By FIONA ROTHERHAM
Canadian minerals explorer Anzex Resources has finally been granted access by the Department of Conservation to prospect for platinum group metals on northern Stewart Island.
Platinum and palladium are fetching high prices and are in demand for high-tech industrial applications.
Anzex has held a prospecting permit for the Anglem complex in northern Stewart Island for more than a year. It has been awaiting DoC approval of its exploration programme, which will now start within a few weeks.
DoC said the two-year access agreement with Anzex was "fairly prescriptive" with limits on the amount of samples. The environment had to be unchanged.
The rising price of platinum - to around $US550 an ounce - has spurred several mining companies to seek permits to explore for platinum metals in the South Island.
Anzex Resources has spent three years exploring most of New Zealand's platinum prospects.
The Anglem complex has never undergone a detailed exploration programme, nor ever been drilled.
Although other miners have complained of access problems on the DoC estate, Anzex said it was always confident it would gain access to Anglem because of its track record drilling in Southland's Longwoods Ranges in 1998.
The Longwoods have long been recognised as a source of alluvial platinum, yet neither of the key indicators - chromite or nickel - have been found in outcrop there.
Anzex has narrowed its exploration to 80 kilometres further south on Stewart Island where relatively high assays of both nickel and chromite have been recorded, along with alluvial platinum.
Chromite and nickel are signature indicators of platinum-bearing zones.
Platinum prospect in deep south
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