Rainy River Intersects 51.2 g/t Gold Over 1.5 Metres in ODM17 Zone, Reports More High Grade Intercepts in 433 Zone and Provides a 2010 Exploration Update
TORONTO, ONTARIO -- (Marketwire) -- 07/20/10 -- Rainy River Resources Ltd. (TSX VENTURE: RR) (the 'Company' or 'Rainy') announces further assay results from the Rainy River Gold Project in Northwest Ontario.
Highlights
-- ODM17 Zone returns 51.2 g/t gold over 1.5 metres from infill sampling
-- 18.9 g/t gold intersected in 433 Zone over 1.5 metres
-- 6.6 g/t gold intersected in 433 Zone over 7.5 metres
ODM17 and 433 Zones Infill Drilling and Sampling Program
Rainy River has commenced a 40,000 metre infill drilling program specifically targeting the ODM17 and 433 Zones. The program will drill these zones to at least 50 metre centres using six drills and will include sampling of previously drilled but unsampled areas that have the potential to improve the grade and continuity of the mineralized zones. A previously unsampled interval within drill hole NR06-60 returned 51.2 g/t gold over 1.5 metres and 4.8 g/t gold over 4.5 metres at a depth of approximately 180 metres below surface.
433 Zone Drill Hole Extension Program
The drill hole extension program into the lower regions of the 433 Zone continues to deliver significant intersections of gold mineralization. Drill hole NR06-97E returned 6.6 metres of 7.5 g/t gold including 12.8 g/t gold over 3.0 metres at 400 metres below surface. Excellent grade continuity between neighbouring holes was demonstrated by holes NR07-184E which intersected 17.5 g/t gold over 1.5 metres and NR09-382E which intersected 12.6 g/t over 1.5 metres. These two holes were drilled within 25 metres on either side of hole NR09-406E which intersected 89.9 g/t gold over a 1.5 metre interval at the -700m elevation (see news release dated December 16, 2009). In addition, hole NR06-51E returned 12.4 g/t gold over 1.5 metres, approximately 40 meters west of drill hole NR06-42E which returned 128.5 g/t gold over 5.5 metres (see news release dated June 9, 2010). Other significant intercepts from the 433 Zone include 18.9 g/t gold over 1.5 metres in drill hole NR06-106E and 7.1 g/t gold over 1.5 metres in drill hole NR06-128E. The drill hole extension program will be completed in the coming weeks and the focus will shift to the infill program.
South Zone and RC Drilling Target Update
Drilling in the South Zone has returned a 24.1 metre wide intercept of gold mineralization grading 0.84 g/t gold in drill hole NR10-508. Follow up diamond drilling on targets identified by RC drilling have returned narrow intercepts of gold mineralization northwest of the 433 zone. Detailed assay results for all holes are located in Table 1, below.
Commentary
'Our drill extension program has been very successful in both expanding the 433 Zone at depth and greatly improving the continuity within the zone,' commented Raymond Threlkeld, President and CEO, 'For the remainder of the year the focus for the company will be the infill program with the objective of increasing the grade and continuity of the deposit in preparation for an updated NI 43-101 resources estimate and the completion of a scoping-level economic assessment.'
Exploration and Corporate Update
The Company has been very active during the first 6 months of 2010 in both its exploration and corporate activities. Our exploration program has consisted of over 53,000 metres of diamond drilling and has been primarily focused on expanding the high-grade 433 Zone, where continuity of high grades is being demonstrated from surface to a depth of over 700 metres, and exploring several of the known geochemical anomalies on the property.
To date, using a cut off grade of 3.0 g/t gold over a minimum width of 4.0 metres, the 433 Zone contains 53 drill hole intercepts averaging 15.8 g/t gold over 4.7 metres. The ODM Zone includes 296 intercepts averaging 9.3 g/t gold over 5.0 metres and the Cap/South Zone includes 17 intercepts averaging 7.6 g/t gold over 4.4 metres. These composites were calculated from existing raw assays using mining software that calculates occurrences of optimum drill intersections that fall within certain grade and width restrictions.
The assay data utilized in the analysis will be posted shortly on the Rainy River website (www.rainyriverresources.com) in the Project section under Maps and Images.
Since signing the Memorandum of Understanding with the Fort Frances Chief's Secretariat in May 2010, Rainy has completed a funding agreement with Pwi-Di-Goo-Zing Ne-Yaa-Zhing Advisory Services (Advisory Services) to hire Stacey Jack as the project's First Nations Engagement Specialist based out of Rainy's new community office located in Emo. Ms. Jack has extensive experience working in each of the surrounding First Nations communities, most recently as a Business Development Officer with Advisory Services. In her new role, she will be involved in enhancing communications between Rainy and each of the seven signatory First Nations through Advisory Services. She will work closely with the First Nations communities, their leadership and Kyle Stanfield, Rainy's Director of Environment and Sustainability, to ensure a two-way exchange of information related to project opportunities as well as resolution of any concerns that may arise as we continue to advance exploration at the site.
