Atna Announces Significant Increase in Gold Resource at Pinson
GOLDEN, Colo., Feb. 6, 2012 /CNW/ - Atna Resources Ltd. ('Atna' or the 'Company')
is pleased to report the newly updated resource estimate at the Pinson Mine near Winnemucca, Nevada. This estimate incorporates all available data relating to Atna's property position at Pinson, including:
-- All Pinson Mining Company's drill results generated between
2006 and 2008.
-- Open pit drill information not previously incorporated in NI
43-101 Technical Studies.
-- All prior data relating to the high grade underground
mineralization at Pinson.
This study adds a significant open pit mineral resource to the already extensive high-grade underground mineral resource previously reported for Pinson. Total resource by underground and open pit scenarios are as follows:
Resource Summary (imperial) Resource Summary (metric)
Tons Contained Tonnes
oz/ton Au g/t Au
Underground (x 1,000) Ounces Gold (x 1,000)
Measured 1,619.1 0.355 575,000 1,468.8 12.18
Indicated 1,300.7 0.383 498,000 1,180.0 13.13
M & I-Total 2,919.8 0.368 1,073,000 2,648.8 12.60
Inferred 2,236.2 0.378 845,900 2,028.6 12.97
Open Pit Resource Summary (imperial) Resource Summary (metric)
Measured 21,158.9 0.035 732,000 19,195.0 1.19
Indicated 4,307.4 0.058 249,600 3,907.6 1.04
M & I-Total 25,466.3 0.039 981,700 23,102.6 1.32
Inferred 824.4 0.034 28,300 747.9 1.18
Imperial cut-off = 0.20 oz/ton Au Underground & 0.01 oz/ton Au Open
Pit
Metric cut-off = 6.34 g/tonne Au Underground, 0.34 g/tonne Au Open
Pit
Rounding may cause columns to not add or multiply precisely
Further detail of the mineral resource estimates are listed by zone and cutoff grade in the appended tables.
'This study demonstrates previously known high-grade underground mineral potential at Pinson and adds a significant open-pit mineral resource. We believe Pinson continues to have further exploration opportunity and are excited by the prospect of Pinson becoming Atna's major gold producer,' states James Hesketh, President & CEO.
Atna plans to start commercial underground mine production in the fourth quarter 2012. Underground mine design work is presently underway utilizing the resource model developed in this study. The contract miner at Pinson is currently driving a secondary access and Atna anticipates the mining of bulk metallurgical samples over the next quarter. Atna will begin feasibility study work to develop the open pit potential at Pinson in the coming months as underground production ramps up.
Combined measured and indicated resources estimates for the high grade underground zones were largely unchanged from prior estimates released by Atna in 2007, although inferred resources were reduced. This was due to factors that included the use of more conservative interpolation parameters based on a larger data set, the inclusion of additional data which changed geologic interpretations in local areas, and interaction with open-pit resource estimation.
To estimate the mineral resource; geologic, structural and mineral domains were constructed using available geologic data. This information was modeled using geostatistical methods to estimate gold grades and develop a three-dimensional block model. Structure and stratigraphy of the Pinson area was defined by combining subsurface data with surface geology to create three dimensional structural and stratigraphic models. Each of the CX Fault, CX-West Fault, Range Front Fault, Adams Peak Shear Zone, Otto Stope, Linehole North Fault, SOS Fault, SOS Dike, SOS Cross Fault and two CX Fault Splays, and the South and Mag pit areas were individually modeled. The Block model was divided into five statistically related zones to accommodate statistical search parameters appropriate for individual mineral styles. These were reported as the Mag and South pit zones, the Ogee/CX-West, Range Front and CX zones.
In order to define open-pit versus underground resources, the Mag and South pit resource zones were defined utilizing a pit optimizing tool, pit slopes of 45 degrees and costs based on Briggs Mine actual costs that assume heap leach gold recovery. Gold recovery was guided by previous heap leach operating experience at Pinson, where gold recovery was defined by the ratio of cyanide soluble gold assay to total gold assay.
