Silver Range Resources Announces 2012 Exploration and Drilling Plans for Silver Range and Mint Projects
VANCOUVER, BRITISH COLUMBIA -- (Marketwire) -- 06/06/12 -- Silver Range Resources Ltd. (TSX VENTURE: SNG)(TSX VENTURE: SNG.WT) ("Silver Range" or "the Company") is pleased to announce exploration and drilling plans for its wholly owned Silver Range and Mint Projects located in Yukon Territory. The 2012 exploration programs will utilize at least four drills to complete a minimum of 16,000 m of drilling at a total phase one cost of $10.2 million.
Drilling has commenced at the Silver Range Project and all drills are anticipated to be operating within two weeks. Details regarding the programs are summarized below.
2012 Exploration Summary
-- At the Silver Range Project, drilling will focus on the Hammer Zone
discovery and other high-grade silver-gold showings within the 17 km
long Mount Mye Trend. Eight rock samples collected along a 350 m strike
length of the Hammer Zone in late 2011 averaged 6,218 g/t silver (200
ounces per tonne silver) and 2.45 g/t gold.
-- Expansion drilling will also be carried out at the Keg Main Zone, where
bulk-tonnage, silver-polymetallic mineralization has been outlined along
an 850 m strike length and to vertical depths of 350 m. The mineralized
zone is open for extension in all directions. Several priority
IP/geophysical and/or soil geochemical targets in the vicinity of the
Keg Main Zone will be tested.
-- Multiple additional targets for high-grade or bulk-tonnage silver
mineralization throughout the Silver Range Project will be advanced to
drill readiness by systematic surface exploration. The project currently
hosts 17 silver-bearing mineralization zones plus 15 discrete soil
geochemical anomalies that await follow-up prospecting, mapping and
sampling.
-- At the Mint Project, a first-ever drilling program will test gold-copper
porphyry mineralization associated with extensive soil geochemical and
coincident IP chargeability/magnetic anomalies.
Silver Range Project
The 930 sq km Silver Range Project is located 10 to 40 km north of the town of Faro in southern Yukon. During the 1970s and 1980s, Faro was the site of the largest open pit lead-zinc-silver mining operation in Canada, and the area still has excellent but now under-utilized infrastructure.
A priority target for the 2012 exploration program at the Silver Range Project is the Hammer Zone, where bonanza-grade silver (and gold) was discovered in late 2011, only 12 km from the Faro mine and mill site. Eight surface rock samples collected along a 350 m strike length averaged 6,218 g/t silver (200 ounces per tonne silver) and 2.45 g/t gold. An associated soil geochemical anomaly characterized by very high silver (5 to 3,920 g/t) and antimony values (2.64 to 3,220 ppm) extends for a 700 m strike length. This anomaly projects under glacial or alluvial cover in both strike directions. There are at least three strong, subparallel vein structures in the immediate area. The Hammer Zone is a new discovery with no evidence of previous work.
First-pass drilling is also planned at other high-grade silver+/-gold zones within the 17 km long Mount Mye Trend. These include the Risby Zone, where mineralized rock samples collected in 2011 assayed 767.0 g/t silver and 8.82 g/t gold, and historical trench samples returned 786.0 g/t silver and 6.5 g/t gold over 1 m and 384.7 g/t silver and 2.12 g/t gold over 4 m. At the Cirque Zone, 20 mineralized rock samples collected in 2011 averaged 408.9 g/t silver and 0.22 g/t gold, while the longest chip sample assayed 327.0 g/t silver over 3.6 m. The Snap Zone is characterized by an exceptional soil geochemical anomaly, with strongly to very strongly anomalous silver (2-75.8 g/t), lead (200-7,360 ppm) and tin (20-302 ppm) values over an area measuring 3,700 by 2,250 m. Most of the anomalous values have not been investigated, but preliminary drilling in 2011 on the southern edge of the anomaly intercepted 480 g/t silver over 2.27 m within a 50.86 m interval that averaged 33.3 g/t silver.
The 2012 drilling program will also include step-out holes to further expand bulk-tonnage silver-polymetallic mineralization at the Keg Main Zone. Systematic grid drilling in 2011 successfully extended this zone to an 850 m strike length and 350 m depth, with mineralization open in both strike directions and to depth. Drilling will test several nearby geophysical (IP chargeability) anomalies with similar signatures to the Keg Main Zone and associated soil geochemical targets. The 1,000 m strike length between the Keg Main and Keg East Zone will also be tested, where a favourable zonation to silver-rich mineralization is indicated.
Surface exploration will be conducted concurrently with drilling and include follow-up prospecting, detailed sampling and geological mapping at 15 discrete geochemical anomalies and numerous other mineralized zones throughout the project area. This program is designed to evaluate high-grade and bulk tonnage potential and to rapidly advance the targets to drill stage. Priority targets include the RGS Zone, where a multi-element soil anomaly spans a 1,000 by 1,000 m area and contains elevated silver values to 226 ppm (or 6.59 ounces per ton). The anomalous soil values are accompanied by a zone of silica alteration that has been identified over an area measuring 2 km long by 100 to 500 m wide. This target and some of the other showings feature alteration and geochemical signatures that resemble the Keg Main Zone, while others are richer in more distal indicators, which suggests that they may be underlain by Keg-style systems at moderate depths. Collectively, the mineralized zones and geochemical anomalies define two major mineralized belts, the 70 km long Tay Trend, and the 17 km long Mount Mye Trend.
Mint Project:
The 50 sq km Mint Project is located 26 km south of the Alaska Highway in southwest Yukon. The property hosts newly discovered porphyry gold, copper and molybdenum mineralization that is associated with a young, high level granodiorite stock.
Drilling in 2012 will test extensive and coincident soil geochemical, IP/chargeability and magnetic anomalies. Although much of the target area is covered by overburden, soil sampling successfully outlined a core area, 1,100 m long by 300 to 400 m wide, where soil values average 0.454 g/t gold and 237 ppm copper, within a larger zone of elevated values measuring 2,100 by 1,000 m. Broad IP chargeability anomalies are directly associated with the geochemical anomalies and extend under glacial cover. These anomalies are open-ended to the north, east and south. The phase one drilling program at the Mint Project will include at least five widely spaced holes totalling 2,000 m.
Maps related to the Silver Range and Mint projects can be viewed at www.silverrangeresources.com. Work at the Silver Range and Mint Projects is being conducted by Archer, Cathro & Associates (1981) Limited. Matthew R. Dumala, P.Eng., has reviewed this news release and is the qualified person for purposes of National Instrument 43-101.
ON BEHALF OF THE BOARD
W. Douglas Eaton, President and Chief Executive Officer
Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.
Contacts:
Silver Range Resources Ltd.
W. Douglas Eaton
President and C.E.O.
(604) 688-2568
Silver Range Resources Ltd.
Bruce A. Youngman
Chairman
(604) 687-2522
Silver Range Resources Ltd.
Richard Drechsler
Corporate Communications
(604) 687-2522 or NA Toll-Free: (888) 688-2522
rdrechsler@silverrangeresources.com
www.silverrangeresources.com