The Company has significantly strengthened its management team with the addition of Mr. Nick Nikolakakis as Vice President and CFO and the further addition of two independent directors, Mr. Rick Pettit and Mr. James Excell, to its Board. With these additions, the Company will be seeking a listing on the TSX.
For the remainder of 2010 the company's exploration efforts will focus on an infill drilling program, totaling approximately 40,000 metres, targeting the 433 and ODM17 Zones. The objective of the program is to increase confidence and grade continuity in the deposit in preparation for an updated NI 43-101 resource estimate and the completion of a scoping-level assessment on the economic potential of the project. Exploration outside of the 433 and ODM17 delineation program will focus on VMS-style targets, deep extensions of the 433 and ODM Zones to determine the down-plunge upside of the project, and continued exploration of RC bedrock geochemical anomalies and east and west extensions of the South/Cap Zones.
Plans for 2011 include the initiation of a feasibility study, the development of an advanced exploration program including an underground decline, and the submission of a project description to the federal and provincial government agencies to begin the permitting process. At the company's TPK project near Ontario's Ring of Fire area, the company will be continuing a program of RC and diamond drilling to test the large gold grain anomaly with its partner Northern Superior Resources. Rainy River Resource is earning a 51% interest in the project over a 3 year period by spending $11 million.
Qualified persons
Rainy River's exploration program in Richardson Township is being supervised by Stuart Averill, P.Geo. Vice-President Exploration, a Qualified Person as defined by National Instrument 43-101. Garett Macdonald, P.Eng., is the person responsible for the content of this news release. The Company continues to implement a rigorous QA/QC program to ensure best practices in sampling and analysis of drill core. The procedures of the QA/QC program are detailed on Rainy River's website at www.rainyriverresources.com.
About Rainy River Resources Ltd.
Rainy River Resources is a Canadian precious metals exploration company whose key asset is the Rainy River Gold Project. With over CAN$60 million in its treasury, the Company is well funded to conduct a dual-focused drilling program consisting of: 1) definition diamond drilling of the main gold resources in preparation for scoping and pre-feasibility studies, and 2) selective diamond drill testing of high-priority gold targets defined primarily by RC drilling within the large gold system centered in Richardson Township. The Company's property is extremely well located in the southwestern corner of northern Ontario near the U.S. border. It is accessed by a network of roads and is close to hydro-electric infrastructure. The Rainy River district has a skilled labour force and is one of the lowest-cost areas for mineral exploration and development. Ontario has low political risk and, according to the annual Fraser Institute global survey of the mining industry, has consistently ranked as one of the top jurisdictions embracing mineral development.
RAINY RIVER RESOURCES LTD.
Raymond W. Threlkeld
President & CEO
This release includes certain statements that may be deemed to be 'forward-looking statements'. All statements in this release, other than statements of historical fact, that address events or developments that the Company expects to occur, are forward looking statements. Forward looking statements are statements that are not historical facts and are generally, but not always, identified by the words 'expects', 'plans', 'anticipates', 'believes', 'intends', 'estimates', 'projects', 'potential' and similar expressions, or that events or conditions 'will', 'would', 'may', 'could' or 'should' occur. Although the Company believes the expectations expressed in such forward-looking statements are based on reasonable assumptions, such statements are not guarantees of future performance and actual results may differ materially from those in forward looking statements. Factors that could cause the actual results to differ materially from those in forward-looking statements include gold prices, results of exploration and development activities, regulatory changes, defects in title, availability of materials and equipment, timeliness of government approvals, continued availability of capital and financing and general economic, market or business conditions. The Company cautions that the foregoing list of important factors is not exhaustive. Investors and others who base themselves on the Company's forward-looking statements should carefully consider the above factors as well as the uncertainties they represent and the risk they entail. The Company believes that the expectations reflected in those forward-looking statements are reasonable, but no assurance can be given that these expectations will prove to be correct. Please see the public filings of the Company at www.sedar.com for further information.
