Premier Gold Releases Trans-Canada Property Resource Estimates on Four Deposits
Shares Issued: 149,027,712
THUNDER BAY, ON, Dec. 19, 2012 /CNW/ - PREMIER GOLD MINES LIMITED ("Premier" or "The Company") (TSX: PG) is very pleased to release recently completed mineral resource estimates on four gold deposits located on the Company's 100%-owned Trans-Canada Property including the Hardrock, Brookbank, Kailey and Key Lake Deposits. The undiluted and in-situ estimates were completed by Micon International Limited for each of the deposits utilizing a 3D block model and supported with input from the Company's geological personnel. Key assumptions of the updated mineral resource estimates are summarized in Table 1. Table 2 provides individual deposit summaries of the resources at Trans-Canada, each being categorized by potential underground (U/G) and/or open-pit (O/P) cut-off grades where appropriate.
The Company has also scheduled a conference call and webcast for investors and analysts at 2:00 p.m. (Eastern Time) Thursday, December 20, 2012. Details for the call can be found at the bottom of this press release.
Highlights of the 2012 resource estimates include:
- Measured and Indicated resources of 4.12M ounces of gold
- Inferred resources of 3.65M ounces of gold
- Multiple deposits remain open for expansion and are the subject of ongoing drilling
- New gold zones have recently been discovered, offering further upside
"The Trans-Canada Property continues to deliver solid results and a growing resource base," commented Premier President & CEO Ewan Downie. "Our substantial drill programs completed in 2011 and 2012 have consistently returned exceptional results and our shareholders have reason to be particularly excited by the progress made at the Hardrock Deposit, which continues to exceed our expectations."
Table 1 Summary of Parameters and Assumptions Used for Trans-Canada Resource Estimates
| Parameter or Assumption | Hardrock | Brookbank | Kailey | Key Lake |
| Date of Data Used | 31-Oct-12 | 30-Apr-12 | 31-Oct-12 | 31-Oct-12 |
| Number of drill holes | 900 | 376 | 59 | 245 |
| Long Term Gold Price Per Ounce | US$1455 | US$1455 | US$1455 | US$1455 |
| Cut-off Grade O/P (g/t) | 0.50 | 0.50 | 0.50 | 0.50 |
| Cut-off Grade U/G (g/t) | 2.80 | 2.80 | 2.80 | 2.80 |
| Processing $/tonne O/P | 20.00 | 20.00 | 20.00 | 20.00 |
| Processing $/tonne U/G | 20.00 | 20.00 | 20.00 | 20.00 |
| Mining $/tonne O/P | 3.00 | 3.00 | 3.00 | 3.00 |
| Mining $/tonne U/G | 60.00 | 60.00 | 60.00 | 60.00 |
| Mill Recovery (%) | 90.00 | 90.00 | 90.00 | 90.00 |
| G & A | 1.00 | 1.00 | 1.00 | 1.00 |
| Assumed O/P Slope Angle | 50 | 50 | 50 | 50 |
| O/P Strip Ratio | 4.1 | 8.3 | 1.5 | 4.8 |
| Specific Gravity (SG) | 2.76 to 3.28 | 2.87 | 2.87 | 2.87 |
| Block Model & Interpolation Software | GEMS | GEMS | GEMS | GEMS |
| Interpolation Method | ID3 | ID3 | ID3 | ID3 |
| Block Sizes (m x m x m) U/G | 10x3x10 | 10x1.5x10 | 10x10x10 | 10x3x10 |
| Block Sizes (m x m x m) O/P | 10x15x10 | 10x1.5x10 | 10x10x10 | 10x3x10 |
| Restricted Search Radius (RSR) (m) | 6x3x6 | 10x10x3 | 12x12x3 | 10x2x10 |
| Threshold Grade before RSR (g/t) | 8 to 40 * | 35 | 7 | 1.6 to 7.5* |
| * There are 9 Domains for Hardrock and 12 domains for Key Lake |
Resource Estimate
The estimations are based on samples composited to 1.5 metres (for the Hardrock underground), 1 metre (for the Brookbank deposit) and 3 metres (for the Hardrock open pit, Kailey and Key Lake).
