The United Kingdom may have 115 mining companies listed on AIM and it may play host to the head offices of some of the world's largest mining companies, but it no longer ranks among the world leaders in terms of domestic mine production. Alba Minerals is planning to remedy that, in some small part, with the development of a nickel-copper-PGE project in Scotland. Alba is the holding company of Aurum Mineral Resources (AMR), a private mineral exploration company that was incorporated in Ireland in June 2003.

Alba has recently entered into a joint venture with Inco Europe, under which Inco has the right and option to earn a 60% interest in Alba's Arthrath project by funding £2.5 million (US$4.7 million) over a four-year period.

Alba listed on AIM on April 4 2005 (AIM ticker symbol ALBA, market capitalisation £6 million or US$11 million) and is peopled with a young team. The exploration director, Wilson Robb has a track record in developing exploration programmes as does Technical Director, Dr. Sandy Archibald. The chairman and CEO, Lance O'Neill and Nigel Duxbury, come from the world of finance. Alba has assets in Scotland, Ireland and Scandinavia and is targeting the Appalachian-Caledonide trend, focusing on the search of gold and nickel, copper, cobalt and the platinum group elements.

The corporate mission is to research and develop opportunities for potential new prospects and licences and to enter into joint ventures where appropriate. The company currently has seven exploration targets of which four are in Scotland and three in Ireland. These are at different stages of development from conceptual exploration targets to more advanced drill ready projects. Six are gold prospects, but the most advanced project is the Arthrath, which is an advanced drilling target with nickel-copper mineralisation analogous to that of Inco's Voisey's Bay in Labrador, Canada. The joint venture with Inco is thus particularly apposite. At a similar stage of development is the Loch Tay mesothermal lode-gold project. Both have been tested by previous explorers and are believed to have significant potential.

Arthrath is located roughly thirty kilometres to the north of Aberdeen in the east of Scotland. A previous limited drilling programme (36 holes) by Exploration Ventures (a joint venture between Rio Tinto – then RTZ – and Consolidated Gold Fields) intersected weakly mineralised intervals of nickel-copper sulphides over an extensive area, near to surface. In one hole, for example Rio's reported 32 metres averaging 0.34% nickel and 0.28% copper from 19.6 metres depth. Another intersection amounts to 150.5 metres at 0.12% nickel and 0.15% copper, with higher grades including 0.5% nickel and o.3% copper over 10.0 metres for a depth of 102 metres. A further section returned 1.42% nickel and 0.9% copper over 0.5 metres from a depth of 134 metres. A 7.8 metre intersection returned 0.51% nickel, 0.54% copper, 0.033% cobalt with 169 parts per billion platinum, palladium and gold, plus 4.1 g/t silver from a depth of 103.2 metres. Further drilling suggests continuity and down-dip extension of the mineralisation to at least 350 metres from the surface and the deposit is open at depth.

Recent drilling by Alba has intersected extensive near-surface, disseminated magmatic nickel-copper sulphide mineralisation, including 109.7 metres at 0.26% nickel, 0.29% copper and 0.019% cobalt from 17.3 metres. This is comparable with other recently reported nickel. Alba believes that such grades over extensive intervals (of up to 170 metres) indicate the likelihood of a large system that may contain higher-grade, potentially economic zones. Mineralisation is present over a strike-length of 4.5 kilometres.

The deposit has what the company describes as important affinities with Voisey's Bay and Alba therefore intends to use the interpretation techniques that were applied in the exploration of Voisey's Bay and which are substantially different from previous techniques when it comes to the interpretation of mineralisation controls for magmatic deposits.

The programmes will include deep-penetrating, large-loop ground electro-magnetic geophysical surveying and specialised partial leach shallow soil sampling techniques.

As well as the four-year £2.5 million programme, Inco can earn a further 10% by conducting a feasibility study at its own expense. If Inco does exercise this option then either party may maintain its interest in the joint venture by contributing according to its participating interest in the venture. Alternatively either party could elect to dilute its interest to 10%, at which point the interest would convert to a 10% Net Smelter Return royalty.

While this is still very early stage, the presence of Inco makes a tangible difference and it will be interesting to monitor the progress of this programme.