Table 1. Summary of Significant Results
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Vertical Length
Hole ID Section Depth(m) From (m) To (m) (m) Au (g/t) Area/Zone
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
NR06-18E 425530 379 465.8 467.0 1.2 2.00 HW 433
425532 406 500.0 503.0 3.0 1.87 HW 433
425539 489 599.0 627.5 28.5 0.62 433
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
NR06-51E 425556 442 615.5 660.4 44.9 1.28 433
INCL 425556 442 630.5 644.0 13.5 2.53 433
INCL 425557 448 642.5 644.0 1.5 12.43 433
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
NR06-58E 425482 438 491.0 498.5 7.5 1.57 433 HW
425486 495 558.5 567.5 9.0 1.09 433 HW
425497 608 695.0 701.0 6.0 1.18 433
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
NR06-60 425334 522 183.5 185 1.5 51.21 ODM INFILL
425335 566 228.5 233.0 4.50 4.80 ODM INFILL
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
NR06-94E 425620 279 369.5 371.0 1.5 1.05 HW 433
425622 305 405.5 407.0 1.5 1.18 HW 433
425623 314 411.5 426.0 14.5 0.76 HW 433
425623 324 432.5 434.0 1.5 1.36 HW 433
425625 341 455.2 461.0 5.8 1.41 HW 433
425630 390 510.5 544.2 33.7 1.07 433
INCL 425632 402 543.0 544.2 1.2 6.03 433
425636 440 597.5 599.0 1.5 1.05 FW 433
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
NR06-97E 425599 379 530.0 545.0 15.0 0.69 HW 433
425601 402 564.6 585.5 20.9 2.87 433
INCL 425602 407 578.0 585.5 7.5 6.60 433
INCL 425602 405 578.0 581.0 3.0 12.75 433
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
NR06-106E 425447 482 581.0 582.5 1.5 18.89 433
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
NR06-115E 425463 493 585.5 588.5 3.0 2.22 HW 433
425468 560 668.0 680.0 12.0 0.70 433
425471 591 711.5 713.0 1.5 2.04 FW 433
425471 596 717.9 719.0 1.1 1.51 FW 433
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
NR06-116E 425483 466 639.5 641.0 1.5 4.49 433
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
NR06-128E 425465 524 655.0 656.5 1.5 7.13 433
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
NR07-184E 425410 590 669.0 670.5 1.5 17.53 433 HW
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
NR07-185E 425540 623 722.0 723.5 1.5 2.50 433
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
NR08-253E 425526 425 519.5 534.5 15.0 0.74 433
425527 446 548.0 555.5 7.5 0.89 433
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
NR09-382E 425432 641 777.0 778.5 1.5 12.68 433
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
NR09-418E 425527 735 824.0 828.0 4.0 4.23 433
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
NR10-506 424446 214 251.5 253.0 1.5 1.99 SOUTHWEST RC
424451 261 310.0 311.5 1.5 1.29 SOUTHWEST RC
424455 283 337.0 338.5 1.5 0.90 SOUTHWEST RC
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
NR10-508 425128 270 291.0 292.7 1.7 3.45 SOUTH
425130 315 331.4 355.5 24.1 0.84 SOUTH
425166 594 676.5 684.0 7.5 1.41 ODM
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
NR10-510 424861 135 184.0 185.5 1.5 1.14 NORTH RC
424868 198 268.0 269.5 1.5 1.15 NORTH RC
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
NR10-511 424978 265 355.0 356.5 1.5 4.43 NORTH RC
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
NR10-512 NSA NORTH RC
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
NR10-513 NSA NORTH RC
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
NR10-514 425094 32 47.5 49.0 1.5 0.96 NORTH RC
425093 120 163.0 164.5 1.5 1.72 NORTH RC
425095 186 251.5 253.0 1.5 1.16 NORTH RC
425103 281 379.0 380.7 1.7 1.88 NORTH RC
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
NR10-515 425154 82 116.5 118.0 1.5 1.57 NORTH RC
425154 86 122.5 123.6 1.1 1.07 NORTH RC
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
NR10-518 NSA WEST BP
NSA WEST BP
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
To view the 433 Zone Inclined Longitudinal Section Map, please visit the following link: http://media3.marketwire.com/docs/433ZoneInclined.pdf.
To view the Beaver Pond, ODM and 17 Zones Inclined Longitudinal Section Map, please visit the following link: http://file.marketwire.com/release/BeaverPond.pdf.
To view the Drillhole Location Map, please visit the following link: http://media3.marketwire.com/docs/DrillholeLocationMap.pdf.
To view the Assay Data July 2010, please visit the following link: http://media3.marketwire.com/docs/AssayDataJuly2010.pdf.
The TSX Venture Exchange has not reviewed and does not accept the responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this news release.
Contacts:
Rainy River Resources Ltd.
Liz Caridi
Director of Investor Relations and Corporate Governance
(604) 639-4497
lcaridi@rainyriverresources.com
www.rainyriverresources.com