Wednesday, November 14, 2007
Castillian Intersects 27.20 Meters Grading 0.66% Nickel, 0.39% Copper including 8.94 Meters Grading 0.92% Nickel, 0.53% Copper and Significant PGM at Marifil's Las Aguilas Project in Argentina
Spokane, WA -- November 14, 2007: MARIFIL MINES LTD. (MFM: TSX-V) ("Marifil" or "the Company") announces that its partner, Castillian Resources Corporation (TSX:CT) has reported a third round of assay results from its ongoing drill campaign at Marifil's Las Aguilas Ni-Cu-PGE deposit, San Luis Province, central Argentina. Las Aguilas is located 40 km NE of the city of San Luis and about 200 km east of City of Mendoza (see Figure 1) and is an option - joint venture with (Marifil.)" (See Marifil press releases dated May 17 and June 6, 2007).
According to Castillian: "Assays for eight holes are listed in Table 1 below, including hole LA07-021 which intersected 27.2 meters grading 0.66% Ni, 0.39% copper, 0.03% cobalt including 8.94 meters grading 0.92% Nickel, 0.53% Copper and 0.04% Cobalt.
Notes Castillian: The ongoing drill program is designed to confirm and expand the Las Aguilas Ni-Cu deposit and provide data required to complete a NI-43-101 compliant resource estimate that includes assays for platinum group elements (PGE) which were not systematically analysed by previous explorers. The occurrence of significant platinum, palladium and gold values in holes LA07-21, 19 and 24 provides evidence that precious metals could provide a significant contribution to the value of the deposit. Hole LA07-021 extends the deposit to the south and at depth and it remains open in those directions. Both the Las Aguilas East Deposit and West deposit remain open at depth at this time.
John Hite notes that, "this news release continues to confirm the validity of our joint venture model. Marifil retains a 40% interest in this project, and, at Marifil's option, we can be fully carried through to production and still retain a 35% interest without further dilution to our shareholders. We are highly encouraged that there is a good possibility Castillian will be able to increase the size of this deposit. The Company is very pleased by the high quality and professionalism displayed by Castillian and its staff in carrying out this project. We certainly chose the right partner."
The Las Aguilas Deposit contains a historical resource of 2.2 million tonnes grading 0.52 % Ni, 0.51 % Cu and 0.04 % Co at a 0.3% Ni cut-off grade. The resource occurs in two sulfide deposits (Las Aguilas East and West Deposits), as defined by Fabricaciones Militares in 1986, which intermittently carried out various geological, geophysical and surface drilling exploration campaigns from 1972 until 1986. This resource estimate has not been confirmed by Castillian and predates the establishment of NI 43-101 standards and is provided for information only.
Project Status:
Since the program started in early July a total of 56 drill holes totalling 8,755 meters of drilling have been completed, of which assay results have only been received for 24 drill holes. Thirty two (32) drill holes have assays pending and these will be reported on a continual basis as the data is received. The project is on track and it is expected that an initial, independent, NI 43-101 compliant resource estimate will be completed by year-end. Turn around time for assay results has been much longer than expected due to high volumes at the laboratories, so it is possible completion of the resource estimate could be delayed for several weeks due to pending assay results. It is possible that the deposit will not be closed off at the end of this drill campaign.
Quality Control
The company employs a diligent QA/QC protocol on all aspects of the analytical procedures. Core samples are sawn and one half of the NQ core is restored to the core box for future reference and one half of the core is sent for analysis. Samples are taken in approx. 1.0-metre intervals or less when in the mineralized zone, and at 1.5 metres or less when in disseminated sulphides (<2% sulphides). Sample preparation is completed at the ALS-Chemex lab preparation lab in Mendoza, Argentina and assayed at ALS-Chemex lab in Vancouver, Canada, using multi-acid digest/ ICP-AES for the base metals and A.A. when Ni and Cu are over the detection limits. Platinum, palladium and gold values are determined by 30 gram fire assay with ICP-AES finish. A blank sample is inserted every 40th sample and standard samples representing a range of grades are inserted at intervals of 1 in 20 to 30 samples.
The quality control and all aspects of the exploration program are supervised by Castillian exploration managers, Danielle Giovenazzo, Ph.D., PGeo, and Fernando Tallarico, Ph.D., PGeo, both of whom meet the criteria for a qualified person as defined under National Instrument 43-101.
