling for manganese deposits at the newly optioned Woodstock project in New Brunswick, Canada.

Shares were up 5.0% to 5.25p as Minco kicked off work across an area of 4,000 metres in 15 drill holes focused on the Plymouth deposit on the Woodstock property.

The programme is expected to take an estimated six weeks to complete.

It comes after Minco entered into an option agreement with Buchans Minerals Corp. last October to explore the Woodstock property.

Under the terms of option agreement Minco has the right to earn up to a 50% interest in the Woodstock project.

In the first stage, Minco has agreed to spend $1.25m on exploration and resource definition drilling and metallurgical test work to assess an inferred mineral resource at the Plymouth deposit on the area.

The property hosts three deposits of sediment-hosted manganese-iron mineralisation which include the Plymouth and two Hartford deposits, located five kilometres west of Woodstock.

The Plymouth deposit is estimated to include a historic, uncategorised resource estimate of 46.5m tonnes averaging 10.9% manganese and 13.3% iron.

In 2011 Buchans Minerals completed a drilling five holes that successfully intersected manganese mineralisation at the Plymouth deposit.

Minco said its drilling programme is designed to confirm and extend the mineralisation and assess the grade and continuity.

RD

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