Latin American Minerals Announces Completion of the Pilot Plant and New Exploration Results on the New Trend at the Paso Yobai Gold Project
TORONTO, ONTARIO -- (Marketwire) -- 12/15/11 -- Latin American Minerals Inc. (TSX VENTURE: LAT)(OTCQX: LATNF) (the 'Company') announces advances at the Paso Yobai Gold Project, located in Paraguay. News highlights:
-- Pilot plant construction now completed at Paso Yobai, operation to begin
in January 2012;
-- Drilling re-commences on Paso Yobai Discovery Trend, on northern
extension targets;
-- 3.8 g/t average over 30.5 metres in initial trench on Paso Yobai 'New
Trend' target.
The construction of the 100-ton per day gold-extraction pilot plant on the approximately 4.5 km length Discovery Trend is now completed, with plant trials begun this week. Bulk sampling operations will begin by mid-January, 2012. The initial bulk sampling pit (300m length x 20m depth) has been designed for the centre of the Discovery Zone. Pit construction including mineral stockpiling began in November, 2011.
Exploration continues at the Paso Yobai Project to develop gold resources on two separate mineral trends. Diamond drilling has commenced on the northern arm of the Discovery Trend, to follow up multiple large mechanical trenches excavated and sampled earlier this year. Approximately 500m of new drilling will be completed before halting for Christmas.
On the New Trend, which is located 3.5 km northeast of the Discovery Trend, two large trenches were excavated on one of the gold soils targets that define the trend. The channel sample assay results presented in Figure 1 (and at www.latinamericanminerals.com) are from Trench TRT-1 at the Tacuru Target on the New Trend. These results demonstrate extensive and pervasive mineralization of diabase and sandstone host units with significant gold grades, which taken as a total across the extent of the trench represent an average grade of 3.8g/t over 30.55m. The assay results from Trench TRT-2 are not yet available, but visible gold was observed in some samples. The Company is currently processing a drill permit for the property, which is still in its first year prospecting licence under the Paraguayan mining code.
Miles Rideout, President and CEO of Latin American Minerals stated, 'The completion of the pilot plant is a major achievement for the Company, and for the development of Paraguay's mineral wealth. LAT's pilot-plant sampling operations will represent the first formal gold production in the history of Paraguay, The plant uses a sophisticated ultra-centrifugal gravity system for the gold recovery process, without requiring any chemicals. The excellent results from this year's exploration programme suggest that we may be outlining a major new epithermal gold system reflective of Paraguay's great mineral potential.'
To view Figure 1 - Diagram of Channel Sample Assay Results from trench TRT-1 on the New Trend at Paso Yobai, also shown at www.latinamericanminerals.com, please visit the following link: http://media3.marketwire.com/docs/Channel_Sample.pdf.
About the Paso Yobai Gold Project:
The Company is developing the Discovery Trend Pilot Plant operation on the 70% owned Minera Guaira mining concession, part of the Company's larger Paso Yobai Gold Project. The objective of the Pilot Plant is to facilitate resource evaluation the Discovery Trend, which is characterised by coarse gold mineralization extending from surface to greater than 100m depth. The course granular gold typical of the Discovery Trend complicates conventional resource estimation by diamond drilling due to the small sample volume extracted in exploration holes.
The Company's strategy to develop the Discovery Trend target is to detect and delineate mineral shoots by trenching and diamond drilling, then to verify the grades of these zones by bulk sampling. The Discovery Trend Pilot Plant will allow the Company to expand these operations to a commercial scale in order to accelerate the development of a resource.
The New Trend is located on concessions that are 100% owned by the Company. The New Trend, approximately 14.8 km in length, and located 3.5 km northeast of the Discovery Trend is an extensive, as yet undrilled target area. The results of the Company's 2011 work to define drill targets suggest that bulk tonnage potential could exist at several target zones along this elongated structure. The Company plans to focus 2012 exploration on these targets.
About the Company:
Latin American Minerals Inc. is a well-financed mineral exploration company focused on the acquisition and development of base mineral projects in highly prospective countries of South America. In addition to the Paso Yobai Gold Project, the Company's Itapoty Diamond Project and Chiriguelo REE/Niobium Project are also located in Paraguay.
Sampling and Analytical Protocols: The sampling and analytical protocols were established, implemented and supervised by, or under the direction of, Dr. Waldo Perez, the Company's internal Qualified Person as defined by National Instrument 43-101. Trench TRT-1 was sampled at 10m depth below surface, employing a continuous horizontal channel-sample method, and regularly spaced vertical channels. The sample channel is intended to approximate the size of core acquired during HQ drilling. Individual samples varied in length from approximately 2 m, to approximately 0.5 m in areas of high interest, such as in areas displaying mineralized veinlets. The samples were prepared by the Company's trained technicians by drying, crushing, milling and quartering to 200g, then were delivered by bonded courier to Alex Stewart Argentina S.A. (ASA), with certified laboratory facilities in Mendoza, Argentina. The samples were analyzed by ASA using a fire assay/atomic absorption process (process code AU4-50).
The statements made in this press release that are not historical facts contain forward-looking information that involves risk and uncertainties. All statements, other than statements of historical facts, which address Latin American Minerals' expectations, should be considered forward-looking statements. Such statements are based on management's exercise of business judgment as well as assumptions made by and information currently available to management. When used in this document, the words 'may', 'will', 'anticipate', 'believe', 'estimate', 'expect', 'intend' and words of similar import, are intended to identify any forward-looking statements. You should not place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements. These statements reflect our current view of future events and are subject to certain risks and uncertainties as contained in Latin American Minerals' filings with Canadian securities regulatory authorities. Should one or more of these risks or uncertainties materialize, or should underlying assumptions prove incorrect, our actual results could differ materially from those anticipated in these forward-looking statements. We undertake no obligation, and do not intend, to update, revise or otherwise publicly release any revisions to these forward-looking statements to reflect events or circumstances after the date hereof, or to reflect the occurrence of any unanticipated events, unless required under applicable securities laws. Although we believe that our expectations are based on reasonable assumptions, we can give no assurance that our expectations will materialize.
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:
Latin American Minerals Inc.
Miles Rideout
President and CEO
Toronto: (1-416) 363-0841 or (1-647) 361-7379
Argentina: (54-261) 439-9268
www.latinamericanminerals.com
Andreas Curkovic
Investor Relations
416-577-9927