John Hite, PGeol, President and Chief Executive Officer of Marifil and David Gower, PGeo, President and Chief Executive Officer of Castillian, both of whom are qualified persons as defined by NI 43-101, have reviewed this release.
Contacts: John Hite, President (509) 467-5200
Paul Searle, Investor Relations, pauljsearle@shaw.ca Vancouver area (604) 461-1117
Marifil Mines Ltd.. is a Canadian mineral exploration company listed on the TSX Venture Exchange under the symbol "MFM" with approximately 31.8 million shares issued and outstanding. Marifil operates under a Joint Venture Model whereby the Company acquires properties, adds value by geologic mapping, trenching, geophysics, and/or drilling and then seeks qualified partners to earn their interest by advancing the property to production. Castillian is earning an interest in the Las Aguilas Nickel-Copper-PGM Project in Argentina from Marifil Mines Ltd.
For further information regarding Marifil Mines Ltd., please refer to the Company's filings available on SEDAR (Http://www.sedar.com) or at Marifil's Website (Http://www.marifilmines.com.)
Forward Looking Statements
This document may contain or refer to forward looking information based on current expectations, including, but not limited to, mineralization projections, estimates regarding the timing for resource modeling and the preparation of a 43-101 compliant technical report. Forward-looking statements are subject to significant risks and uncertainties, and other factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from expected results. These forward-looking statements are made as of the date hereof and we assume no responsibility to update or revise them to reflect new events or circumstances.
Table 1: Mineralized intercepts from the Las Aguilas East Deposit. Width in the table represents core length of the intersection, true width is expected to be 70% or more of the core width.
CT |
From |
To |
Width |
Ni % |
Cu % |
Co % |
Pt ppm |
Pd ppm |
Au ppm |
LA07-015 |
No significant mineralization |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
LA07-016 |
58.26 |
65.10 |
6.84 |
0.57 |
0.22 |
0.03 |
0.27 |
0.30 |
0.05 |
LA07-017 |
131.00 |
132.10 |
1.10 |
0.36 |
0.19 |
0.02 |
0.27 |
0.24 |
0.03 |
LA07-018 |
46.55 |
48.61 |
2.06 |
0.53 |
0.40 |
0.02 |
0.07 |
0.31 |
0.03 |
86.70 |
97.65 |
10.95 |
0.42 |
0.27 |
0.03 |
0.11 |
0.10 |
0.03 |
106.15 |
112.65 |
6.50 |
0.42 |
0.43 |
0.03 |
0.11 |
0.10 |
0.04 |
LA07-019 |
132.90 |
160.46 |
27.56 |
0.46 |
0.34 |
0.02 |
0.34 |
0.38 |
0.17 |
including |
143.47 |
148.46 |
4.99 |
0.56 |
0.34 |
0.02 |
0.27 |
0.46 |
0.23 |
LA07-020 |
29.93 |
34.00 |
4.07 |
0.46 |
0.19 |
0.02 |
0.47 |
0.34 |
0.07 |
LA07-021 |
173.70 |
200.90 |
27.20 |
0.66 |
0.39 |
0.03 |
0.32 |
0.39 |
0.14 |
including |
178.76 |
183.80 |
5.04 |
0.73 |
0.32 |
0.03 |
0.30 |
0.44 |
0.06 |
including |
186.50 |
200.90 |
14.40 |
0.78 |
0.49 |
0.03 |
0.38 |
0.46 |
0.19 |
also |
191.96 |
200.90 |
8.94 |
0.92 |
0.53 |
0.04 |
0.28 |
0.41 |
0.09 |
LA07-024 |
149.54 |
151.64 |
2.10 |
0.57 |
0.25 |
0.03 |
0.18 |
0.29 |
0.03 |
|
161.19 |
164.19 |
3.00 |
0.35 |
0.13 |
0.02 |
0.15 |
0.14 |
0.02 |
|
196.71 |
198.17 |
1.46 |
0.57 |
0.64 |
0.04 |
0.05 |
0.18 |
0.04 |
FIGURE 1: Location Map of Las Aguilas drill holes. All holes reported in this release are in the eastern part of the East Deposit.
Click to enlarge
FIGURE 2. Vertical Longitudinal Section of the Las Aguilas East deposit looking 260 degrees west, with Castillian 2007 drill hole pierce points.
Click to enlarge
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