Pinson is presently permitted for underground mining under a small miner's permit. Applications will be made in the near future to administratively amend this permit to allow full scale underground operations. High-grade ore mined at Pinson will be transported to nearby third party plants for processing. Additional permitting, which may require the completion of an environmental impact study, will be required to support open pit mining and heap leach recovery operations at Pinson. Pinson historically produced almost one million ounces of gold through open pit mining and heap leach and oxide mill recovery.
The resource estimate was prepared for Atna by Gustavson Associates, LLC of Colorado, a leading global mining consulting firm consisting of geologists and engineers, under the supervision of Donald E. Hulse, P.E. a Qualified Person as defined in NI 43-101.
This press release was prepared under the supervision and review of William Stanley, V.P. Exploration of Atna, a Registered Member of the Society for Mining, Metallurgy, and Exploration, a Licensed Geologist and Qualified Person, as defined in NI 43-101, who has verified the authenticity and validity of the technical information contained within this news release.
For additional information on Atna Resources and the Pinson Mine, please visit our website at www.atna.com.
This press release contains certain 'forward-looking statements,' as defined in the United States Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, and within the meaning of Canadian securities legislation relating to potential mineral resource, reserve or production at the Pinson Mine. Forward-looking statements are statements that are not historical fact. They are based on the beliefs, estimates and opinions of the Company's management on the date the statements are made and they involve a number of risks and uncertainties. Consequently, there can be no assurances that such statements will prove to be accurate and actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated in such statements. The Company undertakes no obligation to update these forward-looking statements if management's beliefs, estimates or opinions, or other factors, should change, unless required by law. Factors that could cause future results to differ materially from those anticipated in these forward-looking statements include: gold deposit modeling, development and future production at the Pinson Mine, the Company might encounter problems such as the significant depreciation of metals prices; accidents and other risks associated with mine development and production operations; the risk that the Company will encounter unanticipated geological factors; the Company's need for and ability to obtain additional financing; the possibility that the Company may not be able to secure permitting and other governmental clearances necessary to carry out the Company's exploration and development programs; and the other risk factors discussed in greater detail in the Company's various filings on SEDAR (www.sedar.com) with Canadian securities regulators and its filings with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, including the Company's 2010 Form 20-F dated March 23, 2011.
