The Duffy area is located in the northeastern part of the Turnagain ultramafic complex approximately 0.5-kilometre northeast of the Horsetrail nickel deposit. It was intruded in the Early Jurassic (and earlier(?)) into Upper Paleozoic (?) and/or Triassic (?) metavolcanic and metasedimentary rocks of the Quesnel Terrane. It is in faulted contact on the east and north with slate and phyllite of the Paleozoic Road River Group (Ancestral North America).

Mineralization lies 500 metres northeast of the Horsetrail Zone and consists of disseminated sulphides like those within the Horsetrail Zone, which are mainly pyrrhotite and pentlandite. The Duffy Zone is 300 metres in diameter, lies 70 metres below the surface topography, does not crop out and was discovered by exploration drilling in 2006. The zone has been tested by a total of 11 drillholes in 2006 and 2007. Serpentized dunite was reported in 2007 drillholes.

One of the most significant intersections from 2006 was 0.26 per cent total nickel and 0.014 cobalt over 96 metres, from 144 to 240 metres, in hole 06-134 (including 0.32 per cent nickel and 0.014 cobalt over 20 metres, from 184 to 204 metres) (Press Release, Hard Creek Nickel Corp., January 10, 2007).

Work History

In 2006, 8 core holes were drilled Hard Creek Nickel Corp. into the newly discovered Duffy zone (Press Release, Hard Creek Nickel Corp., January 10, 2007). The holes were drilled to test the eastern contact of the Turnagain ultramafic complex and targeted coincident geophysical and geochemical anomalies. Seven holes intersected nickel mineralization.

In 2007, Hard Creek Nickel drilled 3 holes (07-168, 07-194 and 07-200) in order to test for extensions to Duffy Zone mineralization discovered in the 2006 drilling campaign (Assessment Report 29748). Holes 07-168 and 07-194 were successful in extending mineralization to the north and to the west, however, hole 07-200 failed to extend Duffy Zone mineralization to the south (Assessment Report 29748). Duffy Zone mineralization appears to trend in a northeasterly direction.

By 2020, the Duffy occurrence/zone was incorporated into the greater Turnagain Nickel (MINFILE 104I 119) project with its mineral resources incorporated into the projects with a smaller and separate openpit proposed. Refer to the Turnagain Nickel occurrence (MINFILE 104I 119) for further information.