CALGARY, Alberta, Nov. 21, 2017 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- CHAMPION BEAR RESOURCES LTD (TSV:CBA) (“Champion Bear” or the “Company”) is pleased to announce an initial Mineral Resource Estimate for the Plomp Farm deposit located approximately 14 kilometers west of Dryden, Ontario, Canada, in accordance with the Canadian Institute of Mining, Metallurgy and Petroleum (“CIM”) Definition Standards incorporated by reference in National Instrument 43-101. This initial Mineral Resource Estimate is based solely on historical drilling results from 128 drill holes (51,000 meters) operated by Champion Bear from 1994 to 2005.
- The Total Inferred Mineral Resource Estimate of 5.7 million tonnes grading 0.58 grams of gold per tonne for 107,100 ounces of gold and 0.21 grams of silver per tonne for 38,400 ounces of silver.
- The estimate is derived from the historical drilling configuration and sampling style that did not specifically target the gold bearing quartz-sericite schist zone resulting in unsplit and unsampled drill core within the main resource of 68% of the 51,000 meters of drilling. Data gaps exist as a result, with significant potential for expansion within the main resource boundaries.
- The Plomp Farm deposit is open to the west and east along strike as well as depth and has significant potential for expansion.
Richard Kantor, Chairman and President for Champion Bear, stated, "The Plomp Farm initial Mineral Resource Estimate is the result of significant effort to combine years of historical drilling results into a modern data set interpreted with the hindsight of Ontario analogies in sheared quartz-sericite schist deposits advanced over the last 3 decades. Historical exploration efforts created significant gaps in the data within the main resource and we intend to solve these legacy issues going forward. We believe that there remains significant potential to expand the current resource base both along strike and at depth and this will be an objective of future advanced exploration programs. I extend my appreciation to the team of dedicated professionals who have worked very hard to achieve this initial result.”
The initial Mineral Resource Estimate for the Plomp Farm deposit incorporates assay results from 128 diamond drill holes totaling 51,000 meters of historical drilling. The estimate was prepared using a block model constrained with 3D wireframes of the principal mineralized domains. Values for gold were interpolated into blocks using ordinary kriging (OK). To support the Canadian Institute of Mining, Metallurgy and Petroleum (“CIM”) requirement that Mineral Resources have ‘reasonable prospects for eventual economic extraction’ the resource was compared to other deposits in the region. The resource estimate assumes a long-term gold price of US$1,350/ounce with a 1.25 exchange rate. Only mineralization contained within the top 200 meters of the resource has been included in the resource estimate.
The mineral resource estimate is summarized in the following table at a cut-off grade of 0.30 grams of gold per tonne. The effective date of this resource estimate is November 20, 2017.
PLOMP FARM PROJECT - MINERAL RESOURCE ESTIMATE Table 1
November 20, 2017
| Category | Tonnes | Au (g/t) |
Ag (g/t) |
Au oz |
Ag oz |
| INFERRED | 5,702,000 | 0.58 | 0.21 | 107,100 | 38,400 |
Notes:
- CIM definitions were followed for classification of Mineral Resources.
- Cut-off grades for the Mineral Resource is 0.30 g/t Au.
- Mineral Resources are estimated using a gold price of US$1,350 per ounce.
- Bulk density is 2.73 g/cm3 based on samples collects at the deposit.
- The resources are constrained within the top 200 meters.
- Mineral Resources which are not Mineral Reserves have not yet demonstrated economic viability. The estimate of mineral resources may be materially affected by environmental, permitting, legal, title, taxation, sociopolitical, marketing, or other relevant issues.
- Numbers may not add due to rounding.
The Plomp Farm project consists of 4,458 acres of freehold claims owned 100% by Champion Bear. The Plomp Farm deposit is hosted within the highly prospective, Warclub Group, Thunder Lake assemblage of felsic metavolcanics and metasedimentary rocks offsetting the Wabigoon fault. At Plomp Farm, gold mineralization occurs within a folded and sheared barite-enriched quartz-sericite-sulfide schist, similar to the Goliath gold deposit located approximately 23 kilometers to the east along strike.
Next Steps
The mineralization at Plomp Farm remains open within the main mineralization zone due to the non-optimal drilling configuration of the historical drilling activities as well as along strike and at depth where further drilling is warranted. In 2018, the Company plans additional drilling to increase our confidence in the current resources and continue to expand the mineralization both within the main zone, of mineralization as well as along strike and at depth.
Table 2 below demonstrates the robust nature of the Mineral Resource Estimate at different cut-off grades for gold:
| Category | Cut-off Grades (g/t Au) |
Tonnes | Au (g/t) |
Ag (g/t) |
Au oz |
Ag oz |
| INFERRED | 0.20 | 11,215,000 | 0.42 | 0.41 | 149,700 | 149,300 |
| INFERRED | 0.30 | 5,702,000 | 0.58 | 0.21 | 107,100 | 38,400 |
| INFERRED | 0.40 | 4,346,000 | 0.66 | 0.19 | 92,000 | 27,192 |
Qualified Persons
The mineral resource estimate, including verification of the data disclosed, has been completed by WSP Canada Inc. (“WSP”) and reported in accordance with National Instrument 43-101 (NI 43-101) requirements and CIM Estimation Best Practice Guidelines. The resource estimate was prepared by WSP Manager- Mining Todd McCracken, P.Geo., and a supporting NI 43-101 Technical Report will be posted on SEDAR at www.sedar.com no later than 45 days after the date of this release.
Mr. McCracken, who is an independent qualified person under NI 43-101, has reviewed and approved the contents of this release.
