Great Western Minerals Group Provides Update on Steenkampskraal Rare Earth Drill Program
SASKATOON, SASKATCHEWAN -- (Marketwire) -- 11/29/11 -- Great Western Minerals Group Ltd. (TSX VENTURE: GWG) (OTCQX: GWMGF) ('GWMG' or the 'Company') is pleased to provide a progress report on the Company's drill program at its Steenkampskraal rare earth mine site in South Africa.
26 coreholes totaling 2,307 meters have been completed, including 19 holes dedicated to metallurgical mini-bulk sampling and 7 for geological resource delineation.
Jim Engdahl, President and Chief Executive Officer of GWMG stated, 'Our drilling and sampling program will continue to mid-December, 2011. This moves us toward completion of two goals at Steenkampskraal - first, to provide information in support of a fully compliant National Instrument 43-101 resource estimate report and second, to expand the resources at Steenkampskraal through testing the down-dip extension of the main structure as well as investigation of the encasing host rock mineralization.'
For metallurgical testing, clusters of drillholes with a variety of bearings and inclinations were situated around a central resource definition corehole on selected locations to collect representative samples of monazite mineralization. Intersections of mineralization in metallurgical holes ranged from a few centimeters to 3.55 meters along core length. These holes will be logged in detail, measured for bulk density, and sampled for assay. In addition, a representative selection of the resource definition core has been identified and sampled for ongoing mineralogical and textural studies. Resource definition holes encountered a comparable range of true vein thicknesses,
The second major objective of the drill program is the step-out designed to test the on-strike and down-dip extension of rare earth mineralization of the Steenkampskraal deposit. Thus far, approximately 185 kilograms, out of a proposed 600 kilograms, of underground monazite sample has been collected by underground channel sampling. Upon completion, this material will be submitted for characterization studies.
Mintek of Johannesburg, South Africa has been selected to conduct the metallurgical characterization necessary for development of design criteria for ore beneficiation and rare earth extraction at Steenkampskraal. Approximately 630 kilograms of mini-bulk metallurgical sample from the surface tailings dam and 730 kilograms from the rock dump were submitted to Mintek earlier this month.
As well, a total of 276 samples were collected by shallow tube sampling on a 10 meter grid pattern covering the historic tailings dam onsite. Assay samples from the resource definition coreholes will continue to be collected through to mid-December. All assay results will be reported as they are received from the laboratory with the priority use of the data being for incorporation into the metallurgical characterization of the potential ore, as well as resource modeling report, which is contracted to SRK Consulting South Africa.
John Pearson, MSc, P.Geo, Vice-President Exploration for GWMG, is the Qualified Person responsible for reviewing the contents of this news release.
Great Western Minerals Group Ltd. is an integrated Rare Earths processor. Its specialty alloys are used in the battery, magnet and aerospace industries. Produced at the Company's wholly owned subsidiaries Less Common Metals Limited in Birkenhead, U.K. and Great Western Technologies Inc. in Troy, Michigan, these alloys contain aluminium, nickel, cobalt and Rare Earth Elements. As part of the Company's vertical integration strategy, GWMG also holds 100% equity ownership in Rare Earth Extraction Co. Limited, which owns a 74% equity interest in the Steenkampskraal Mine. In addition to an exploration program at Steenkampskraal, GWMG also holds interests in four active Rare Earth exploration and development properties in North America.
Certain information set out in this News Release constitutes forward-looking information. Forward-looking statements (often, but not always, identified by the use of words such as 'expect', 'may', 'could', 'anticipate' or 'will' and similar expressions) may describe expectations, opinions or guidance that are not statements of fact and which may be based upon information provided by third parties. Forward-looking statements are based upon the opinions, expectations and estimates of management of GWMG as at the date the statements are made and are subject to a variety of known and unknown risks and uncertainties and other factors that could cause actual events or outcomes to differ materially from those anticipated or implied by such forward-looking statements. Those factors include, but are not limited to refurbishment activities and reliance on third parties to meet projected timelines, the results of the exploration program at Steenkampskraal, a resource estimate and commencement of production at Steenkampskraal, satisfaction of the conditions precedent with respect to GWMG's offtake agreement, receipt of all required approvals (including those relating to the commencement of production at the Steenkampskraal mine) and risks, uncertainties and other factors that are beyond the control of GWMG, risks associated with the industry in general, commodity prices and exchange rate changes, operational risks associated with exploration, development and production operations, delays or changes in plans, risks associated with the uncertainty of reserve or resource estimates, health and safety risks and the uncertainty of estimates and projections of production, costs and expenses. In light of the risks and uncertainties associated with forward-looking statements, readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance upon forward-looking information. Although GWMG believes that the expectations reflected in the forward-looking statements set out in this press release or incorporated herein by reference are reasonable, it can give no assurance that such expectations will prove to have been correct. The forward-looking statements of GWMG contained in this News Release, or incorporated herein by reference, are expressly qualified, in their entirety, by this cautionary statement and the risk factors contained in GWMG's current annual information form available at www.sedar.com.
CUSIP: 39141Y 10 3
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Contacts:
Great Western Minerals Group Ltd.
Dwight Percy
Manager of Investor Relations
(306) 659-4500
info@gwmg.ca
www.gwmg.ca
Great Western Minerals Group Ltd.
219 Robin Crescent
Saskatoon, SK S7L 6M8