Ashton Mining of Canada Inc.: Renard 3 Mini-Bulk Sample Returns 134 CPHT
17:53 EST Wednesday, December 18, 2002
VANCOUVER, BRITISH COLUMBIA--Robert T. Boyd, President and CEO of Ashton Mining of Canada Inc. ("Ashton"), is very pleased to report an estimated diamond content of 134 carats per hundred tonnes ("cpht") for a 4.88 tonne sample collected from the Renard 3 kimberlitic body. Renard 3 is situated on the 153,000 hectare Foxtrot property currently being explored by Ashton and its joint venture partner, SOQUEM INC. ("SOQUEM"), in the Otish Mountains region of north-central Quebec.
The 4.88 tonne sample from Renard 3 consisted of 4.52 tonnes of material collected from seven holes drilled during the summer mini-bulk sampling program and 0.36 tonnes of kimberlitic breccia selected from one of the two discovery holes drilled in April. The 4.88 tonne sample was divided into two components. The first component consisted of material from the eight holes. It weighed 3.44 tonnes and made up of kimberlitic breccia with minor amounts of country rock. The second component consisted of material from the April discovery hole and four of the seven holes drilled in the summer program. It weighed 1.44 tonnes and was composed of hypabyssal material. Hypabyssal units are present throughout the body.
The sample was processed through the dense media separation ("DMS") plant at Ashton's North Vancouver laboratory. As shown in Table 1, the sample returned a total of 6.54 carats of diamonds larger than 0.85 mm using a square aperture screen. Larger, more representative samples are required to determine the diamond grade of the Renard 3 body.
Table 1: Summary of Diamond Results - Renard 3
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Diamonds
Recovered
Sample (greater then Diamond
Geologic Weight 0.85 mm) Content
Unit (tonnes) (carats) (cpht)
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Kimberlitic Breccia 3.44 4.45 130
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Hypabyssal Material 1.44 2.09 145
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Total 4.88 6.54 134
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The three largest diamonds recovered from the kimberlitic breccia weighed 0.73, 0.31 and 0.25 carats. The 0.73 and 0.31 carat diamonds are colourless composite crystals and the 0.25 carat diamond is a colourless single crystal. Diamonds weighing 0.23 and 0.22 carats were recovered from the hypabyssal material and are colourless composite and single crystals, respectively.
The data from the nine holes drilled to date at Renard 3 are summarized in Ashton's news releases dated April 9 and October 4, 2002. These data suggest that this body is a linear feature with approximate minimum surface dimensions of 120 m x 20 m. Additional drilling is required to more accurately define its dimensions.
Renard Cluster - Compilation of Diamond Data
Table 2 lists the largest diamonds recovered to date through DMS testing of samples from Renard 2, 3, 4, 5, and 6. Commercial-size diamonds have now been recovered from five of the eight kimberlitic bodies that constitute the Renard cluster.
Table 2: Diamond Data - Renard 2, 3, 4, 5 and 6
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Estimated Diamond
Content
DMS Sample (greater then
Kimberlitic Weight Largest Diamonds 0.85 mm)
Body (tonnes) Recovered (carats) (cpht)
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Renard 2 (Note 1) 2.44 0.16, 0.14, 0.12, 0.10, 0.10 69
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Renard 3 4.88 0.73, 0.31, 0.25, 0.23, 0.22 134
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Renard 4 4.81 0.28, 0.26, 0.16, 0.16 (Note 2) 65
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Renard 5 (Note 3) 0.36 0.92 (Note 4)
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Renard 6 (Note 3) 0.46 0.26 (Note 4)
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Note 1: Diamond results for an additional sample weighing approximately
2.5 tonnes are expected in January 2003.
Note 2: Because of a transcription error, the news release issued on
November 29, 2002 incorrectly reported the recovery of 0.29 and
0.32 carat diamonds from the Renard 4 mini-bulk sample. The
correct data for this sample are shown above.
Note 3: A mini-bulk sampling program is planned for each of these bodies
during the winter 2003 program.
Note 4: Not applicable due to small sample size.
Ashton and SOQUEM are encouraged by the diamond potential of the Foxtrot property and other under-explored regions of Quebec. The joint venture intends to implement an aggressive exploration program for 2003 on its highly prospective 380,000 hectare land package in north-central Quebec. The 50:50 joint venture has been exploring for diamonds in northern Quebec since 1996.
Ashton is the operator of the exploration programs and Brooke Clements, Professional Geologist and Ashton's Vice President, Exploration, is responsible for their design and conduct and the verification and quality assurance of analytical results. SOQUEM is a wholly-owned subsidiary of SGF Minerals Inc., a subsidiary of Societe Generale de Financement du Quebec ("SGF"). The mission of the SGF is to carry out economic development projects in cooperation with partners and in accordance with accepted requirements of profitability.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION PLEASE CONTACT: Ashton Mining of Canada Inc., Robert T. Boyd, President & CEO, (604) 983-7750, Website: www.ashton.ca, or, Ashton Mining of Canada Inc., Ariel Bowers, Investor Relations, (604) 983-7750, Email: investor@ashton.ca |
