Mindoro Reports Further Drill Results From Nickel Laterite Project
in response to
by
Located in the Pacific Ring of Fire
Diverse resource exploration in the Philippines.
Message: Mindoro Reports Further Drill Results From Nickel Laterite Project
| Tue Jul 29, 2008 |
|||||||||||||||||||||||
| EDMONTON, Alberta; July 29, 2008 - Mindoro Resources Ltd. (TSXV: MIO; Frankfurt: WKN 906167) is pleased to report results for a further 22 drill holes from the Phase 2 drill program on the Agata North Nickel Laterite Project, Philippines. The limonite horizon averages 1.03 percent nickel, 0.14 percent cobalt and 45.96 percent iron over an average thickness of 3.40 meters. The underlying saprolite horizon averages 1.22 percent nickel over an average thickness of 5.00 meters. Grades and thicknesses are consistent with those previously reported and continue to be of potential economic interest. The drill program is continuing to expand the resource. An updated NI 43-101 resource estimate will be released during August. On April 30, 2008, Mindoro reported an initial NI 43-101 mineral resource estimate from Agata North (see About the Agata Nickel Laterite Project). Objectives of the Phase 2 drilling program were to confirm the internal continuity of mineralization with closer-spaced drill holes and to extend the initial resource. On July 16, 2008, Mindoro reported results of the first 49 drill holes of the Phase 2 drill program, which confirmed internal continuity of the mineralization and continued to expand the resource. Results of a further 40 drill holes are awaited, and drilling is ongoing with four drill rigs. Current drill spacing is on 100 meter centers, adequate for at least inferred resource category, and likely indicated resource category for much of the mineralization. A full listing of the latest drill results and a drill hole location map is available with this release on Mindoro's website. The following table presents the average values from the latest assay results from 22 drill holes:
ABOUT THE AGATA NICKEL LATERITE PROJECT Location in the Prolific Surigao Copper-Gold and Nickel District The Agata Nickel Laterite Project is situated on the Agata Project, Surigao Gold District, northern Mindanao, the Philippines. The Surigao Gold District is not only a current and historical gold producing district but, with the discovery of a cluster of porphyry copper gold deposits by Anglo American, it also has high potential to become a major copper-gold camp. Mindoro has multiple gold and copper-gold targets in the Surigao District at varying stages of drill evaluation. The Surigao Region is now emerging as a major nickel producing district, and there are a number of nickel laterite deposits either in production or being developed, providing Direct Shipping Ore (DSO) to markets and processing plants in China, Japan, Korea and Australia. A preliminary starter resource has been released for Agata as described below. Agata North Mineral Resource Estimate In April 30, 2008, Mindoro announced an early-stage 43-101 compliant mineral resource estimate for the Agata Nickel Laterite Project. The estimate for combined Measured and Indicated Resources, for limonite and saprolite combined, is 4.40 million wet metric tonnes (WMT) grading 1.25 percent nickel, 0.063 percent cobalt and 23 percent iron at a cut-off grade of 0.80 percent nickel. In addition, the Inferred Resource estimate is 2.45 million WMT grading 1.23 percent nickel, 0.062 percent cobalt and 22 percent iron, also at a cut-off grade of 0.80 percent nickel. A total of 134 drill holes, comprising 2,921 meters of diamond drill core and 2,874 assay samples, were used for the estimate. The resource area is a small part of Agata North as mapped to date and resource expansion drilling is continuing. Additional areas of potential laterite mineralization have been mapped on other projects and are being evaluated. The reader is cautioned that mineral resources which are not mineral reserves do not have demonstrated economic viability. It is uncertain if further exploration will result in upgrading the Inferred mineral resources to an Indicated or Measured mineral resource or the Indicated mineral resource to a measured Resource category. Enhanced Value, On-Site Processing Alternatives While sulphide nickel deposits have dominated historical nickel production, the future belongs to nickel laterite deposits. Once regarded as too difficult metallurgically, break-throughs and technological refinements, still in their relative infancy, are leading rapidly to a new generation of much larger nickel production centers from laterite deposits. The Agata Project with its excellent infrastructure, proximity to tide water and the markets that really count, is attractively placed for potential development. While much of the Surigao District nickel laterite production has been as DSO to processing plants in Japan, Australia and China, several attractive alternatives are emerging for local processing, which include; constructing an on-site blast or electric arc furnace for nickel pig iron production (a low grade ferronickel product); ferronickel smelting (a ferronickel smelter recently commenced operation not far away in NW Mindanao); heap-leaching, for which pilot testing on another Philippine laterite deposit has produced promising results; atmospheric (tank) leaching; and an improved generation of High Pressure Acid Leach (HPAL) plants. HPAL technology is currently being used with great success by Sumitomo on its Philippine Coral Bay operation, and shows considerable promise for the local processing of Surigao ores. In fact, Sumitomo recently announced plans to proceed with permitting to construct an HPAL plant in the Surigao District. This HPAL technology has a proven track record, in contrast to several HPAL operations previously attempted in Australia, and is ideally suited to the low-grade Philippine nickel laterites. As noted in a February 7, 2008 news release, there is abundant evidence of the beginning of a trend for local/on-site processing of Philippine laterite ores and the growth of a large high-value industry in the Philippines. Mindoro expects that the prolifically nickel laterite-mineralized Surigao District will be an important part of this evolution. While options are being kept open for DSO production in the short term, on-site processing offers much more exciting and high value opportunities. Construction of a local processing plant, rather than simply shipping out raw product, would greatly increase the returns to all stakeholders; including Mindoro's shareholders, its Philippine partner, the local people, local government units, and to the Philippines itself. |
New Message
Please
login
to post a reply