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VANCOUVER, BRITISH COLUMBIA--(Marketwire - March 4, 2010) - Alexco
Resource Corp. (TSX:AXR)(NYSE Amex:AXU)
("Alexco" or the
"Company") is pleased to announce the 2010 plans for the
largest exploration program the Company has ever undertaken in the Keno
Hill Silver District, Yukon Territory. Approximately 30,000 meters of
diamond drilling is planned in 2010, comprising 25,000 meters of
surface drilling throughout the district plus an additional 5,000
meters of underground drilling specifically at the Bellekeno
mine which is currently under construction. The aim of the expanded
exploration program is to define new and additional high grade minable
resources at a number of sites within the district, including the Bellekeno mine and the historical Silver King mine,
as well as the historical Lucky Queen mine where drilling in 2009
identified a new high grade zone of mineralization down-plunge of the
historical Lucky Queen workings. Alexco plans
to invest a minimum of $12 million to complete this 2010 exploration program.
2010 Keno Hill Exploration Highlights
- An approximately 25,000 meter surface drill program, scheduled to
begin this month, is planned for the Keno Hill Silver District, where
the Company's land holdings exceed 23,000 hectares. This work will be in
addition to the approximately 5,000 meter Bellekeno
underground exploration and definition drilling program initiated in
February, 2010.
- Surface exploration work will focus at the Silver King, Lucky Queen,
Onek and Bermingham-Ruby-Hector Calumet mine areas, among others, with
the aim of defining additional minable silver resources at grades
comparable to the historical Keno Hill district production grades of
approximately 40 ounces silver per ton.
- In addition to the systematic exploration and definition of new
silver deposits outlined above, the Company will expand and accelerate
its recently initiated (during 2009) "blind target"
exploration program, which is designed to test targets where
extrapolated stratigraphic, structural and geochemical patterns are
similar to those associated with the larger and higher grade historical
silver deposits in the district.
- Underground definition and exploration drilling continues at the
Bellekeno mine, where an indicated resource of 401,000 tonnes grading
921 grams silver, 9.4% lead and 6.5% zinc was outlined in 2009 (see
news release dated November 11, 2009 entitled "Alexco Completes
Positive Bellekeno Mine Development Plan, Silver Wheaton Concurs -
Initiation of Construction Approved"). The Bellekeno resource,
which is currently being developed for mining production in 2010,
comprises three mineralized zones: East, 99 and Southwest. The majority
of the 2010 Bellekeno exploration drilling will focus on testing open,
southwest-plunging areas of mineralization primarily in the East and
Southwest zones.
2010 Keno Hill Exploration Program
The 2010 Keno Hill exploration program is designed to define and expand
silver mineralization and resources at Bellekeno, to confirm and expand
historical resources at Silver King and Lucky Queen, and to test other
priority targets throughout the district. At the Bellekeno mine, which
is on track to commence production in the third quarter of calendar
2010, extensions to existing zones of mineralization will be tested in
six areas.
In the vicinity of the historical Silver King mine, drilling in 2009 on
the Silver King #5 vein intersected 2.55 meters grading 1,932 grams per
tonne silver (56.4 ounces per ton), 11.3% lead and 0.4% zinc (see news
release dated December 1, 2009 entitled "Alexco Announces
Additional 2009 Drill Results, Keno Hill District, Yukon: Silver King
Drilling Intersects 2.55 Meters of 56.4 Ounces per Ton Silver") in
quartzite-rich rocks located stratigraphically below schist-rich rocks
that host the majority of the historically reported Silver King
resources. In the Keno Hill district, the bulk of the past producing
ore bodies occur within quartzite-rich sections, thereby adding to the
potential for expansion of the Silver King historic resource at depth.
Similarly, at the historical Lucky Queen mine, Alexco's discovery in
2009 of a new zone of mineralization approximately 70 meters
down-plunge from the historical workings was highlighted by a number of
significant intercepts, including K09-209 which returned assays to
2,120 grams per tonne silver (61.8 ounces per ton), 5.0% lead and 9.7%
zinc over 4.23 meters (see news release dated November 3, 2009 entitled
"Alexco Announces Additional 2009 Drill Results from Lucky Queen,
Keno Hill District: Drilling Intersects 4.23 meters of 61.8 Ounces per
Ton Silver"). Drilling in 2010 is targeted to define and expand
this new zone of Lucky Queen mineralization. Assuming success, the
Company aims to produce new resource estimates for Silver King and
Lucky Queen, as well as an updated resource estimate for Bellekeno,
during 2010.
In the shorter term, and unrelated to the 2010 exploration program, the
Company plans to release a resource estimate for the historical
tailings in the Keno Hill Silver District, based on approximately 280
sonic drill holes drilled in 2009.
From June 2006 through calendar 2009, Alexco has drilled 157 diamond
drill holes totaling approximately 35,600 meters in the Keno Hill
Silver District. A further 201 holes and 25,900 meters have been
drilled from surface and underground in the Bellekeno mine area. The
Company has also flown 2,016 line-kilometers of airborne geophysics,
and has compiled approximately 35,000 documents and digital data into a
300 gigabyte digital library/database.
To date, only 16 of the approximately 35 known historical mine areas
occurring within Alexco's Keno Hill district land holdings have been
drill tested by Alexco. In addition to silver, and largely apart from
historical mines, the Company has identified areas of gold mineralization
requiring additional work.
This news release has been reviewed and verified by Stan Dodd, Vice
President, Exploration for Alexco and a Qualified Person as defined by
National Instrument 43-101.
Keno Hill Silver District History
Between 1921 and 1988, the Keno Hill Silver District produced more than
217 million ounces of silver with average grades of 40.5 ounces per ton
silver, 5.6% lead and 3.1% zinc (Yukon Government's Minfile database). The
historical production grades would rank Keno Hill in the top 3% by
grade of today's global silver producers. The Keno Hill district is the
second-largest historical silver producer in Canada.
About Alexco
Alexco's business is to unlock value and manage risk at mature, closed
or abandoned mine sites through integration and implementation of the
Company's core competencies which include management of environmental
services, execution of mine reclamation and closure operations and if
appropriate, rejuvenation of exploration and development of new mining
opportunities.
Some statements in this news release contain forward-looking
information concerning the Company's anticipated results and
developments in the Company's operations in future periods, planned
exploration and development of its properties, plans related to its
business and other matters that may occur in the future, made as of the
date of this press release. Forward-looking statements may include, but
are not limited to, statements with respect to future mineral
exploration, the estimation of mineral reserves and mineral resources,
the realization of mineral reserve and mineral resource estimates, the
timing of activities and the amount of estimated revenues and expenses,
the success of exploration activities, permitting time lines,
requirements for additional capital and sources and uses of funds. Forward-looking
statements are subject to a variety of known and unknown risks,
uncertainties and other factors which could cause actual events or
results to differ from those expressed or implied by the forward-looking
statements. Such factors include, among others, risks related to actual
results of exploration activities; conclusions of economic evaluations;
changes in project parameters as plans continue to be refined; future
prices of gold, silver and other commodities; possible variations in
ore bodies, grade or recovery rates; failure of plant, equipment or
processes to operate as anticipated; accidents, labour disputes and
other risks of the mining industry; and delays in obtaining
governmental approvals or financing or in the completion of development
activities.
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