Malbex Reports 5 Metres at 48.34 g/t Gold Within 103 Metres Averaging 2.84 g/t Gold at Del Carmen Norte
TORONTO, ONTARIO -- (Marketwire) -- 02/22/11 -- Malbex Resources Inc. (TSX VENTURE: MBG) announced results today from two holes at the Rojo Grande target on the Company's Del Carmen gold-silver project in San Juan province, Argentina. Highlights for the near-surface gold-silver mineralization include:
- DDHC-10-042: 103 m grading 2.84 g/t gold and 6.4 g/t silver
- including 29 m grading 9.61 g/t gold and 10.1 g/t silver
- with 5 m grading 48.34 g/t gold and 15.4 g/t silver
- DDHC-10-040: 19 m grading 0.70 g/t gold and 4.1 g/t silver
- including 10 m grading 1.14 g/t gold and 5.1 g/t silver
The Rojo Grande target consists of reddish, iron oxide-stained silicified rocks outcropping on the north side of the massif that cores the Del Carmen Norte hydrothermal alteration system. Gold-silver mineralization at Rojo Grande occurs over a minimum strike length of approximately 500 metres (m) and remains open along strike and at depth. Holes DDHC-10-040 and -042 were collared between sections containing previously reported intercepts that include those about 100 m to the south:
- DDHC-10-035: 49 m grading 1.41 g/t gold and 3.2 g/t silver
- including 8 m grading 7.08 g/t gold and 11.6 g/t silver
- DDHC-10-020: 124.5 m grading 0.57 g/t gold and 8.8 g/t silver
and previously reported intercept about 80 metres to the north:
- DDHC-10-039: 86 m grading 0.77 g/t gold and 9.3 g/t silver
'Today's results confirm the presence of high-grade zones within Rojo Grande,' said Tim Warman, President and CEO. 'Such high-grade areas bring us closer to our goal of defining a potentially economic, near-surface, oxidized mineral resource at Rojo Grande in the current drill campaign. We're currently planning a scissor hole through the high grade zone discovered in hole 42 in order to better understand its geometry.'
With today's release, nine holes totalling 1,601 m have been reported from the 10,000 m program budgeted for the 2010/2011 field season at Del Carmen Norte (Figure 1). While one drill rig is delineating the Rojo Grande mineralization, the second rig is testing the controlled source audio-magneto-telluric (CSAMT) anomalies that appear to extend from Rojo Grande over a kilometre to the southwest under steam-heated alteration at Cerro Amarillo.
Click the following links to view maps and sections and a complete assay table showing all drill results to date from Del Carmen Norte. Or access further information on Del Carmen at www.malbex.ca/Projects/Del_Carmen and Despoblados at www.malbex.ca/Projects/Despoblados.
Despoblados results
Malbex also reports today that 1,368 metres of diamond drilling were completed in six holes at its Despoblados project. Targets tested at Despoblados consisted of a CSAMT resistivity anomaly associated with a pull-apart basin (two holes) and outcropping low-sulphidation epithermal veins (four holes). No significant mineralization was encountered, with best assays of 0.66 g/t gold and 22.0 g/t silver (separate samples, 1.0 m core lengths). Malbex is currently reviewing all data from Despoblados to determine the future of the project.
Del Carmen results
DDHC-10-040 (azimuth 330 degrees, dip 60 degrees) and DDHC-10-042 (vertical) were drilled from the same platform (Figures 1 and 2). Both holes passed through less than 10 m of overburden and quartz-alunite alteration before entering typical Rojo Grande vuggy silica and silicification. Hole 040 intersected over 140 m of strongly silicified dacitic tuffs, volcanic breccia and probable hydrothermal breccias. Vuggy silica textures and variable degrees of goethite and jarosite coating fractures are observed in the silicified zone. The silicified rocks are succeeded below by strong clay alteration and significantly less competent core. Hole 042 passed through mainly vuggy silica with variable goethite and jarosite coating fractures and as disseminations until about 94 m before entering clay-rich and incompetent rock similar to that at the bottom of hole 040. Hole 042 was abandoned at 139.5 m due to drilling problems, and hole 040 was stopped at 204.5 m due to the challenging conditions of incompetent rocks and strong clay alteration.
Significant mineralized intercepts in the most recent holes are tabulated below.
