To all,
As of January 1, 1997, many Canadian public companies are required to
electronically file their disclosure documents. Click here for more information.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION PLEASE CONTACT:
Aranlee Resources Ltd.
Jim Kasten
(602) 951-4870
(602) 483-9926 (FAX)
Internet site: aranlee.com
The Vancouver Stock Exchange neither approves nor disapproves the
information contained in this News Release.
NEWS RELEASE TRANSMITTED BY CANADIAN CORPORATE NEWS
FOR: ARANLEE RESOURCES LTD.
VSE SYMBOL: ARB
MARCH 18, 1997
Aranlee Begins Intensive Exploration Program in Kazakstan
SCOTTSDALE, ARIZONA--Aranlee Resources Ltd. ("Aranlee") is pleased
to announce that following the signing of a Letter of Intent with
Kazakstan Minerals Corporation ("KazMinCo") on January 31, 1997
(see news release dated February 5, 1997) a detailed review of the
existing exploration database is underway on the large land
position in the highly prospective Agadyr Mining District in
central Kazakstan. The huge volume of high quality exploration
data generated by the State exploration expeditions over the past
50 years is being compiled and evaluated and an aggressive
exploration program will commence in early spring, with the
intention of identifying targets for trenching and follow-up
drilling in the summer of 1997.
The 10 mineral properties totaling 9,700 sq km within the Agadyr
Exploration License and a pending application for the
approximately 2,000 sq km Balkhash Exploration License are located
600 km northwest of Almaty, the capital city, in an area with
excellent infrastructure. These two licenses cover an area
containing numerous precious and base metal occurrences which have
been prospected extensively by previous geological expeditions but
without the more sophisticated exploration concepts and techniques
that are widely used outside of the former CIS countries.
Aranlee has established an exploration office in Almaty with an
experienced North American Exploration Manager and has acquired an
existing field office from KazMinCo in Agadyr.
A brief description of the individual properties follows, with
locations shown on the attached map:
AGADYR LICENSE - KEY TARGET AREAS
TOLAGAI
Covering approximately 700 sq km, the Tolagai property is located
in the central part of the License area and is dominated by the
Tolagai summit, a large, altered porphyry stock intruding
Paleozoic sediments.
--Approximately 8 km long, the Ken Adyr-Tolagai mineralized trend
consists of a series of gold/copper prospects and occurrences in
altered sediments.
--Surface sampling along the trend indicates at least 170
locations with values reported to be in excess of 0.5 g/t gold and
ranging up to 10.0 g/t gold.
--An estimated 2,000 tonnes of ore from a small pit at the Ken
Adyr deposit at the northeast end of the trend is reported to
average 5 g/t gold.
--Good gold grades are also reported from past work at the
Tolagai-3 prospect, located roughly in the middle of the trend,
where about 100 tonnes of stockpiled material from a small
underground tunnel average about 5 g/t gold.
ZHANGELDY
This property, about 1,300 sq km in size, is adjacent to the
southern boundary of the Tolagai property and is mostly underlain
by Paleozoic sediments and volcanics.
--The Zhangeldy copper porphyry prospect, located in the northern
part of the property, is hosted by a Paleozoic intrusive and
consists of 3 geochemically anomalous zones along an approximately
10 km long trend.
--Geochemical data from the north and central zones of this trend
show values up to 0.10 percent copper, 10 ppm molybdenum and 1.0
g/t gold.
--Mineralization within the southern zone of the trend is reported
to be associated with massive quartz veins of significant strike
lengths with grades averaging about 1.0 percent copper and 1.0 -
3.0 g/t gold.
ZHEKEDUAN
Located adjacent to the Zhangeldy property to the west and
covering approximately 640 sq km, the Zhekeduan copper-gold
porphyry prospect is located in the northwest corner of the
property and is hosted by a Paleozoic intrusive complex intruding
metasedimentary rocks.
--According to the available data, shallow scout drilling within a
small portion of the mineralized system in the 1950's identified a
near surface, 32 m thick silicified, sub-horizontal zone with
values ranging from 0.2 percent to 0.5 percent copper and several
1m - 2m drill intercepts ranging from 1.0 g/t to 13.4 g/t gold
coincident with brecciation and quartz-pyrite stockworks.
--Located approximately 1 km southeast of the drilled area, an
extensive zone of quartz-sericite-pyrite alteration correlates
well with a strong gold/silver/molybdenum soil anomaly over an
area 500- 600 m in diameter.
