Vancouver — An independent resource estimate on the Huevos Verdes and Saavedra West zones has enhanced the economic potential of the El Pluma-Cerro Saavedra gold-silver project in southern Argentina.
Snowden Mining Industry Consultants completed the study for partners Minera Andes (MAI-V) and Peru-based Mauricio Hochschild & Co. Using a 50 gram per tonne silver cut-off, a price of US$300 per oz gold and US$5 per oz silver, the indicated resource for the Huevos Verdes vein came in at 1.86 million tonnes grading 2.1 grams gold and 214.5 grams silver. An additional 2.69 million tonnes grading 2.5 grams gold and 253.5 grams silver were put in the inferred category.
Moving 5-km to the south, Snowden tabled an indicated resource of 382,000 tonnes grading 0.4 grams gold and 225 grams silver at the Saavedra West zone. An additional 579,000 tonnes grading 1.4 grams gold and 259.7 grams silver were slated in the inferred category. The resource comprises a 200-metre portion of an epithermal quartz vein and a 20-by-60 metre breccia zone located adjacent to the vein.
Hochschild launched a US$1.3 million exploration program over the project earlier this year as part of an agreement to earn a 51% stake. The program is targeting 9 prospects around the Huevos Verdes high-grade gold vein with 3,600 metres of trenching to be followed by 3,000 metres of drilling. The partners are testing for “low-sulphidation style” epithermal gold mineralization hosted in Jurassic volcanic rocks overlain by Cretaceous sediments and Tertiary basalts.
Previous drilling by Minera Andes on the Huevos Verde vein returned up to 7 metres grading 9.74 grams gold and 630.3 grams silver per tonne. Hochschild plans to evaluate the zones by underground exploration later in the year.
Hochschild can earn its interest in the 88,000-ha property by spending US$3 million over three years, as well as making cash payments of US$400,000 per year.
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