============================================================================
length Au-EQ
target hole ID from to (m) Au (g/t) Ag (g/t) (g/t)
============================================================================
DDHC-11-040 7.0 90.0 83.0 0.19 5.2 0.28
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including 18.0 36.0 18.0 0.29 5.1 0.34
-------------------------------------------------------------------
and 119.0 138.0 19.0 0.70 4.1 0.77
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including 120.0 130.0 10.0 1.14 5.1 1.23
-------------------------------------------------------------------
Rojo and 154.0 204.5 50.5 0.16 5.4 0.25
Grande ===================================================================
DDHC-11-042 13.0 116.0 103.0 2.84 6.4 2.94
-------------------------------------------------------------------
including 67.0 96.0 29.0 9.61 10.1 9.78
-------------------------------------------------------------------
which includes
(at 0.3 g/t
cutoff) 84.0 95.0 11.0 23.47 10.9 23.65
-------------------------------------------------------------------
which includes
(at 2 g/t
cutoff) 85.0 90.0 5.0 48.34 15.4 48.60
============================================================================
Mineralized intercepts are based on a 0.1 g/t Au cutoff, with no more than 3
m of internal dilution.
Gold-equivalent (Au-EQ) values are calculated using 60 g/t Ag = 1 g/t Au
(based on the 3-year average gold:silver price ratio) and assuming 100%
metallurgical recovery. Abbreviations include metres (m) and grams per
tonne (g/t).
============================================================================
There has been insufficient drilling to date to reliably calculate true widths for the mineralized intercepts tabulated above.
About Del Carmen Norte and Rojo Grande
Rojo Grande consists of prominent reddish weathering silicified outcrops on the northern flank of the massif of high sulphidation hydrothermal alteration at Del Carmen Norte. Silicified outcrops and geophysical data identify a shallow-dipping northeast-southwest striking, near-surface silicified ledge at Rojo Grande measuring approximately 800 m long by up to 300 m wide. Six diamond holes at Rojo Grande in the previous campaign intersected near-surface gold-silver mineralization in silicified rocks over an area about 200 m by 150 m (Figure 2). Previous significant intersections at Rojo Grande include:
- DDHC-10-017: 41 m grading 1.18 g/t gold and 31.2 g/t silver
- DDHC-10-018: 15 m grading 1.07 g/t gold and 27.3 g/t silver
- DDHC-10-020: 124.5 m grading 0.57 g/t gold and 8.8 g/t silver
- DDHC-10-031: 35 m grading 0.94 g/t gold and 13 g/t silver
- DDHC-10-032: 142.15 m grading 0.88 g/t gold and 13.7 g/t silver
-- including 40.15 m grading 1.45 g/t gold and 19.6 g/t silver
Mineralization at Rojo Grande is generally hosted by vuggy silica and massive silicification with red-brown staining due to disseminations of fine-grained hematite, goethite and jarosite and as veinlets. Selective chip sampling of northeast-striking zones of hydrothermal breccias cemented by chalcedony and very fine-grained quartz that cut pre-existing silicification yielded samples with up to 10 g/t gold.
The silicified reddish outcrops at Rojo Grande are interpreted to be part of a sub-horizontal ledge (sheet) formed by preferential silicification and quartz-alunite alteration of volcanic breccias within the strongly argillic (illite) to advanced argillic (kaolinite) altered tuffs and fine-grained flows that dominate the andesitic volcanic sequence. The alteration is cut by northeast-, north-northwest- and east-striking fault zones. The mineralized intersections are bounded by changes in style of alteration, by faults or both. While some faults abruptly truncate silicification and thereby clearly post-date the hydrothermal events, hydrothermal feeder structures that controlled alteration and mineralization are inferred to preferentially coincide with one or more of these directions.
About the Del Carmen work program
The 147 km(2) Del Carmen concession package is located near the southern end of the El Indio Gold Belt, and hosts the Del Carmen Norte and Del Carmen Sur high sulphidation epithermal gold-silver systems. The Del Carmen Norte hydrothermal alteration system covers approximately 9 km(2). A second, less exposed, high sulphidation epithermal system occurs at Del Carmen Sur some 5 km to the south of Del Carmen Norte.
