Solitario active in Bolivia, Brazil (September 10, 2001)

Denver-based Solitario Resources (SLR-T) has begun an 8-hole drilling campaign on its wholly owned Rincon del Tigre platinum-palladium deposit in eastern Bolivia.

The program is focused on the extensive Palmarito zone, where work by Rio Tinto (RTP-N) in the early 1990s outlined a 120-km-long, platinum-group-metal-bearing horizon around the entire circumference of the complex.

The holes are testing areas of higher-grade mineralization that were delineated in the Palmarito zone by geochemical sampling programs.

The 50,400-acre property is one of the largest unexplored layered mafic intrusions in South America.

In northeastern Brazil, at the Pedra Branca PGM-project, an ongoing surface magnetic survey is about halfway complete, with more than 300 line km surveyed. Previous magnetic surveying over limited areas correlated well with PGM mineralization. Initial results from the current program include several large magnetic anomalies associated with known PGM-bearing prospects.

A regional reconnaissance program has identified two new PGM prospects, about 18 km from the closest previously identified occurrence. Initial surface sampling has returned up to 21 grams PGMs per tonne in rock, and up to 3.4 grams in soils.

Drilling will soon test these anomalies, as well as new prospects.

Earlier this summer, Rockwell Ventures (RCW-V) dropped Pedra Branca after drilling failed to return satisfactory results. As a result, Solitario regained 100% control of the 998-sq.-km property.

Rockwell was earning a 60% interest in the project from Solitario in return for spending US$7 million over four years. It had spent $2.7 million.

A 24-hole program, which started in April, focused on the Esbarro prospect. Rockwell drilled two holes each into the Curiu and Trapia prospects and three holes in the Ipueiras zone. Seventeen holes intersected the ultramafic-chromite assemblage, which hosts mineralization, whereas 12 did not. Two holes were incomplete.

Highlights from that drilling included 12.8 metres grading 1.89 grams platinum and palladium per tonne in hole 11 at the Esbarro zone. Within the interval was 0.31 metre of 29.5 grams platinum and palladium per tonne. Hole 14 cut 14.65 metres of 1.81 grams platinum-palladium, including 3 metres of 3.69 grams, at Esbarro. Hole 25 cut 14 metres of 2.94 grams at the Curiu target, including 1.5 metres of 11 grams and 0.9 metre of 11.4 grams. Hole 27 hit 45 metres of 1.44 grams at the Trapia target.

According to Rockwell, “the initial four targets did not appear to have the size or continuity to harbour large-scale deposits.”