The resource for the Hardrock deposit is based on dynamic modeling of composites defined on 0.5 g/t Au cut-off for the underground portion of the resource and on 0.1 g/t cut-off for the open pit resource. The composites defined on a 0.5 g/t cut-off comprise 9 distinct domains while the 0.1 g/t cut-off combines all of these domains into a single mass which was subjected to a Whittle Pit optimization analysis restricted to 200 m vertical depth.
Resources for the Brookbank and Key Lake deposits are based on mineralization wireframes defined on a 0.3 g/t Au cut-off while for the predominantly low grade Kailey deposit the mineralization wireframe is defined on a 0.1 g/t Au cut-off.
The Inverse Distance Cubed (ID3) method which gives a fairly high level of selectivity was utilized in the resource estimate to ensure that zones with internal waste remained distinct. The resource models were validated visually by sectioning, running a parallel estimate using Ordinary Kriging and by Swath plots.
The Micon staff with responsibility for these resource estimates are Messrs Alan J. San Martin, MAusIMM(CP) and Charley Murahwi, P.Geo, FAusIMM. All are Qualified Persons as defined in NI 43-101, and are independent of Premier Gold Mines. Micon acknowledges that it has read this press release and there are no errors contained herein.
Table 2 Trans-Canada Property Resources Summary
| Deposit | Cut-off Category | Resource Category | Tonnes (Mt) | Gold (Au) Grade (g/t) | Au Ounces (000's) |
| Open Pit (O/P) | Measured (M) | 12.737 | 1.41 | 576 | |
| Indicated (I) | 33.92 | 1.55 | 1,685 | ||
| Subtotal M & I | 46.657 | 1.51 | 2,261 | ||
| Hardrock | Inferred | 6.615 | 1.74 | 370 | |
| Underground (U/G) | Measured (M) | 0.315 | 5.84 | 60 | |
| Indicated (I) | 4.73 | 5.42 | 829 | ||
| Subtotal M & I | 5.045 | 5.48 | 889 | ||
| Inferred | 16.009 | 5.91 | 3,040 | ||
| Open Pit | Measured (M) | 0 | 0 | ||
| Indicated (I) | 2.638 | 2.01 | 171 | ||
| Subtotal M & I | 2.638 | 2.02 | 171 | ||
| Brookbank | Inferred | 0.171 | 2.38 | 13 | |
| Underground | Measured (M) | 0 | 0 | ||
| Indicated (I) | 1.851 | 7.21 | 429 | ||
| Subtotal M & I | 1.851 | 7.21 | 429 | ||
| Inferred | 0.403 | 4.02 | 53 | ||
| Open Pit | Measured (M) | 4.052 | 1.06 | 139 | |
| Indicated (I) | 4.578 | 0.86 | 126 | ||
| Subtotal M & I | 8.630 | 0.95 | 265 | ||
| Kailey | Inferred | 3.688 | 0.97 | 115 | |
| Underground | Measured (M) | 0 | 0 | ||
| Indicated (I) | 0 | 0 | |||
| Subtotal M & I | 0 | 0 | |||
| Inferred | 0 | 0 | |||
| Open Pit | Measured (M) | 0 | 0 | ||
| Indicated (I) | 2.572 | 1.17 | 97 | ||
| Subtotal M & I | 2.572 | 1.17 | 97 | ||
| Key Lake | Inferred | 1.345 | 1.29 | 56 | |
| Underground | Measured (M) | 0 | 0 | ||
| Indicated (I) | 0.031 | 6.48 | 6 | ||
| Subtotal M & I | 0.031 | 6.48 | 6 | ||
| Inferred | 0.058 | 3.57 | 7 | ||
| Open Pit | Total M & I | 60.497 | 1.44 | 2,794 | |
| Combined | Total Inferred | 11.819 | 1.46 | 554 | |
| Deposits | Underground | Total M & I | 6.927 | 5.94 | 1,324 |
| Total Inferred | 16.47 | 5.85 | 3,100 |
The mineral resource estimates used the Canadian Institute of Mining, Metallurgy and Petroleum (CIM), Standards on Mineral Resources and Reserves, Definitions and Guidelines prepared by CIM Standing Committee on Reserve Definitions and adopted by CIM Council on November 27, 2010. The mineral resource estimates are classified as "measured", "indicated", or "inferred" as defined by CIM. The Company intends to file a National Instrument 43-101 ("NI 43-101") compliant technical report in respect of the updated mineral resource estimate on SEDAR and on the Company's website within 45 days of this news release.
