Seabridge Gold Moving Courageous Lake Towards Preliminary Feasibility
TORONTO, CANADA -- (Marketwire) -- 03/30/11 -- Drilling has commenced at Seabridge Gold's (TSX: SEA)(NYSE Amex: SA)100% owned Courageous Lake project as part of a $7.3 million exploration program designed to (i) upgrade inferred resources within the current FAT deposit pit plan, (ii) complete geotechnical drilling required to move towards a Preliminary Feasibility Study ('PFS') and (iii) look for new targets along the 53 kilometers of the Matthew's Lake greenstone belt held by Seabridge. The 2011 program will include approximately 20,000 meters of core drilling, divided into a winter program which is now in progress and a summer program commencing in June.
Seabridge President and CEO Rudi Fronk said that 'we expect to announce the results of a new Preliminary Economic Assessment for Courageous Lake which is now scheduled for late May which is about one month later than originally planned. The work to take this study to a PFS level in 2012 must begin now with the key focus being further additions to the FAT deposit's 6.8 million ounce measured and indicated gold resource from which reserves will be calculated. Last year's 22,000 meter drill program successfully increased measured and indicated gold resources by 2.5 million ounces.' Results from the updated PFS on the KSM project are expected to be released on schedule in late April.
The NI 43-101 compliant resource estimate is as follows:
Courageous Lake Gold Resources at 0.83 gram per tonne cutoff
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Measured Indicated
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Tonnes Grade Ounces Tonnes Grade Ounces
(000's) (g/T) (000's) (000's) (g/T) (000's)
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12,584 2.52 1,020 77,582 2.31 5,762
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Measured plus Indicated Inferred
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Tonnes Grade Ounces Tonnes Grade Ounces
(000's) (g/T) (000's) (000's) (g/T) (000's)
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90,166 2.34 6,782 63,053 2.24 4,541
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For a detailed summary of the resource model see http://www.seabridgegold.net/readmore.php?newsid=312.
Gold resource estimates included herein were prepared by Resource Modeling Inc. under the direction of Michael Lechner, who is independent of Seabridge and a Qualified Person as defined by National Instrument 43-101. Mr. Lechner is a highly regarded expert in his field and frequently undertakes independent resource estimates for major mining companies. The independent technical report detailing the Courageous Lake resource model has been filed on SEDAR at www.sedar.com.
Exploration activities by Seabridge Gold at the Courageous Lake gold project will be conducted under the supervision of William E. Threlkeld, Registered Professional Geologist, Senior Vice President of the Company and a Qualified Person as defined by National Instrument 43-101. A rigorous quality control/quality assurance protocol will be employed during the 2011 Courageous Lake drill program including blank and certified reference standards inserted by the Company at a rate of not less than one of each type in every 30 samples. Repeats and re-splits of the sample rejects will be analyzed at a rate of not less than one sample in every 25 for each type. Samples will be assayed at Acme Laboratories, Vancouver, B.C. using fire assay atomic adsorption methods for gold and total digestion ICP methods for other elements. Cross-check analyses will be conducted at a second external laboratory on at least 10% of the samples.
Mr. Lechner and Mr. Threlkeld have reviewed and approved this news release.
Seabridge holds a 100% interest in several North American gold projects. The Company's principal assets are the KSM property located near Stewart, British Columbia, Canada and the Courageous Lake gold project located in Canada's Northwest Territories. For a breakdown of Seabridge's mineral reserves and mineral resources by category please visit the Company's website at http://www.seabridgegold.net/resources.php.
All reserve and resource estimates reported by the Corporation were calculated in accordance with the Canadian National Instrument 43-101 and the Canadian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy Classification system. These standards differ significantly from the requirements of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. Mineral resources which are not mineral reserves do not have demonstrated economic viability.
