December 08, 1999 15:08
Dia Met Minerals Ltd. Announces Mauritania Project Update
KELOWNA, BRITISH COLUMBIA--Dia Met Minerals Ltd. is pleased to report progress on its joint venture
exploration project to discover and develop diamond deposits in Mauritania. In 1998, joint venturer Ashton
Mining of Australia discovered the first diamonds and kimberlites reported from the Reguibat Shield in
Mauritania. The joint venture, announced on May 3, 1999, now incorporates 20 granted exploration licences
covering approximately 234,000 sq km of virgin archean terrain, an area larger than the Slave Craton in
northern Canada.
Subsequent work has confirmed that the region is prospective for economic diamond deposits. Kimberlite
indicator minerals with compositions similar to those found as inclusions within diamonds have been
located on most of the licences, which are widespread over the Reguibat Shield. These diamond indicator
minerals includechrome diopside, chromite, group I eclogitic garnets and G10 pyrope garnets of equivalent
compositions to those known to be associated with high grade diamond mines worldwide including the Lac
de Gras area of Canada's Northwest Territories.
In several areas small diamonds have been found associated with the diamond indicator minerals. Two
macro diamonds, the largest being a 1.16 carat gem quality stone, were recovered from the processing of a
50-tonne drainage gravel sample. Six macro diamonds have been recovered from another 15-tonne drainage
gravelsample that has just been completed. Regional heavy mineral samples have now been collected on
all of the exploration licencesand sample processing continues.
Drilling to test at least three previously defined targets commenced in mid-November and will continue on
targets defined by a 76,000 line-km aeromagnetic survey, currently in progress.
Under the terms of the Joint Venture agreement with Ashton, Dia Met is committed to exploration
expenditures of US$2.5 million by 31 March 2000, of which it is estimated that US$1.9 million will be spent
by December 31, 1999. Dia Met may acquire up to 49 per cent of Ashton's equity in the project by staged
expenditures of up to US$10 million by March 2003. The Mauritanian Government has a 10 per cent equity
interest in some of the tenements included inthe joint venture. Although Ashton is the operator of the
project,Dia Met has the controlling vote on programs and budgets while solely funding exploration and
development.
Dia Met Minerals Ltd. is a publicly traded mineral exploration anddevelopment company with a primary
focus on diamonds. The company owns a 29 per cent interest in the Core Zone joint venture of the Ekati
Diamond Mine, Canada's first diamond mine, which has been inproduction since October 1998. The
company conducts global exploration with projects in Mauritania, Greenland, Finland and the Canadian
North.
SIGNED ON BEHALF OF THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS
Charles E. Fipke, Geologist and Director
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION PLEASE CONTACT:
Dia Met Minerals Ltd.
Ray Ashley
Vice-President, Exploration
(250) 861-8660
(250) 861-3649 (FAX)
E-mail: corporat@diamet.com
Website: www.diamet.com
The American Stock Exchange and Toronto Stock Exchange have
neither approved nor disapproved the information contained in this
release.
PHIL
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