Further Discussion and Analysis
The currently announced resources represent the first consolidated statement of four deposits comprising the 100%-owned Trans-Canada Property of Premier Gold Mines Ltd. The Hardrock Deposit represents 77% of the total M+I ounces and 93% of the total Inferred ounces.
Some choices (and changes) have been made in completing the estimations in 2012 which Premier believes results in an improved overall resource estimate. Some of these include:
- Cut-Off Grades
- Adopting restricted search ellipses rather than "capping" to manage outlier (high) grades
- Adjusted specific gravity (SG) at Hardrock to reflect new data
- Revised block sizes for U/G and O/P material at some deposits
- Higher degree of manual adjustments of resource categories
The aggregate impact of these choices and adjustments has resulted in a 42% reduction of M+I ounces reported at Hardrock U/G. At the same time, Premier is reporting a significant increase of 183% in Inferred ounces at Hardrock U/G. In Premier's opinion, this "rebalancing of ounces" can be regarded as an improvement in how the block model reflects the data and in-situ mineralization both locally and regionally.
Hardrock Gold Deposit
The Hardrock Gold Deposit is the largest gold deposit within the Trans-Canada Property. It is located 3.0 kilometres south of the Town of Geraldton in Ontario. Open Pit mineralization has been identified where historic gold mining comes to surface, and underground mineralization consists of both new horizons located parallel to the historic mine and extensions of the main zones historically mined.
Several of the primary horizons remain open down-plunge and new prospective horizons located in close proximity to the current resource are now being tested by drilling.
Other Deposits
Brookbank is located approximately 77 kilometres to the west of Hardrock along the Trans-Canada highway and has the potential to be evaluated as a stand-alone project utilizing the existing Northern Empire Mill or as a satellite deposit to any future Hardrock development. The Brookbank Deposit has traditionally been regarded as a potential underground opportunity. The current resource suggests that a small portion of the deposit may be amenable to being evaluated as an open-pit mining resource.
The Kailey deposit is located 2.5 kilometres north of Hardrock and is comprised of shallow, widely disseminated mineralization proximal to the historic Little Long Lac gold mine. The Key Lake Deposit is located approximately 11 kilometres to the west of Hardrock and is open at depth. Premier currently regards both Kailey and Key Lake as early stage resources with potential to grow. Their proximity to the Hardrock Deposit may be beneficial to any potential future development at these sites.
Premier is continuing to explore and delineate all deposits at the Trans-Canada Property while also conducting earlier-stage studies to support exploration designed to make additional new discoveries.
Live Conference Call and Webcast Access Information
| North American callers please dial: Local and international callers please dial: | 1-888-231-8191 1-647-427-7450 |
A live webcast of the call will be available through CNW Group's website at: www.newswire.ca or at www.premiergoldmines.com
Stephen McGibbon, P. Geo., is the Qualified Person for the information contained in this press release and is a Qualified Person within the meaning of National Instrument 43-101.
Premier Gold Mines Limited is one of North America's leading exploration and development companies with a high-quality pipeline of gold projects focused in proven, safe and accessible mining jurisdictions in Canada and the United States. The Company's portfolio includes significant assets in world class gold mining districts such as Red Lake, Musselwhite and Geraldton in Ontario and the most prolific gold trends in Nevada.
The statements made in this Press Release may contain forward-looking statements that may involve a number of risks and uncertainties. Actual events or results could differ materially from the Company's expectations and projections.
SOURCE Premier Gold Mines Limited
Ewan Downie, President & CEO
Phone: 807-346-1390
Fax: 807-346-0100
e-mail: Info@premiergoldmines.com
Web Site: www.premiergoldmines.com