EXMIN Signs Moris Joint Venture and Acquires 61,800 Hectares
VANCOUVER, BRITISH COLUMBIA, Jul 18, 2006 (MARKET WIRE via COMTEX News Network) --
EXMIN Resources Inc. ("EXMIN") (TSX VENTURE: EXM) is pleased to announce that its wholly-owned Mexican subsidiary has signed a definitive earn-in joint venture contract with Minera Hochschild Mexico S. A. de C. V. ("MHM"), a subsidiary of the Hochschild Mining Group ("MHC") of Lima, Peru, regarding EXMIN's 100% owned Moris project, in the Moris district of Chihuahua, Mexico, as originally announced in a news release dated March 22, 2006. Upon completion of the terms of the five year, US $5.65 million option, MHM may earn a 70% interest in the Moris project. Of the US $5.65 million that the Hochschild Group will invest in the joint venture, US $4.8 million is earmarked for project development. The remaining US $850,000 will be paid to EXMIN through private placements in EXMIN's stock, by a subsidiary of MHC, over the five year term of the agreement. The subscription agreement has also been signed, and the proceeds of the first tranche, US $100,000, have been received by EXMIN, with the closing subject to exchange approval.
Karl Boltz, President of EXMIN, states, "Completing this joint venture agreement is an important milestone for EXMIN at the Moris Project. MHM is an excellent partner to develop the Moris district because they have an interest in aggressively exploring the project with a focus on carrying it towards production."
The Project
The Moris Project covers a large percentage of the Moris mining district, located next to Gammon Lake Resources' Ocampo project (see news release of February 22, 2006). Mineralization in the Moris district consists of low sulfidation epithermal vein systems within regional scale mineralized structural zones. EXMIN's land package covers portions of three separate mineralized areas, La Cienega, Mesa de Las Tunas/El Pilar and El Tecolote, each of which has seen historic precious metal production and has the potential to host large deposits.
EXMIN has greatly increased its land position in the Moris district. The original land package of about 11,000 hectares, announced on February 22, 2006, has been increased to about 61,800 hectares, with the acquisition of two additional mining concessions and the staking of two new concessions.
The two new optioned concessions cover 25.8 hectares within the Mesa de las Tunas/El Pilar target area.
The two new concessions recently staked by EXMIN are the 11,799 hectare "Tecolote" concession, which surrounds the Tecolote target area, and the 50,000 hectare "Pale", which covers the extensions of the mineralized structural trends in the Moris district and surrounds several small mines and mineral occurrences adjacent to the district.
The Targets
Two large, nearly drill-ready vein and breccia targets have been mapped and sampled by EXMIN at La Fe and Balleza, and a large area with several vein systems occurs as Mesa de las Tunas/El Pilar (see news release February 22, 2006). Each of these targets is road accessible and none of them has ever been drilled.
At La Fe, a vein system is exposed for over 2 kilometers along strike and over a vertical extent of more than 500 meters. Surface exposures consist of narrow quartz veins within a large area of high-level silicification commonly observed above productive low sulfidation epithermal deposits. Rock chip and soil samples taken within the high-level alteration contain anomalous gold, silver and the indicator elements arsenic and mercury, and individual rock samples in the upper levels of the mineralized system yielded gold values ranging from less than detection to more than 3 g/t. A selected sample of a 3 cm wide vein yielded 21.8 g/t Au.
The Balleza target consists of a silicified rhyolite dike hosting quartz-matrix breccias that has been explored for 500 meters along strike, is exposed over a vertical elevation of more than 100 meters and is mineralized over widths of 10 to 30 meters. Fifty-seven rock chip samples have been taken; of these more than half returned gold values of greater than 0.5 g/t Au and ranged up to 6.18 g/t Au and 461 g/t Ag, with one sample from a mine dump returning 26.6 g/t Au.
The targets at the Mesa de Las Tunas/El Pilar area consist of several narrow, banded quartz vein systems. Most of the work completed to date by EXMIN has been on the two recently optioned concessions, Ampliacion Finlandia (14.4939 hectares) and El Perico (11.332 hectares). At Ampliacion Finlandia, small mine workings have exploited an irregular breccia body along a structural zone. Rock chip sampling of the breccia body has yielded gold values of as much as 3.5 g/t and silver values of as much as 621 g/t (see table below). At El Perico, six samples of high level exposures of a 0.7 to 1.2 meter wide quartz vein have yielded 0.03 to 2.38 g/t Au and 11.4 to 38.7 g/t Ag. Both mines have exploited segments of larger vein systems that are on ground at least partly controlled by EXMIN.
Dr. Craig Gibson, PhD., Executive Vice President of Exploration, is the authorized professional geologist for the Company and the direct manager of all technical programs and information on the part of EXMIN. Neither EXMIN's joint venture partner, Minera Hochschild Mexico, nor the Hochschild Mining Group accept any responsibility for the use of project data or the adequacy or accuracy of this release.
Table of assays, Ampliacion Finlandia------------------------------------- Width Au AgSample (m) (g/t) (g/t)--------------------------------------------------------------------------1724 1.5 0.62 2041725 1.8 0.87 85.91726 4.0 3.50 2371727 4.0 0.64 3921728 3.0 0.90 1721729 1.8 1.15 2011730 2.0 0.04 5.11731 Dump 0.72 4211732 3.0 0.10 1051733 3.0 0.40 98.81734 2.5 0.50 1371735 0.6 0.07 2.41736 0.8 0.08 97.51737 1.2 0.24 3991738 2.2 0.31 1281739 0.2 0.29 46.21928 0.8 2.66 6211929 2.5 0.91 3391930 1.0 0.87 399-------------------------------------
About MHC
Minera Hochschild Mexico, S.A. de C.V. (MHM) is a subsidiary of the Hochschild Mining Group (MHC), a privately held, Peru-based diversified metals and materials mining company that has been in operation since the early part of the last century. MHC produced approximately 10 million ounces of silver and 230,000 ounces of gold in 2005. MHC currently owns and operates 3 mines in Peru and is the majority shareholder and operator of the San Jose Au-Ag project in Argentina. MHC has exploration offices and ongoing exploration and acquisition programs throughout the Americas.
About EXMIN
EXMIN Resources Inc. is currently focused on the exploration and development of precious metal properties of significant merit in the Sierra Madre gold and silver belt of Northwestern Mexico.
Note: EXMIN Resources Inc. (EXMIN) has taken all reasonable care in producing and publishing information contained in this news release. Material in this news release may still contain technical inaccuracies, omissions or typographical errors, for which EXMIN assumes no responsibility. This news release may include certain "forward-looking statements" including but not limited to comments regarding predictions and projections. All statements, other than statements of historical fact, included in this news release, including, without limitation, statements regarding potential mineralization, exploration results, and future plans and objectives of EXMIN, are forward-looking statements that involve various risks and uncertainties. There can be no assurance that such statements will prove to be accurate, and actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated in such statements. Important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from the Company's expectations are disclosed in documents filed from time to time with the regulatory authorities.
The TSX Venture Exchange has not reviewed this release and does not accept responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this news release.
Contacts: EXMIN Resources Inc. Karl J. Boltz President & CEO 1-888-244-0304 EXMIN Resources Inc. Investor Relations 1-888-244-0304 info@exmin.com www.exmin.com
SOURCE: EXMIN Resources Inc.
mailto:info@exmin.com exmin.com
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