Further Ban Phuc drilling by Asian Mineral Resources

Vancouver – Ongoing drilling by recently-listed Asian Mineral Resources (ASN-V) on its 70% owned Ban Phuc nickel project, in northern Vietnam, continues to prove up the resource enroute to proposed development.

The latest round of infill and exploratory drilling by the aspiring nickel producer has delivered some significant mineralized intercepts, including:

• Hole 04-36 Drilling intersected an 8 metre interval (from 147 metres) of disseminated sulphide mineralization grading 0.91% nickel, followed by a second 16 metre section (from 165 metres) grading 0.8% nickel;
• Hole 04-40 An intercept of 4.9 metres (from 130 metres) assayed 2.13% nickel and 0.79% copper within massive sulphide vein material, and included higher-grade intervals of up to 0.7 metres at 5.15% nickel and 1.66% copper;
• Hole 04-47 The hole within the delineated, inferred resource block, returned a 4 metre section (from 264 metres) of massive sulphide vein averaged 4% nickel and 2.67% copper;
• Hole 04-49 The core cut 7.9 metres (from 228 metres) of massive sulphide vein material, outside of the previous resource boundary, grading 5.16% nickel and 1.67% copper.

Drilling targeted both the Ban Phuc massive sulphide vein structure and the lower grade disseminated ultramafic intrusive zone on the project. Results from the program show possible extensions to mineralized zones plunging towards the west.

Massive nickel-copper sulphide mineralization at the project is a result of remobilization of the metals into a footwall shear-zone that has currently been drill-traced over 730 metres, striking east-west and dipping steeply northwards to sub-vertically. The primary sulphide minerals in the vein structure are pentlandite, chalcopyrite and pyrrhotite.

A lower grade zone of disseminated nickel mineralization is hosted within two ultramafic intrusives. A serpentinized olivine-pyroxenite and a partially serpentinized dunite have accumulations of pentlandite, millerite (NiS) and violarite (FeNi2S4) as the main nickel sulphides.

In September 2004, and following completion of Stage 1 drilling, Asian Mineral Resources updated its resource estimate of the Ban Phuc sulphide nickel project to an indicated resource of 8.52 million tonnes grading 0.76% nickel. There is an additional 35.7 million tonnes of inferred resource grading 0.56% nickel. The company is preparing a preliminary economic assessment and envisions development of the project through open pit methods.

Ban Phuc had seen underground development work in that late-1950 through mid-1960s by Vietnamese exploration groups. Some 3 km of accessible adits and crosscuts expose the mineralization and are being reopened by the company.Asian Mineral Resources plans to increase its interest in Ban Phuc to 90% by acquiring a further 20% from its Vietnamese partner.

As of the latest figures, the company reports 37.9 million shares outstanding, giving a market capitalization of about $17-million at the present trading level of 45 per share.