Cautionary Note to U.S. Investors --- The United States Securities and Exchange Commission permits U.S. mining companies, in their filings with the SEC, to disclose only those mineral deposits that a company can economically and legally extract or produce. We use certain terms in this report, such as 'measured,' 'indicated,' 'inferred,' and 'resources,' that the SEC guidelines strictly prohibit U.S. registered companies from including in their filings with the SEC.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION, CONTACT:
James Hesketh, President and CEO - (303) 278-8464
Valerie Kimball, Investor Relations - toll free (877) 692-8182
www.atna.com
Underground Mineral Resources (Imperial)
Cutoff Measured Indicated Measured + Indicated Inferred
Gold Tons Gold Ounces Tons Gold Ounces Tons Gold Ounces Tons Gold Ounces
opt opt Au opt Au opt Au opt Au
0.100 3,037,200 0.257 781,700 2,516,000 0.266 668,400 5,553,300 0.261 1,450,100 4,204,900 0.269 1,129,500
0.150 2,244,000 0.304 683,100 1,719,700 0.332 570,900 3,963,700 0.316 1,254,000 3,013,500 0.326 982,800
0.200 1,619,100 0.355 575,000 1,300,700 0.383 498,000 2,919,800 0.368 1,073,000 2,236,200 0.378 845,900
0.250 1,171,900 0.405 474,900 934,300 0.444 415,000 2,106,200 0.423 889,900 1,722,800 0.424 730,600
0.300 828,700 0.459 380,700 606,600 0.534 324,000 1,435,300 0.491 704,700 1,253,500 0.480 601,200
0.500 206,100 0.715 147,300 291,500 0.701 204,200 497,600 0.706 351,600 481,600 0.617 297,100
Underground Mineral Resources (Metric)
Cutoff Measured Indicated Measured + Indicated Inferred
Gold Tonnes Gold Ounces Tonnes Gold Ounces Tonnes Gold Ounces Tonnes Gold Ounces
g/t g/t Au g/t Au g/t Au g/t Au
3.43 2,755,300 8.82 781,700 2,282,500 9.11 668,400 5,037,800 8.95 1,450,100 3,814,600 9.21 1,129,500
5.14 2,035,700 10.44 683,100 1,560,100 11.38 570,900 3,595,800 10.85 1,254,000 2,733,800 11.18 982,800
6.86 1,468,800 12.18 575,000 1,180,000 13.13 498,000 2,648,800 12.60 1,073,000 2,028,600 12.97 845,900
8.57 1,063,100 13.89 474,900 847,500 15.23 415,000 1,910,700 14.49 889,900 1,562,900 14.54 730,600
10.29 751,800 15.75 380,700 550,300 18.31 324,000 1,302,100 16.83 704,700 1,137,100 16.44 601,200
17.14 187,000 24.51 147,300 264,500 24.02 204,200 451,400 24.22 351,600 436,900 21.15 297,100
Underground Mineral Resource by Area, 0.20 oz/ton Au cut-off (Imperial)
Measured Indicated Measured + Indicated Inferred
Zone Tons Gold Contained Tons Gold Contained Tons Gold Contained Tons Gold Contained
opt ounces Au opt ounces Au opt ounces Au opt ounces Au
Ogee/CX-West 398,000 0.405 161,100 385,700 0.402 155,200 783,700 0.404 316,300 433,700 0.324 140,400
Range Front 459,700 0.325 149,300 363,500 0.345 125,400 823,100 0.334 274,700 447,200 0.319 142,800
Adams Peak 415,100 0.341 141,600 129,200 0.287 37,100 544,300 0.328 178,700 79,100 0.292 23,100
Otto Stope 29,700 0.523 15,500 122,800 0.400 49,100 152,400 0.424 64,600 290,500 0.361 105,000
Linehole
North 2,200 0.245 500 121,200 0.633 76,700 123,400 0.626 77,200 760,400 0.489 372,000
CX Fault &
splays 314,400 0.340 107,000 178,500 0.306 54,600 492,900 0.328 161,600 225,400 0.278 62,600
Summary 1,619,100 0.355 575,000 1,300,700 0.383 498,000 2,919,800 0.368 1,073,000 2,236,200 0.378 845,900
Underground Mineral Resource by Area, 6.86 g/t Au cut-off (Metric)
Measured Indicated Measured + Indicated Inferred
Zone Tonnes Gold Contained Tonnes Gold Contained Tonnes Gold Contained Tonnes Gold Contained
g/t ounces Au g/t ounces Au g/t ounces Au g/t ounces Au
Ogee/CX-West 361,100 13.88 161,100 349,900 13.79 155,200 711,000 13.84 316,300 393,400 11.10 140,400
