7th Feb 2014 07:00
Tri-Star Resources Plc ("Tri-Star" or the "Company")
7 February 2014
Exploration Update - Program identifies extension and potential new targets at Bald Hill antimony deposit in New Brunswick, Canada
Tri-Star (AIM: TSTR), the integrated antimony development company, is pleased to provide an update on the exploration program carried out in November and December 2013 on the Bald Hill antimony property (Figure 1 (see link at end of announcement)). The additional exploration on the Bald Hill property was completed to meet annual work requirements to maintain the property in good standing. The Bald Hill deposit, one of the largest undeveloped antimony projects in Canada, is located within the Annidale Belt, approximately 40 kilometres northwest of Sussex, New Brunswick.
Following the acquisition of Portage Minerals Inc. in October 2013, the Company through its wholly owned Canadian subsidiary, Rockport Mining Corp. ("Rockport") owns a 100% interest in 891 claims within the Annidale Belt, which covers approximately 200 sq km surrounding the Bald Hill deposit and which hosts a number of other historic antimony and gold occurrences.
As detailed in the announcement dated 6 August 2013 and outlined in the NI 43-101 technical report for the Bald Hill property, drilling at Bald Hill indicated a potential quantity and grade, which is the target of further exploration, in the 725,000 to 1,000,000 tonne range grading 4.11% to 5.32% contained antimony (Figure 2 (see link at end of announcement)). Exploration surveys had defined a 1km long extension to the mineralized zone which remained open in all directions. The potential quantity and grade is conceptual in nature as there has been insufficient exploration to define a mineral resource and it is uncertain whether further exploration will result in the target being delineated as a mineral resource.
Highlights:
· Soil geochemical surveys conducted around the Bald Hill Deposit and South Extension in November and December 2013 (as detailed below) demonstrate a potential further 1.5km southeast extension to the Bald Hill deposit (Figure 2 (see link at end of announcement)).
o Multiple "high priority" targets have been identified along the southeast extension.
o Historical prospecting work in 1997 located antimony bearing boulders which were reported to assay up to 11.3% antimony ("Sb"), from this general area.
· Soil geochemical surveys conducted in November and December 2013 on the Bond Road target provide evidence of another significant mineralized trend (Figure 3 (see link at end of announcement)).
o Soil surveys have outlined a well defined, 600m long Sb anomaly with soil values ranging to 119 ppm Sb.
o Prospecting results in 2010 returned antimony values, from angular boulders, assaying up to 53% Sb. Of the 11 anomalous sample collected, 7 returned assay results greater than 15% Sb.
Ken Hight, CEO of Tri-Star Antimony Canada Inc., stated, "We are excited by the extension to Bald Hill deposit trend which now has an indicated overall length of 2.2 km and the new trend/discovery at Bond Road located approximately 4km to the east of Bald Hill. Our 100% owned land package in the Bald Hill area is over 35km long and is known to host a number of other historic antimony and gold occurrences which indicates the "mining camp scale" potential of this antimony rich belt."
In November and December 2013, Rockport completed approximately 32km of gridding, soil geochemical and very low frequency electromagnetic ("VLF - EM") surveys on the Bald Hill deposit and Bond Road areas of the Bald Hill property.
Previous deposit area drilling confirmed the above mineralization of the Bald Hill deposit over a length of 450 metres and to a depth of approximately 300 metres as outlined in the NI 43-101 technical report for the Bald Hill property. The mineralization is hosted within a northwest-southeast trending structural zone, previously thought to continue for 1km to the southeast.
The Bond Road area is located approximately 4km east of the Bald Hill deposit, along an interpreted northwest-southeast trending airborne lineament, similar in orientation to Bald Hill, which may present a newly discovered antimony host trend (Figure 1 (see link at end of announcement)).
A total of 966 B-horizon soil samples (512 samples from the Bald Hill deposit south extension and 454 samples from the Bond Road area) were collected by Company staff.. Assay results from the soil geochemical program have identified several areas/trends of anomalous antimony, with a high percentage of results being above the background anomalous level (>2.5 ppm Sb) and with individual assays returning up to 453 ppm Sb on Bald Hill and up to 119 ppm Sb at Bond Road.
On the Bald Hill grid, the soil results demonstrate a potential further 1.5km southeast extension to the Bald Hill deposit with multiple anomalies being identified. The anomalies are viewed as "high priority targets" for further exploration due to anomaly width, Sb ppm magnitude and line-to-line correlations (as an example see Figure 2 Link Profiles (see link at end of announcement)). At Bond Road, the results outlined a well defined, 600m long Sb anomaly with soil values ranging to 119 ppm Sb.
