Rainmaker Resources Ltd. (TSX-V:RMG) is pleased to announce that it has entered into a binding Letter Agreement with Arkansas Silica LLC to acquire an Option to Purchase the 304-acre Bray Frac Sand property, located in NE Arkansas. ASL has entered into an Option to Purchase Agreement with the landowners, dated May 30, 2014. This Option gives ASL the right to purchase the property outright for US$1,100,000 on or before January 5, 2015.
Highly encouraging results have been received from testing on sand samples obtained during a preliminary test drill program.
Prior to negotiating the terms, Company management and technical representatives visited the property on several occasions to test and sample the property. This included a two day drill program, using an inexpensive water well rig, to drill three test holes. The three drill holes demonstrated sand thicknesses of 80 ft., greater than 90ft. and greater than 120 ft. respectively. Analytical work on two composite samples yielded results that were better than the industry standard recommended values for all parameters. Details are presented below.
The Company will now commence a comprehensive sonic drill program with the objective of completing an NI 43-101 compliant resource estimate.
Test Drilling:
The drilling consisted of three mud-rotary holes to test the thickness of the sand formation, and to collect sand material for subsequent testing. The three holes were all collared in sand, and intersected sand as follows:
Hole B-1 depth to base of sand 80 feet
Hole B-2 hole stopped at 120 feet, still in sand
Hole B-3 lost circulation at 100 feet, still in sand at 90 feet.
Two composite sand samples were prepared from the drill cuttings, and were submitted to Stim-Lab, Inc in Duncan, Oklahoma. The samples were dried, weighed and washed through a 200 mesh screen. The two composites were then tested for sphericity, roundness, acid solubility, bulk density, apparent density and crush resistance (K-value). The procedures followed were as stated in ISO 13503-2:2006/API RP19C:2008.
The sieve test yielded the following results:
Percentage of sand within size fraction
Size fraction Composite 1 Composite 2
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20/40 6.1 5.7
30/50 28.4 26.2
40/70 58.0 56.2
70/140 33.0 35.3
Note – these percentages add up to more than 100% because the ranges of the size fractions overlap.
It was decided that the full testing would proceed on the 30/50 size for Composite 1, and on the 40/70 size for Composite 2. Results as are follows:
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API test
results
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Comp 1 Comp 2
30/50 size 40/70 size Notes
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Sphericity 0.8 0.7 minimum recommended value = 0.6
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Roundness 0.7 0.7 minimum recommended value = 0.6
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Acid maximum recommended value for
solubility 1.45% 1.30% 30/50 = 2.0%, for 40/70 = 3.0%
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Bulk density 1.45 g/cm3 1.42 g/cm3
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Apparent
density 2.63 g/cm3 2.64 g/cm3
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highest stress value generating no
K-value 6K 8K more than 10% crushed material
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Director of Rainmaker, Alan Young, P.Eng, commented, “This sand is an excellent quality frac sand that exceeds all the key attributes as outlined by the ISO/API standards referenced above, for the specified sand sizes. These attributes will make the sand a solid technical contender for use in either US or Canadian fracture stimulation applications. We are confident that the additional delineation wells will serve to prove up the extent and potential value of the play.”
Letter Agreement:
ASL will assign its interest in and to the Option in consideration of payment of $175,000 and the issuance of 2,500,000 shares of Rainmaker’s capital stock, payable in five installments over a four year period from the effective date of the agreement. In addition, Rainmaker will pay ASL a royalty of $1.00 per short ton of frac sand extracted, processed, sold and delivered.
Bray Property:
The Bray Frac Sand property is located in Izard County, north-central Arkansas, and has excellent access from State highways. The property is approximately 30 miles north of the city of Batesville, AR. Rail access is available in Batesville, with several potential loading sites present. The currently operating Bluebird Sand LLC frac sand operation is located approximately 5 miles southwest of the Bray property.
The property is underlain by the St Peter Sandstone, of Ordovician age, and is homogeneous pure quartz sand. The St Peter sandstone (also known as the Ottawa sand in commercial operations) is considered to be a major source of frac sand within the United States, especially in Wisconsin. The Arkansas Geological Survey reports that in the nearby Mt. Pleasant area the sand ranges from 135 – 150 feet in thickness. On the Bray property, drilling by Rainmaker has demonstrated thicknesses in excess of 120 feet. Bluebird Sand LLC produces frac sand from the same formation.
Rainmaker President and CEO, Rick Patmore commented, “The Bray Frac Sand property is ideally situated to service the Eagle Ford, Fayetteville and New Albany shale plays. The Ottawa sands are of a top pedigree of frac sand in this industry. We look forward to briskly moving this project toward development for the benefit of all shareholders. With Mexico now lifting their moratoriums this is another avenue Rainmaker could have for a client base. We are very excited about this opportunity as we believe that the size of this property could turn Rainmaker into a real contender in this arena for years to come.”
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