HudBay Discovers New Copper-Gold Zone At Lalor

HudBay Minerals (HBM-T, HBMFF-O) has intersected 34.5 metres of 13.35 grams gold per tonne and 5.33% copper in what it believes to be a new zone of copper and gold mineralization at its Lalor deposit in the Chisel basin portion of the Flin Flon Greenstone Belt, about 15 km from its concentrator in Snow Lake, Man.

Drill-hole DUB263W02 intersected what the company is calling the Copper-Gold zone, and assayed 13.35 grams gold, 27.98 grams silver, 5.33% copper and 0.35% zinc over 34.54 metres from 1,253 metres.

Other results included hole 252W01, which assayed 12.54 grams gold, 26.67 grams silver, 3.69% copper and 0.18% zinc over 9.12 metres starting from 1,140 metres depth; and 8.08 grams gold, 15.33 grams silver, 1.6% copper and 0.12% zinc over 13.39 metres from 1,176 metres.

“The copper and gold intersection in hole 263W02 is among the best I have seen in nearly forty years in the mining business and the new Copper-Gold zone may be very significant,” Peter Jones, HudBay’s chief executive officer, said in a statement.

The new zone at Lalor, 3 km from HudBay’s Chisel North mine, is lower in the deposit’s stratigraphy than the previously announced zinc-rich Base Metal zone and the Separate and Contact gold zones, the company says.

HudBay owns 100% of Lalor and expects by early October to release an updated resource estimate for the Base Metal zone (for use in the feasibility study) and a National Instrument 43-101-compliant conceptual estimate of potential tonnage and grade for the Separate and Contact zones. The company also says it will release additional drill-hole assays for the Separate and Contact zones.

HudBay, which announced the Lalor discovery in March 2007, has reported an indicated resource of 3.4 million tonnes grading 1.9 grams gold per tonne, 20.5 grams silver, 0.71% copper, 8.82% zinc, and an inferred resource of 13.2 million tonnes cutting 2.9 grams gold, 34.1 grams silver, 0.7% copper and 8.19% zinc.

Five drills are operating at Lalor. Two are exploring extensions to the Separate and Contact zones and the new Copper-Gold zone. Two others are focused on close-spaced drilling within the Separate and Contact zones to further confirm gold mineralization continuity and one drill is collecting metallurgical samples.

HudBay shares gained $3.61 or 39% in the days following the announcement to a new 52-week high of $12.99. The stock traded as low as $2.70 last November.