VANCOUVER, BC, June 25, 2021 /CNW/ - Southern Empire
Resources Corp. ("Southern Empire") (TSXV: SMP) (Frankfurt: 5RE) (OTC: SMPEF) is pleased to
provide an update on the preliminary characterization and
metallurgical assessment of surface materials collected from
various historical mine waste rock dumps on its Oro Cruz Property,
southeastern California.
David Tupper, Southern Empire's
VP Exploration stated: "The objectives of our preliminary
studies were to establish the presence of gold in the historical,
pit-run mine waste dump materials and to determine if such gold
could potentially be extracted from these materials by conventional
leach methods. The results are positive and supportive of a more
detailed assessment of the gold potential in the historical mine
waste rock stockpiles that exist at our brownfields Oro Cruz
Project."
Oro Cruz Project - Historical Mine Waste Rock Dump Sample
Gold Assay Results Summary:
American Girl
Waste Rock Dump:
|
|
Average gold assay of
104 surface rock samples:
|
0.448 grams
gold/tonne ("g Au/t")
|
Range of values
(maximum/minimum):
|
7.070 / 0.009 g
Au/t
|
Approximate
footprint:
|
17.5 hectares ("ha";
43.1 acres)
|
|
|
Padre y Madre
Waste Rock Dump:
|
|
Average gold assay of
54 surface rock samples:
Range of values (maximum/minimum):
Approximate footprint:
|
0.203 g
Au/t 1.770 / <0.002 g Au/t
7.6 ha (18.1 acres)
|
|
|
Oro Cruz Waste
Rock Dump:
|
|
Average gold assay of
29 surface rock samples:
Range of values (maximum/minimum):
Approximate footprint:
|
0.208 g
Au/t 0.768 / 0.022 g Au/t
10.4 ha (25.7 acres)
|
Dale Wallster, Southern Empire's
CEO commented: "We are very encouraged with the initial
assessment of the gold potential of our Oro Cruz Project historical
waste dumps. Specifically, we are very pleased with the preliminary
cyanidation metallurgical test gold recovery rates of 74.4% and
89.7% for the American Girl and the Padre y Madre materials
respectively. While the gold grades we are reporting are less than
1 gram per tonne, they are still very significant given that more
than 60% of the 125,736 ounces that Equinox Gold produced at
their nearby Mesquite mine in 2019 was from their low-grade waste
rock dumps."
Equinox Gold Corp.'s April, 2020 NI 43-101 Technical Report,
concerning their Mesquite mine, reported an Indicated Resource
estimate of 5.2 million tonnes in their waste dumps grading 0.18 g
Au/t and an Inferred Resource estimate in the waste dumps of 26.4
million tonnes grading 0.23 g Au/t. Proven and Probable open pit,
oxide reserves outlined at the Mesquite mine include 13.7 million
tonnes grading 0.37 g Au/t (See Equinox Gold Corp. news release of
May 12, 2020). Mineralization at
the Mesquite Mine is not necessarily indicative of mineralization
at the Oro Cruz Project and its waste dumps.
Preliminary Metallurgical Test Work Results
Blue Coast Research Ltd. ("Blue Coast") of Parksville, British Columbia, was contracted
to undertake cyanidation metallurgical studies of two composite
samples blended from select assay laboratory sample rejects
(>80% passing 2mm) of surface grab samples collected from each
of the American Girl and Padre y Madre waste rock dumps. These
sample composites are not considered representative of waste rock
dump material gold grades.
