Silver Standard active in Argentina

Vancouver — Junior Silver Standard Resources (SSO-V) reports impressive results from infill and exploration drilling at the Manantial Espejo silver-gold project in Argentina’s Santa Cruz province.

So far, the company has completed 537.9 metres (22 holes) of a planned 5,000-metre program. Crews are currently focusing on on the Veta Maria area in a program consisting of near-surface infill drilling, extension drilling of the Union, Karina and Melissa veins, and exploration drilling of three newly discovered veins. A series of shallow holes, collared on 25-metre centres, are being drilled over the 700-metre strike length of the vein system.

Bonanza grades with visible gold over narrow widths, include the following:

– hole 215, which cut 8.6 metres grading 2.3 grams gold and 415.9 grams silver starting from a down-hole depth of 1.5 metres, including a 3.4-metre section of 4.5 grams gold and 874.8 grams silver;

– hole 216, which intersected 13.7 metres grading 11.3 grams gold and 319.9 grams silver starting at 1.5 metres down-hole, including 1 metre of 105.2 grams gold and 796.3 grams silver;

– hole 201, which intersected 11.8 metres grading 3.5 grams gold and 69.3 grams silver starting at 13.2 metres down-hole;

– hole 205, which returned 3 metres of 23.8 grams gold and 159.1 grams silver starting at 15.9 metres down-hole, including 1 metre grading 53.3 grams gold and 237 grams silver; and

– hole 207, which cut 5.1 metres grading 0.3 gram gold and 127.7 grams silver starting at 2.4 metres down-hole. This was followed by a 0.6-metre interval that averaged 52.9 grams gold and 213.5 grams silver starting at 14 metres down-hole.

At last report, measured and indicated resources at the Manantial Espejo deposit totalled 4.4 million tonnes grading 263.8 grams silver and 4.51 grams gold per tonne. The inferred resource stands at 1.6 million tonnes grading 258.2 grams silver and 3.65 grams gold. Measured and indicated resources represent 73% of the total resource.

Discovered in 1989, the project consists of eight concessions covering 225 sq. km. It is situated 160 km west of the tidewater port of Puerto San Julian and is accessible via an all-weather gravel road. Geologically, the property is underlain by Jurassic-aged andesitic flows and agglomerates covered by felsic tuffs and ignimbrites. Silver and gold mineralization is associated with northwest-trending fault zones and is generally confined to continuous shoots in quartz veins.

Silver Standard holds a 10% direct interest in Manantial Espejo and has an option to earn a further 40% from Black Hawk Mining (BHK-T), which holds 90% currently.

In other news, Silver Standard has agreed to acquire Pacific Rim Mining‘s (PFG-T) Diabillos silver-gold project, in the same country. To do so, it must pay US$3.4 million in staged cash payments and share issuances by the end of 2003. The deal is subject to due diligence, a formal agreement and regulatory approvals.

The 36-sq.-km property hosts several silver-rich “high-sulphidation” epithermal occurrences, including the Oculto target, which has been drill-tested by 151 reverse-circulation and 41 diamond drill holes.

Oculto contains an inferred silver resource of 42 million tonnes averaging 70 grams silver per tonne at a cutoff grade of 42 grams silver-equivalent, plus an inferred gold resource of 25 million tonnes running 1.02 grams at a cutoff grade of 0.7 gram gold-equivalent.

Metallurgical work indicates lower-than-expected recoveries from column leach tests, so the deposit may not be amenable to heap leaching.

Barrick Gold (ABX-T) completed much of the recent work at Oculto before letting its option agreement with the junior expire in late June. The major had spent more than US$17 million sinking 24 diamond drill holes and 150 reverse-circulation holes. Included in this work were 17 diamond drill holes (totalling 3,010 metres) and 79 reverse-circulation holes (19,114 metres), and it is these that define the Oculto deposit.

Exploration crews will try to expand Oculto to the west and define additional gold-silver mineralization at the Laderas target, 500 metres north of Oculto.

An open-pit mine will not be developed until silver prices improve, Silver Standard says.