This document contains 'forward-looking information' within the meaning of Canadian securities legislation and 'forward-looking statements' within the meaning of the United States Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. This information and these statements, referred to herein as 'forward-looking statements' are made as of the date of this document but many of them relate to estimates and projections prepared in 2007, 2008 and 2011. Forward-looking statements concerning the expected completion of a Preliminary Economic Assessment or a PFS relate to future events or future performance and reflect current estimates, predictions, expectations or beliefs regarding future events and include, but are not limited to, statements with respect to: (i) the amount of mineral reserves and mineral resources; (ii) the amount of future production over any period; (iii) cumulative pre-tax net cash flow of the proposed mining operation; (iv) capital costs; (v) operating costs, including credits from the sale of other metals; (vi) mining rates; (vii) mine life; (vii) planned expenditures; and (viii) upgrading inferred resources. Any statements that express or involve discussions with respect to predictions, expectations, beliefs, plans, projections, objectives, assumptions or future events or performance (often, but not always, using words or phrases such as 'expects', 'anticipates', 'plans', 'projects', 'estimates', 'envisages', 'assumes', 'intends', 'strategy', 'goals', 'objectives' or variations thereof or stating that certain actions, events or results 'may', 'could', 'would', 'might' or 'will' be taken, occur or be achieved, or the negative of any of these terms and similar expressions) are not statements of historical fact and may be forward-looking statements.
All forward-looking statements are based on Seabridge's or its independent consultants' current beliefs as well as various assumptions made by them and information available to them on the date the statements are made. These assumptions include: (i) the presence of and continuity of metals at the Project at modeled grades; (ii) the capacities of various machinery and equipment; (iii) the availability of personnel, machinery and equipment at estimated prices; (iv) exchange rates; (v) metals sales prices; (vi) appropriate discount rates; (vii) tax rates and royalty rates applicable to the proposed mining operation; (viii) financing structure and costs; (ix) anticipated mining losses and dilution; (x) metals recovery rates, (xi) reasonable contingency requirements; (xii) receipt of regulatory approvals on acceptable terms; and (xiii) the negotiation of satisfactory terms with impacted First Nations groups. Although management considers these assumptions to be reasonable based on information currently available to it, they may prove to be incorrect. Many forward-looking statements are made assuming the correctness of other forward-looking statements, such as statements of cumulative pre-tax net cash flow, which are based on other forward-looking statements and assumptions. The cost information is also prepared using earlier values, but the time for incurring the costs will be in the future and it is assumed costs will remain stable over the relevant period.
By their very nature, forward-looking statements involve inherent risks and uncertainties, both general and specific, and risks exist that estimates, forecasts, projections and other forward-looking statements will not be achieved or that assumptions do not reflect future experience. We caution readers not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements as a number of important factors could cause the actual outcomes to differ materially from the beliefs, plans, objectives, expectations, anticipations, estimates, assumptions and intentions expressed in such forward-looking statements. These risk factors may be generally stated as the risk that the assumptions and estimates expressed above do not occur, but specifically include, without limitation, risks relating to variations in the mineral content within the material identified as mineral reserves from that predicted; variations in rates of recovery and extraction; developments in world metals markets;, risks relating to fluctuations in the Canadian dollar relative to the US dollar; increases in the estimated capital and operating costs or unanticipated costs; difficulties attracting the necessary work force; increases in financing costs or adverse changes to the terms of available financing, if any; tax rates or royalties being greater than assumed; changes in development or mining plans due to changes in logistical, technical or other factors; changes in project parameters as plans continue to be refined; risks relating to receipt of regulatory approvals or settlement of an agreement with impacted First Nations groups; the effects of competition in the markets in which Seabridge operates; operational and infrastructure risks; and the additional risks including those described in the December 31, 2009 Corporation's Annual Information Form filed with SEDAR in Canada (available at www.sedar.com) and in the Corporation's Annual Report Form 40-F filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission on EDGAR (available at www.sec.gov/edgar.shtml). Seabridge cautions that the foregoing list of factors that may affect future results is not exhaustive.
When relying on our forward-looking statements to make decisions with respect to Seabridge, investors and others should carefully consider the foregoing factors and other uncertainties and potential events. Seabridge does not undertake to update any forward-looking statement, whether written or oral, that may be made from time to time by Seabridge or on our behalf, except as required by law.
ON BEHALF OF THE BOARD
Rudi Fronk, President & C.E.O.
Contacts:
Seabridge Gold Inc.
Rudi P. Fronk
President and C.E.O.
(416) 367-9292
(416) 367-2711 (FAX)
info@seabridgegold.net
www.seabridgegold.net