Enhancing the indicated economic potential of each of these areas is the occurrence of angular boulders containing significant concentrations of antimony. On the Bald Hill south extension, historical prospecting work in 1997 located antimony bearing boulders which were reported to assay 7.3% Sb, 7.8% Sb and 11.3% Sb. Prospecting surveys in 2010 on Bond Road returned antimony values, from angular boulders, assaying up to 53% Sb. Of the 11 anomalous samples collected 7 returned assay results greater than 15% Sb (page 19, Table 1, National Instrument 43-101 Technical Report Bald Hill Antimony Project, Southern New Brunswick, Canada; Note that 'Bond Road' was named 'Bald Hill East' in the technical report and subsequent Portage new releases).
Basic statistics of the soil geochemical results, from each grid area, are tabled below and are also presented on Figures 1 and 2 of this announcement (see link at end of announcement).
Bald Hill Soil Geochemical Survey Statistics | |||||
Bald Hill South Extension Grid | Bald Hill East Target Grid | ||||
Total # of Samples | 512 | Total # of Samples | 454 | ||
Max. Sb of ppm value | 453 | Max. Sb of ppm value | 119 | ||
Min. Sb ppm value | 0.14 | Min. Sb ppm value | 0.15 | ||
Sb Level (ppm) | # of samples | % of total collected | Sb Level (ppm) | # of samples | % of total collected |
≥2.5 | 220 | 42.97 | ≥2.5 | 72 | 15.86 |
≥5 | 115 | 22.46 | ≥5 | 38 | 8.37 |
≥10 | 53 | 10.35 | ≥10 | 19 | 4.19 |
≥20 | 19 | 3.71 | ≥20 | 11 | 2.42 |
≥40 | 11 | 2.15 | ≥40 | 3 | 0.66 |
≥100 | 6 | 1.17 | ≥100 | 1 | 0.22 |
It is important to note as an example of significance that, prior to mining, B-Horizon soil samples in the vicinity of the Lake George deposit (above the projection of the mineralised veins) contained a maximum of 565 ppm Sb and background values were less than 2ppm (Seal et al., 1995).
Soil assays were performed by Activation Laboratories Ltd, Ontario, using the Ultra-trace 1 Aqua Regia ICP/MS method (code UT-1-0.5 Aqua Regia ICP/MS). Activation Labs runs internal blank and standard samples as part of their quality control.
Roger Dahn, P. Geo. (New Brunswick), Vice President-Exploration of Tri-Star, is designated as the Qualified Person under National Instrument 43-101 and has reviewed and approved the contents of this announcement.
Roger Dahn, Vice President - Exploration of Tri-Star, explained, "The Bald Hill project is a very significant discovery, within a geological setting proven to host major antimony deposits such as the past producing Lake George mine in New Brunswick and the Beaver Brook mine in Newfoundland. The recent exploration surveys, which indicate a further 1.5km extension to the Bald Hill deposit trend, demonstrate the unexplored potential of the deposit, which has only been systematically drilled over a 450 metre length to date. This coupled with the encouraging results from the Bond Road area indicate the potential for multiple deposits and the large scale potential of this project".
The NI 43-101 Technical Report on the Bald Hill Antimony Project was previously filed on the Canadian System for Electronic Document Analysis and Retrieval ("SEDAR") under Portage's profile on 16 November 2010 and a copy is available for download on Tri-Star's website at http://www.tri-starresources.com on the 'Shareholder Documents' page.
For further information please contact:
Enquiries:
Tri-Star Resources Plc Emin Eyi, Managing Director Brian Spratley, Technical Director Tri-Star Antimony Canada Inc Ken Hight, CEO
|
Tel: +44 (0) 20 3463 2260 Tel: +44 (0) 1233 629 550
Tel:+1 647 200 8706 |
SP Angel Corporate Finance (Nomad and Broker) Robert Wooldridge / Katy Birkin
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Tel: +44 (0) 20 3463 2260 |
Yellow Jersey PR Limited (Financial PR) Dominic Barretto / Kelsey Taynor
Keith, Bayley Roger & Co (Joint Broker) Brinsley Holman |
Tel: +44 (0) 7768 537739
Tel: +44 (0) 20 3100 8300 |
About Tri-Star
Tri-Star is a focused antimony company whose management has many years experience in trading and mining this critical mineral. The Company's objective is to become the leading integrated antimony metal and products manufacturer to western economy consumers utilising an environmentally advanced 20,000 tonnes per annum name plate capacity antimony metal and tri-oxide production facility in the Gulf, with raw material supplied from its upstream resource projects in Turkey and Canada and from third party producers. The Company is seeking to utilise the technology of clean roasting of high value sulphide concentrates to apply to the processing of refractory gold ores.
www.tri-starresources.com
www.antimonyworld.com
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Related Shares:
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