American Girl
Waste Rock Dump Material:
|
|
Test procedure
Samples comprising Composite
Composite sample head grade:
Aliquot sample size:
96-hour Gold Recovery:
|
96-hour Coarse
Material Bottle Roll
10
0.61 g
Au/t
2.0 kg
74.4
%
|
|
|
Padre y Madre
Waste Rock Dump Material:
|
|
Test
procedure
Samples comprising Composite
Composite sample head grade:
Aliquot sample size:
96-hour Gold
Recovery:
|
96-hour Coarse
Material Bottle Roll
2
0.39 g Au/t
1.0 kg
89.7 %
|
Future planned work for additional evaluation of the historical
waste rock mine dump materials includes:
- Determination of waste dump volumes
- Reverse Circulation ("RC") drilling and mechanical trenching to
properly characterize the distribution of gold in the waste dump
materials
- Conduct additional cyanidation and column leach tests to
determine gold extraction at different crush sizes
- Conduct gravity concentration/mass reduction test work
Sampling Procedures and Quality Assurance and Quality
Controls ("QA/QC")
Grab samples of fine and coarse material were collected at
roughly 50 metre ("m"; 164 feet) to 100
m (328 ft) centres across the upper surfaces and around the
perimeter slopes of the historical, pit-run mine waste dumps.
Gold analysis was performed by the Geoanalytical Laboratories of
the Saskatchewan Research Council ("SRC") in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan (ISO
17025:2017). The SRC is one of Canada's leading providers of applied
research, development and demonstration ("RD&D"), and its
internationally recognized and accredited, state-of-the-art
Geoanalytical Laboratories have provided high-quality, advanced
analytical testing and mineral processing analysis to the
exploration and mining industry since 1973. For further information
regarding the SRC and the accreditation of their Geoanalytical
Laboratories, please visit www.src.sk.ca/mining.
Gold assay results for the samples collected are only a
preliminary assessment of the potential presence of gold hosted by
the historical mine waste dumps and are not considered
representative of the whole. As a result, QA/QC were limited to
analytical lab checks with the insertion of standards, blanks and
repeat samples in the sample stream prior to gold fire assay
analysis at SRC.
A combination of appropriately spaced mechanical trenching and
RC drilling is required to provide sample profiles through the full
height of the historical waste dumps to properly assess the
distribution and total content of gold within them.
The metallurgical test work conducted by Blue Coast on the Oro
Cruz Project historical waste dump materials is also preliminary in
nature. The objective of this limited test work was to establish
the potential for gold extraction by conventional leach methods.
The American Girl and Padre y Madre waste dump surface sample
composites (with target P80 primary grind sizes of
892 micron ("μm") and 995 μm, respectively) were each the subject
of a single 96-hour bottle roll cyanidation test utilizing a sodium
cyanide solution of 1.0 g/L NaCN maintained throughout and solids
maintained at 40%. Dissolved oxygen was maintained at ~8 parts
per million (ppm) and pH was maintained in the range of
10.5-11.
Qualified Person
The scientific and technical information contained in this news
release has been prepared, reviewed and approved by David Tupper, P.Geo. (British Columbia), Southern Empire's VP
Exploration and a Qualified Person ("QP") within the context
of Canadian Securities Administrators' National Instrument 43-101;
Standards of Disclosure for Mineral Projects (NI 43-101).
About Southern Empire Resources Corp.
Southern Empire is focused on the acquisition, exploration and
development of metals and minerals deposits in North America.
In the Cargo Muchacho mountains of Imperial County, California, Southern Empire
owns 100 per cent of the historical gold-producing American Girl
mine property and holds options to acquire a 100-per-cent interest
in the adjacent 2,160-hectare (5,338-acre) Oro Cruz property
located approximately 22.5 kilometres (14 miles) southeast of the
operating Mesquite gold mine of Equinox Gold Corp.
At Oro Cruz, extensive historical drilling and large-scale
open-pit and underground mining of the American Girl, Padre y
Madre, Queen and Cross oxide gold deposits by the American Girl
Mining Joint Venture (AGMJV; ultimately owned 53 per cent by MK
Gold Company and 47 per cent by Hecla Mining Company) occurred
between 1987 and 1996. During that time, gold was recovered by heap
leaching of lower-grade ores and milling of higher-grade ores.
