GOLDEN, Colo., Oct. 25, 2017 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Golden Minerals Company (“Golden Minerals”, “Golden” or “the Company”) (NYSE American:AUMN) and (TSX:AUMN) has released results of high-grade silver intercepts from the first six holes of a drilling program conducted at its Santa Maria property located in Santa Barbara, Chihuahua State, Mexico.
Warren Rehn, President and CEO of Golden Minerals, comments, “The results from Santa Maria show the continuation of the mineralized veins and provide initial support for our goal of doubling the size of the existing resource. Santa Maria appears to be an excellent opportunity for Golden to establish near-term new silver production in the Parral area at a very low capital cost. We are executing our exploration programs efficiently while retaining a healthy cash balance and without the need for additional financing.”
Golden Minerals began an expansion drilling program in September 2017 at its Santa Maria gold and silver property located west of Parral in Chihuahua State, Mexico. The Company recently expanded the claim package adding 77 hectares and more than doubling the strike distance coverage on the Santa Maria vein to about one kilometer total. The current drill program was initiated by the Company with the goal of expanding the existing resource to improve the overall economics reported in the Preliminary Economic Assessment (“PEA”) published in March 2017. To date the Company has received assays for six holes, with results for an additional six holes expected before year-end. To date nine holes are complete, and one is in progress for 1,900 meters drilled. At least another two holes will be drilled in this program. Highlights include hole SM17-03 that returned an intercept of 431 grams per tonne silver over 5.0 meters, hole SM17-08 with an intercept of 310 grams per tonne silver and 0.77 grams per tonne gold over 6.9 meters, and hole SM17-01 which returned an intercept of 604 grams per tonne silver and 0.84 grams per tonne gold over 2.5 meters. Results are summarized in the table below. Full results will also be available on the Company’s website.
| Hole No. | From (meters) |
To (meters) |
Drill Width (meters) |
True Width (meters) |
Ag (g/t) | Au (g/t) | Pb (%) | Zn (%) |
| SM17-01 | 49.2 | 51.7 | 2.50 | 1.06 | 604 | 0.84 | 0.19 | 0.13 |
| SM17-02 | 225.7 | 226.5 | 0.80 | 0.40 | 255 | 0.77 | 1.56 | 1.49 |
| SM17-03 | 216.2 | 221.2 | 5.00 | 2.50 | 431 | 0.29 | 0.49 | 0.99 |
| SM17-04 | 60.7 | 65.7 | 5.00 | 2.50 | 217 | 0.49 | 0.56 | 0.23 |
| SM17-05 | 194.1 | 194.9 | 0.70 | 0.40 | 164 | 0.40 | 0.61 | 3.76 |
| SM17-08 | 141.6 | 148.5 | 6.90 | 2.36 | 310 | 0.77 | 0.40 | 0.91 |
Note: Drill hole results have been composited from multiple adjacent samples; individual assay intervals will be reported on the Golden Minerals website. Reported intercepts from holes 1, 4, and 8 are characterized by oxidized vein material.
The results from these recent vein intercepts are similar in grade to our previous results and the average resource grade. The holes reported here potentially extend the strike dimension of the vein resource by 110 meters to the east. The remaining drill holes with results pending test an additional 250 meters of the eastward strike direction of the vein system.
Other Updates
The Company also reports that it has acquired the right to purchase claims covering the Yoquivo District, Ocampo Municipality, Batopilas, Chihuahua through an option agreement. The Yoquivo District is a past-producing, bonanza-grade epithermal vein gold and silver district located 35 kilometers southeast of the Ocampo Mining District. Golden has the right to purchase six claims totaling 1,906 hectares for payments of (US)$0.48 million over four years plus outstanding claim taxes. No cash payments are due until the second anniversary of the agreement. The owner retains a two percent Net Smelter Return royalty capped at $2.0 million.
Drilling at the Mogotes project near Velardena (Durango, Mexico) is ongoing, with five holes totaling about 1,500 meters completed to date and at least two additional holes planned. Assay results are pending.
The Company also continues to advance its Salta, Argentina-based El Quevar project through a resource re-modeling project, now in its third month. Results are expected to be reported at year end 2017 or shortly thereafter.
Review by Qualified Person and Quality Control
The technical contents of this press release have been reviewed by Warren M. Rehn, M.Sc., a Qualified Person for the purposes of Canadian National Instrument 43-101. Mr. Rehn has over 33 years of mineral exploration experience and is a QP member of the Society for Mining Metallurgy and Exploration.
To ensure reliable sample results, Golden Minerals uses a quality assurance/quality control program that monitors the chain-of-custody of samples and includes the insertion of blanks, duplicates and reference standards in each batch of samples. Core is photographed and sawn in half with one half retained in a secured facility for verification purposes. Sample preparation (crushing and pulverizing) is performed at an independent ISO 9001:2001 certified laboratory in Chihuahua or Zacatecas, Mexico. Prepared samples are direct-shipped to an ISO 9001:2001 certified laboratory in Canada.