--This major metal anomaly represents an early drilling target for
Aranlee and there are indications that this target may be part of
a much larger altered zone that is partially obscured by thin
surface cover.
KIIKBAI AND SAIDAL
These properties cover the western part of the Agadyr License,
with Kiikbai occupying approximately 1,800 sq km and Saidal,
immediately to the south, covering about 1,100 sq km.
--The Kiikbai - Saidal mineralized trend, which is roughly 9 km
long by 3 km wide, straddles the boundary between the 2 properties
and so far 33 gold bearing zones hosted by Paleozoic sediments
have been identified within this system.
--A possible buried intrusive is indicated by numerous dikes and
sills within an altered area about 5 km in diameter.
--Surface samples from intensely altered, silicified and
stockworked zones within the mineralized trend are reported to
range up to 10 g/t gold and 200 g/t silver.
AGADYR LICENSE - ADDITIONAL TARGET AREAS
ADYLBAY
The property is located in the eastern part of the Agadyr License
and is the largest of the ten properties in the Agadyr License
area, covering an area of approximately 2,000 sq km. It is
underlain by Paleozoic volcano-sedimentary rocks and intruded by
Paleozoic/Mesozoic granites. Several gold showings are reported
in the area but no systematic gold exploration has been carried
out. The property is highly prospective with numerous areas of
strong alteration and stockworks reported.
ORTOSHOKY, NURA, SHERUBAY NURA AND URALBAY
Located in the northern part of the License area, each of these
4 properties is approximately 550 sq km (totaling 2,200 sq km) in
size and is underlain by Paleozoic volcanics and sediments. At
least 30 occurrences with gold values in excess of 0.5 g/t and
ranging up to 7.0 g/t are located on these 4 properties. Based on
the available data, no systematic follow-up work on these
occurrences has previously been carried out.
BALKHASH LICENSE
Covering about 2000 sq km, the Balkhash License area is located
approximately 30 km south of the Agadyr License area.
Geologically, the area is part of a Paleozoic volcanogenic and
intrusive belt known mainly for its porphyry copper deposits, the
largest of which is the Miedniy Kounrad (450 million tonnes at
0.60 percent recovered copper), located adjacent to the south-east
boundary of the property (see attached map). As in the Agadyr
License area, gold was not considered a high priority for the
State exploration expeditions and most of the known gold showings
have been found during routine exploration for copper and a
helicopter-supported gold reconnaissance program undertaken in
1969 - 1972; very few of the showings have ever been followed up
on a detailed basis. The data from these programs will not be
available until the Exploration License is issued, which is
expected to occur shortly. Several specific copper and gold
prospects, however, are known in the area with the gold targets
reporting values in excess of 0.5 g/t and ranging up to 5.0 g/t
gold.
LETTER OF INTENT
Under the terms of the January Letter of Intent with KazMinCo,
Aranlee will acquire 100 percent of KazMinCo's 67 percent interest
in JSC Agadir, a Kazak company holding a 100 percent interest in
10 properties within the Agadyr Exploration License and the
pending application for the Balkhash Exploration License. The
remaining 33 percent interest in JSC Agadir is held by the Kazak
partner, Temenai. Aranlee has been granted a first right of
refusal by Temenai to acquire this remaining 33 percent interest.
The Company will make cash payments to KazMinCo totaling
$700,000, issue an aggregate of 2.2 million shares (on a phased
basis subject to VSE requirements) and pay US$5.00 per recoverable
mineable ounce of gold based upon the first bankable feasibility
study on the first deposit on each of the individual properties.
The Letter of Intent remains subject to regulatory approval.
Aranlee's due diligence process is underway and is expected to be
completed shortly.
In addition to the properties in Kazakstan, the Company holds an
option to acquire a 100 percent interest in 7 properties and has
claimed 2 other properties in an exciting new mineralized belt in
northwest Argentina. Aranlee also has a 50 percent interest in
1,565 claims in 17 properties in the Voisey's Bay region of
Labrador, Canada. The Company's share capital comprises 16.4
million common shares issued and 18.3 million common shares on a
fully diluted basis.
ON BEHALF OF THE BOARD
Stephen J. Kay, Vice President and CFO
-30-
It apears that the company focus is starting to shift, or they are going to spread themselves a little thin. With properties on three different continents and not much cash! Personaly i would perfer if
the company was just focusing on one area. Still have alot of confidence in management so will hang on for awhile.
Todd,
|
