The Pacific Sugar skarn prospect is located 7 kilometres south of Johanson Lake, on the north side of the east-west ridge that separates Darb and Kliyul creeks. The mineralization was discovered in the mid 1990s, and is about 1 kilometre west of the previously-known Kliyul skarn occurrence (MINFILE 094D 023). It is hosted by an assemblage of east-dipping limestones, calcareous siltstones and volcanic sandstones within the Upper Triassic Takla Group. Exploration work to date has outlined a magnetite-pyrite-epidote-garnet skarn unit that has an outcrop extent of about 40 metres by 100 metres, and is 3 to 6 metres thick (Assessment Report 23842). Mineralization consists of massive magnetite and pyrite containing disseminations, impregnations and clots of pyrrhotite and chalcopyrite, as well as malachite on fracture surfaces. Endoskarned diorite in the footwall of the unit is inferred to be the source of the skarn mineralization. The skarn was tested with 5 diamond drill holes, with a cumulative length of 154.8 metres, in 1996. Significant drill results include 0.21 per cent copper and 0.625 grams per tonne gold over 3.97 metres (EMPR Assessment Report 25099).

In 1992 Noranda carried out 1:5,000 scale geological and alteration mapping and in 1993, they drilled 6 reverse circulation holes on the Kliyul skarn zone (Assessment Report 23033) and followed up with an airborne magnetic, electromagnetic, and radiometric survey (Assessment Report 23379). This airborne survey also covered the Pacific Sugar occurrence and about 24 other occurrences.

In 1994, Noranda/Hemlo collected soil and rock samples and conducted a ground magnetics survey over their Joh property. The soils showed a 100 to 600 metre-wide, 1.7 kilometres long gold soil anomaly of greater than 50 parts per billion gold (Assessment Report 23842). In 1995, Hemlo extended the soil geochemistry grid and increased the sample density (to 50 metes by 100 metres), to better define the gold soil anomaly. It was noted that the anomaly was parallel to the Kliyul valley floor and a strong glacio-fluvial control of the anomaly was suspected (Assessment Report 23797).

In 1996, International Conquest Exploration drilled 5 short holes on the Pacific Sugar Zone (totaling 154.83 metres) just to the north of the current Kliyul property on their Joh claims. The best intersection graded 0.27 per cent copper and 0.54 gram per tonne gold across 9.4 metres (Assessment Report 25099).

Refer to Kliyul (094D 023) for related geological and work history information.