Range Front 417,000 11.13 149,300 329,700 11.83 125,400 746,700 11.44 274,700 405,700 10.95 142,800
Adams Peak 376,600 11.69 141,600 117,200 9.84 37,100 493,800 11.25 178,700 71,700 10.02 23,100
Otto Stope 26,900 17.93 15,500 111,400 13.72 49,100 138,300 14.54 64,600 263,500 12.39 105,000
Linehole
North 2,000 8.40 500 109,900 21.70 76,700 111,900 21.46 77,200 689,800 16.77 372,000
CX Fault &
splays 285,200 11.67 107,000 161,900 10.48 54,600 447,200 11.24 161,600 204,500 9.52 62,600
Summary 1,468,800 12.18 575,000 1,180,000 13.13 498,000 2,648,800 12.60 1,073,000 2,028,600 12.97 845,900
Open Pit Mineral Resources
(Imperial)
Cutoff Measured Indicated Measured + Inferred
Indicated
Gold Tons Gold Contained Tons Gold Contained Tons Gold Contained Tons Gold Contained
opt opt ounces Au opt ounces Au opt ounces Au opt ounces Au
0.005 26,291,100 0.029 770,700 5,123,000 0.050 255,600 31,414,100 0.033 1,026,300 1,035,200 0.029 29,900
0.010 21,158,900 0.035 732,000 4,307,400 0.058 249,600 25,466,300 0.039 981,700 824,400 0.034 28,300
0.015 16,999,400 0.040 681,000 3,652,700 0.066 241,500 20,652,100 0.045 922,600 659,000 0.040 26,200
0.020 13,988,700 0.045 628,500 3,198,500 0.073 233,800 17,187,300 0.050 862,200 531,600 0.045 24,100
0.025 11,474,200 0.050 572,200 2,837,000 0.080 225,700 14,311,200 0.056 797,900 426,800 0.051 21,700
0.030 9,338,900 0.055 513,500 2,495,100 0.087 216,200 11,834,000 0.062 729,700 356,800 0.055 19,800
Open Pit Mineral Resources (Metric)
Cutoff Measured Indicated Measured + Indicated Inferred
Gold Tonnes Gold Contained Tonnes Gold Contained Tonnes Gold Contained Tonnes Gold Contained
g/t g/t ounces Au g/t ounces Au g/t ounces Au g/t ounces Au
0.17 23,850,900 1.01 770,700 4,647,500 1.71 255,600 28,498,400 1.12 1,026,300 939,100 0.99 29,900
0.34 19,195,000 1.19 732,000 3,907,600 1.99 249,600 23,102,600 1.32 981,700 747,900 1.18 28,300
0.51 15,421,600 1.37 681,000 3,313,700 2.27 241,500 18,735,300 1.53 922,600 597,800 1.37 26,200
0.69 12,690,300 1.54 628,500 2,901,700 2.51 233,800 15,592,000 1.72 862,200 482,200 1.55 24,100
0.86 10,409,200 1.71 572,200 2,573,600 2.73 225,700 12,982,900 1.91 797,900 387,200 1.74 21,700
1.03 8,472,100 1.89 513,500 2,263,500 2.97 216,200 10,735,600 2.11 729,700 323,700 1.90 19,800
Open Pit Mineral Resource by Area, 0.010 oz/ton Au cut-off (Imperial)
Measured Indicated Measured + Indicated Inferred
Zone Tons Gold Contained Tons Gold Contained Tons Gold Contained Tons Gold Contained
opt ounces Au opt ounces Au opt ounces Au opt ounces Au
Mag Pit 20,631,000 0.034 711,100 2,703,800 0.074 200,900 23,334,800 0.039 912,000 533,000 0.038 20,300
South
Zone 527,900 0.040 21,000 1,603,600 0.030 48,800 2,131,500 0.033 69,700 291,400 0.028 8,000
Summary 21,158,900 0.035 732,000 4,307,400 0.058 249,600 25,466,300 0.039 981,700 824,400 0.034 28,300
Open Pit Mineral Resource by Area, 0.34 g/t Au cut-off (Metric)
Measured Indicated Measured + Indicated Inferred
Zone Tonnes Gold Contained Tonnes Gold Contained Tonnes Gold Contained Tonnes Gold Contained
g/t ounces Au g/t ounces Au g/t ounces Au g/t ounces Au
Mag Pit 18,716,100 1.18 711,100 2,452,900 2.55 200,900 21,169,000 1.34 912,000 483,500 1.31 20,300
South
Zone 478,900 1.36 21,000 1,454,800 1.04 48,800 1,933,600 1.12 69,700 264,400 0.94 8,000
Summary 19,195,000 1.19 732,000 3,907,600 1.99 249,600 23,102,600 1.32 981,700 747,900 1.18 28,300
SOURCE Atna Resources Ltd.
Atna Resources Ltd.
CONTACT: http://www.atna.com