TORONTO, ONTARIO--(Marketwire - April 13, 2012) - Eastmain Resources Inc. (News - Market indicators) announces that a 40,000-metre drill program is underway on its wholly-owned Clearwater Project, located in James Bay Québec. The objectives of the program are to continue to expand the limits of the Eau Claire gold deposit and test new prospective resource targets. 50% of this year's drilling will be focused on increasing the size of high-grade Measured and Indicated gold resources in the 450 and 850 West zones, which may be amenable to extraction by open pit methods.
Drilling and trenching in 2011 resulted in a 550-metre-long expansion of a near-surface, gold-bearing vein system at the 850 West Zone, potentially adding to previously defined Open Pit resources (see website for rendering of 3D Leapfrog Model). Estimated potential Open Pit resources3) within the Eau Claire 450 West Zone, as at April 2011, contained 2,729,000 tonnes of Measured and Indicated resources at an average grade of 5.15 grams per tonne gold containing 452,000 ounces gold (502,000 ounces gold at 5.72 grams per tonne uncapped) and 1,398,000 tonnes Inferred Open Pit resources at an average grade of 2.56 grams per tonne gold containing 115,000 ounces gold (127,000 ounces gold at 2.83 grams per tonne uncapped). Drilling below the 450 West Zone also outlined 130,000 ounces of gold as Measured and Indicated Underground resources at an average grade of 6.46 grams per tonne gold and 905,000 ounces gold as Inferred Underground resources at an average grade of 7.18 grams per tonne gold (April 26, 2011 news release). The current resource, which does not include any drilling post 2009, does not contain the 100 gold-bearing intercepts from the 850 West Zone drilling or high-grade results reported from the RC Soccer Field trench in 2011.
2012 drilling is currently testing the northern limits of the 450 West Zone, where a stacked series of quartz-tourmaline veins has been intersected north of the estimated open pit resource. ER12-353, the third hole of this season's program, has intersected visible gold (VG) at a depth of 138.6 metres. The VG occurs within an interval containing 25 quartz tourmaline veins, ranging from 0.1 to 6.5 metres in thickness, extending from surface to 150-metres down the hole.
The 2012 exploration campaign will also include drill testing and trenching of high-priority targets lateral to the Eau Claire gold deposit, as well as property-scale surface exploration in an effort to discover additional deposits elsewhere on the project.
Dr. Donald J. Robinson P.Geo, is the Qualified Person for the information contained in this press release and is a Qualified Person within the meaning of National Instrument 43-101.
About Eastmain Resources Inc. (News - Market indicators)
Eastmain is a Canadian gold exploration company with 100% interest in the Eau Claire and Eastmain gold deposits which together contain 632,000 ounces of gold in Measured & Indicated resources1),255,750 ounces gold in Historical Measured and Indicated resources4) plus 1,020,000 ounces of gold in Inferred resources2). The Corporation has $17.4 Million in its treasury and holds a pipeline of exploration projects within the James Bay District, including the Éléonore South property, which lies immediately south of Goldcorp's multi-million-ounce Éléonore property. Eastmain has allocated $10 million for exploration of its key gold projects in Québec for 2011. Work will include 40,000 metres of drilling.
Forward Looking Statements - Certain information set forth in this news release may contain forward-looking statements that involve substantial known and unknown risks and uncertainties. These forward-looking statements are subject to numerous risks and uncertainties, certain of which are beyond the control of Eastmain, including, but not limited to the impact of general economic conditions, industry conditions, dependence upon regulatory approvals and the availability of financing. Readers are cautioned that the assumptions used in the preparation of such information, although considered reasonable at the time of preparation, may prove to be imprecise and, as such, undue reliance should not be placed on forward-looking statements.
- Measured & Indicated Resources (which may potentially be extracted by both open and underground mining methods) of 3,354,000 tonnes containing 632,000 ounces gold @5.86 g/t gold uncapped - Eau Claire NI43-101 NR Apr 26, 2011
- Inferred Resources (which may potentially be extracted by both open and underground mining methods) of 5,322,000 tonnes containing 1,020,000 ounces gold @ 6.06 g/t gold uncapped - Eau Claire NI43-101 NR Apr 26, 2011
- Near-surface Open Pit Measured & Indicated Resources for Eau Claire (only that portion of the Eau Claire deposit that could potentially be mined by open-pit methods): 2,729,000 tonnes containing 502,000 ounces @5.72 g/t gold -- Eau Claire NI43-101 NR Apr 26, 2011; NR May 19, 2011
- 255,750 ounces gold - Measured & Indicated Historical Non-NI43-101 Compliant Resources at Eastmain Mine (Campbell 2004 AR) and should not be relied upon. A qualified person from Eastmain has not done sufficient work to classify the historical estimate as current mineral resources, and therefore the historical estimate should not be treated as current mineral resources.
