Ecuadorian cuts more high-grade — 21-hole drill program tests Alejandra and Dorada zones at the Beroen property

Junior Ecuadorian Minerals (EMC-T) has intersected more high-grade gold-silver values at the Beroen property in Ecuador.

The company recently completed 21 angled core holes, totalling 2,029 metres, on the Alejandra and Dorada zones.

At Alejandra, where most of the drilling occurred, the company intercepted 18 metres of mineralized breccia in hole 16, grading 2.6 grams gold and 30 grams silver per tonne. The interval included 5 metres of 5.2 grams gold and 74 grams silver per tonne.

Hole 6 tried but failed to intercept the Alejandra vein, though it did encounter 2.2 metres grading 2.7 grams gold and 9 grams silver at a depth of 8.8 metres, plus 2.1 metres of 3.2 grams gold and 35 grams silver at a depth of 43 metres. Company geologists believe the hole missed the target as a result of faulting.

One kilometre to the south, Ecuadorian intersected long intervals of gold-silver mineralization in four holes in the Dorada zone. Drilling into altered and brecciated diorite, Ecuadorian encountered 41.4 metres starting from the surface in hole 17, averaging 2.1 grams gold and 17 grams silver. This included 6.1 metres near the bottom of the interval, grading 5 grams gold and 36 grams silver.

In the southwestern portion of the property, the company cut the altered diorite in hole 18, returning 32.7 metres from the surface grading, 3.5 grams gold and 18 grams silver. Included in this intercept was 11.7 metres grading 6 grams gold and 19 grams silver per tonne.

Hole 19 hit 41.5 metres averaging 1.9 grams gold and 12 grams silver, including 8 metres of 5.3 grams gold and 17 grams silver near the stop of the interval, and 7.5 metres of 4 grams gold and 27 grams silver at the bottom.

At the southwestern edge of a stockwork zone, hole 21 cut 35.5 metres of 2.6 grams gold and 20 grams silver, including 8.3 metres of 6.1 grams gold and 37 grams silver.

Based on these and previous results, Ecuadorian has calculated an inferred and indicated resource estimate on the two zones. Along a 300-metre strike on each of the Alejandra and Dorada zones, to a depth of 200 metres, the company estimates a resource of 1.8 million oz. gold-equivalent within 9.4 million tonnes of material grading 6.1 grams gold-equivalent per tonne.

The Alejandra zone, which represents two-thirds of the in-house resource, consists of 4.7 million tonnes grading 7.5 grams gold and 67 grams silver per tonne, equivalent to 1.1 million oz. gold and 10 million oz. silver. The Dorada zone contains 4.7 million tonnes averaging 3.1 grams gold and 18 grams silver, equivalent to 470,000 oz. gold and 2.7 million oz. silver.

As part of the program, the company also drilled six holes into the San Luis zone, north of Alejandra. The holes, testing an area measuring 850 by 750 metres, focused on zones of intense silicification and brecciation. Results from the drilling included several narrow high-grade intervals, but more drilling will be needed to assess the relationship between the San Luis zone and the higher-grade Alejandra zone.

Ecuadorian says Beroen, a low-sulphidation, adularia-sericite hydrothermal system, has potential for hosting either underground or open-pit deposits, and intends to resume drilling soon.

In the meantime, the company is preparing to drill the Vetaspata property in southwestern Peru. The program, to consist of 15-20 core holes totalling 1,500 metres, will evaluate gold-bearing mantos from underground.