AGMJV operations ceased in late 1996 because of declining gold
prices leaving the Oro Cruz property with many gold exploration
targets in addition to the historical inferred resource estimate,
reported In 2011 by Lincoln Mining Corp., totalling 341,800 ounces
gold based on 4,386,000 tonnes averaging 2.2 grams gold per tonne
at a cut-off grade of 0.68 g/t Au (4,835,000 tons at 0.07 ounce
gold per ton; Please refer to the Cautionary Notice Regarding the
Oro Cruz Property Historical Resource Estimate below).
On behalf of the Board of Directors of Southern Empire
Resources Corp.,
Dale
Wallster, CEO and Director
Cautionary Notice Regarding Forward-Looking
Information
This news release contains forward-looking statements which
constitute "forward-looking information" within the meaning of
applicable Canadian securities legislation ("forward-looking
statements"). All statements included herein, other than statements
of historical fact, are forward-looking statements that are based
on assumptions as of the date of this news release and reflect
management's current estimates, beliefs, intentions and
expectations. Often, but not always, forward-looking statements can
be identified by the use of words such as "anticipated",
"estimated", "potential", "open", "future", "assumed", "projected",
"used", "detailed", "has been", "gain", "planned", "reflecting",
"will", "anticipated", "estimated", "might", "may" "containing",
"remaining", "to be", or statements that events, "could" or
"should" occur or be achieved and similar expressions, including
negative variations.
Southern Empire cautions that all forward-looking statements are
not guarantees of future performance; that they are inherently
uncertain and that actual performance may be affected by a number
of material factors, many of which are beyond its respective
control. Forward-looking statements are subject to a many, varied
known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors, many of
which are beyond the ability of Southern Empire to control or
predict, and which could cause actual events or results to differ
materially from those reflected in the forward-looking statements.
Such factors include, among other things: risks and uncertainties
relating to Southern Empire's limited operating history, the need
to comply with environmental and governmental regulations, results
of exploration programs on its projects, results of metallurgical
test work, the ability to fund exploration and development
programs, and other risks and uncertainties identified in Southern
Empire's annual and interim financial statements and management
discussion and analysis that are filed on the Canadian Securities
Administrators' System for Electronic Document Analysis and
Retrieval ("SEDAR"). Accordingly, actual and future events,
conditions and results may differ materially from the estimates,
beliefs, intentions and expectations expressed or implied in the
forward-looking information.
Except as required under applicable securities legislation,
Southern Empire undertakes no obligation to publicly update or
revise forward-looking information.
Cautionary Notice Regarding Oro Cruz Project Historical
Resource Estimate
The historical resource estimate outlined above is disclosed in
a technical report dated April 29,
2011, prepared for Lincoln Mining Corp. by Tetra Tech, Inc.
and filed on SEDAR. It is termed an inferred mineral resource,
which is a category set out in NI 43-101. It was based on
historical reverse circulation and core drill hole sample,
underground channel sample, and blasthole sample assay results and
calculated using ordinary kriging to estimate gold grades in
10-foot-by-10-foot-by-five-foot blocks. Accordingly, Southern
Empire considers this historical estimate reliable as well as
relevant as it represents key targets for future exploration work.
However, a QP has not done sufficient work to verify or classify
the historical estimate as a current mineral resource and Southern
Empire is not treating this historical estimate as current mineral
resources.
Work Programs During the COVID-19 Pandemic
Timing of Southern Empire's exploration programs will be
contingent on governmental regulations regarding the COVID-19
pandemic and also the availability of exploration-related
personnel, drill contractors, equipment, lodging, et cetera.
Southern Empire will adhere to COVID-19 directives regarding safe
working practices putting worker, community and national safety
first and will proceed with exploration and development work
programs only if potential COVID-19 risks can be effectively
managed.
Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation
Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the
Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of
this release.
SOURCE Southern Empire Resources Corp.