Del Carmen Norte consists of a strongly altered, sub-horizontal sequence of andesitic volcanic rocks that is cut by numerous faults. Volcanic breccias appear to be selectively silicified with silicification hosting mineralization sandwiched between less favourable argillic altered volcanic layers. Steep faults have strongly influenced hydrothermal fluid flow within the volcanic sequence. High-sulphidation alteration is therefore zoned outward from the combination of both lithological and structural controls on silicification. Controlled source audio-magneto-telluric surveying (CSAMT) in the previous field campaign identified elevated resistivity coincident with silicified rocks at Rojo Grande. Other larger CSAMT resistivity anomalies to the southwest are directly associated with steam-heated siliceous alteration at high elevations at Cerro Amarillo but continue to the depth limits of detection of the survey (roughly 500 m vertically).
In addition to Rojo Grande, other zones of vuggy silica and other styles of silicification, and enargite-bearing quartz veins on surface were drill tested in the 2009-2010 field campaign. The current drilling campaign at Del Carmen Norte is focused on defining the extent of gold-silver mineralization at Rojo Grande, testing CSAMT resistivity anomalies (including the large anomaly between Rojo Grande and Cerro Amarillo), and following up on encouraging initial drill results from Naciente Quebrada Pedregosa south of Cerro Amarillo.
Technical information
Diamond drill hole samples consist of core that is sawn in half by electric saw on site. Core samples are sealed in new plastic bags, which are inserted into rice sacks for transport by Malbex personal or commercial trucking service to ALS Global prep lab in Mendoza. All samples are crushed and pulped and powders sent by ALS to one of their laboratories (typically La Serena, Chile or North Vancouver, BC). Fire assay for gold is conducted on 30 gram (g) pulps with atomic absorption finish. Over limits (greater than 10 g/t gold) are fire assayed with gravimetric finish. In addition, all samples receive multi-element analysis including silver by ICP after aqua regia digestion and mercury by cold vapour atomic absorption.
Malbex's quality assurance-quality control (QA-QC) program consists of the insertion in every 20 samples of at least one certified standard of known gold content, one blank (sample known to consist of very low levels of gold to ensure adequate cleaning of the sample preparation equipment between samples) and one field duplicate. Samples of significant drill intercepts will be sent to two additional independent laboratories to verify gold and silver analyses when necessary. Metallic screen fire analyses for gold will also be run regularly on discovered mineralization as an additional QA-QC check. The half core remaining after sampling is stored in a Malbex-run facility in San Juan for verification and reference purposes.
Peter Stewart, PhD, Vice-President Exploration of Malbex Resources Inc., is a Professional Geoscientist in the Province of Ontario, and is the Qualified Person as defined by NI 43-101 responsible for the technical information presented in this news release.
About Malbex
Malbex Resources Inc. is a gold exploration company led by experienced management and directors. Malbex holds an indirect 100% interest in three exploration projects in Argentina's El Indio Gold Belt, which hosts over 40 million ounces of gold in past production and current reserves. Two of the projects are in close proximity to Barrick's Veladero and Pascua-Lama gold deposits. For more information, please visit www.malbex.ca.
CAUTIONARY STATEMENT REGARDING FORWARD-LOOKING INFORMATION: This news release includes certain information that may constitute 'forward-looking information' under applicable Canadian securities legislation. Forward-looking information includes, but is not limited to, statements about strategic plans, spending commitments, future operations, results of exploration, anticipated financial results, future work programs, capital expenditures and objectives. Forward-looking information is necessarily based upon a number of estimates and assumptions that, while considered reasonable, are subject to known and unknown risks, uncertainties, and other factors which may cause the actual results and future events to differ materially from those expressed or implied by such forward-looking information, including the risks identified in the Company's annual information form under the heading 'Risk Factors'. There can be no assurance that such information will prove to be accurate, as actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated in such information. Accordingly, readers should not place undue reliance on forward-looking information. All forward-looking information contained in this press release is given as of the date hereof and is based upon the opinions and estimates of management and information available to management as at the date hereof. The Company disclaims any intention or obligation to update or revise any forward-looking information, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as required by law.
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Contacts:
Malbex Resources Inc.
Tim Warman
President and Chief Executive Officer
(416) 628-0215
Malbex Resources Inc.
Marla Gale
VP Investor Relations
(416) 628-0215
ir@malbex.ca
www.malbex.ca