Vancouver, BC, December 15, 2010 – Ventana Gold Corp. (TSX: VEN)
("Ventana" or the "Company") is
pleased to announce results from seven additional exploration holes drilled on
multiple zones within the La Mascota Southwest
extension at the La Bodega gold project in Colombia. A complete listing of
drill intercepts and details on the cross sections are available on the
Company's website at http://www.ventanagold.com/.
Highlights
- A newly recognized, silver-rich
oxide zone has been discovered in the La Mascota
Southwest Extension where hole 320 returned 34.9 metres
of 278.23 g/t silver and 1.04 g/t gold. This area is characterized by
elevated silver grades contained in a flat-lying and near-surface zone.
- Hole 320 returned
24.8 metres of 10.15 g/t gold 100 metres south of the La Mascota
trend and in line with the Las Mercedes zone defining a potential
significant extension of this mineralization. Additionally, hole 359 returned 4.2 metres
of 5.62 g/t gold further confirming that the Las Mercedes mineralized
zone continues to the southwest.
- La Baja hole
328 returned 29.1 metres of 4.58 g/t gold
and hole 340 returned 36 metres of 5.65 g/t
gold.
Details
Hole 320, on section 8950-2 in the La Mascota Southwest Extension is the first exploration hole
drilled from a location approximately 100 metres
south of the projected La Mascota trend. A low-angle,
silicified horizon was intercepted starting at 79.1 metres
drilled depth (40 metres vertical depth) which
returned 34.9 metres of 278.23 grams per tonne silver and 1.04 grams per tonne
gold. The silver mineralization overlaps but does not correlate with gold. In
conjunction with previous exploration results in this area, Ventana
now believes it may be defining a separate mineralizing event. This same
horizon was encountered in other holes in the vicinity including hole 219 on
section 8900, which intersected 25.5 metres of 285
grams per tonne silver and 0.76 grams per tonne gold starting at 89.5 metres
drilled depth and hole 285 on section 8850 which intersected 12.6 metres of 150 grams per tonne
silver and 0.82 grams per tonne gold starting at 82 metres drilled depth. This newly recognized type of
silver-dominant mineralization appears to occur beneath a sub-horizontal
intrusive sill, is predominantly oxidized and represents a new manto style of mineralization.
Two holes intercepted mineralization that appears to
be extending the Las Mercedes trend to the southwest. Hole
359 on section 9900-1 intersected 4.2 metres of 5.62
grams per tonne gold. Hole
320 that intercepted the silver-rich horizon, also intersected 24.8 metres of 10.15 grams per tonne
gold. This area of mineralization is in line with the Las Mercedes trend and
appears to be a significant southwest extension of this zone. Subject to
further drilling, the Las Mercedes zone could potentially now extend for 1,000 metres along strike. Like La Mascota,
Las Mercedes remains open along strike and at depth. Please see
the attached map for further detail.
Hole 341 on
section 8650-2 returned several good intercepts, including 52 metres of 1.77 grams per tonne
gold, and was drilled down-dip from the previously reported hole 330, which
returned 91.2 metres of 1.31 grams per tonne gold. Also notable is hole 353 on section 8650-2
which intersected 6.0 metres of 6.03 grams per tonne gold.
Drilling at La Baja continues to intercept better than
average grade mineralization and continues to confirm continuity of the La Mascota zone to the southwest. Hole
328 on section 9150-2 intersected 29.1 metres of 4.58
grams per tonne gold and was lost before target depth
but was re-drilled as hole 340. Hole 340 deviated and
intercepted the zone 20 metres southwest of hole 328
returning 36 metres of 5.65 grams per tonne gold.
These latest results represent exploration in new
areas within the sparsely drilled La Mascota
Southwest Extension and demonstrate that the mineralization tenor remains
robust as drilling extends to the southwest. Drilling continues throughout the
La Bodega project with 10 drills which are engaged in exploration of newer
target areas and infill to upgrade the initial resource from inferred to
indicated and measured.
About Ventana
Ventana is a Vancouver-based mineral exploration and development company with
mineral rights to 4,590 hectares of exploration property in northeastern
Colombia. The Company has two project areas, La Bodega and Cal-Vetas, of which the flagship La Bodega project contains
multiple high-grade zones of gold, silver and copper mineralization. Ventana has announced the results to the project's scoping
study and completed its first inferred mineral resource estimate which includes
27 million tonnes grading 3.9 grams per tonne gold, 21.5 grams per tonne
silver, and 0.14% copper for a total of 3.5 million ounces of gold, 19.2
million ounces of silver and 84.9 million pounds of copper. There is
significant potential to expand the resource and the Company intends to
continue aggressive exploration at the project both from surface and
underground.
Ventana's shares trade on the Toronto Stock Exchange under the symbol VEN.
For additional information please visit www.ventanagold.com or contact:
Letitia Cornacchia, VP
Investor Relations
tel +1 (416) 644-5084
email lcornacchia@ventanagold.com
Cautionary Statement Regarding Forward-looking
Information
Certain of the statements made and information
contained in this press release may constitute forward-looking information
within the meaning of applicable securities legislation. All information and
statements which are not historical fact constitute forward-looking information
and, in many cases, can be identified by words such as "may",
"will", "expect", "plan", "anticipate",
"believe", "estimate", "potential", or other
similar terminology. The forward-looking information contained in this press
release is based on the reasonable expectations and beliefs of management as at
the date of this press release and involves numerous assumptions, known and
unknown risks and uncertainties, both general and specific to Ventana and the industry in which the Company operates.
Such assumptions, risks and uncertainties include, but are not limited to
future prices of gold, the factual results of current exploration, development
and mining activities, changes in project parameters as plans continue to be
evaluated as well as those factors disclosed in Ventana's
documents filed from time to time with the securities regulators in the
provinces of British Columbia, Alberta and Ontario. Should one or more of these
risks and uncertainties materialize, or should underlying assumptions prove
incorrect, actual results, performance or achievements of the Company, or
industry results, may vary materially from those described in this press
release. Accordingly, readers are advised not to place undue reliance on
forward-looking information. Except as otherwise required by law, Ventana does not intend to and assumes no obligation to
update or revise forward-looking information, whether as a result of new
information, plans, events or otherwise.
Cautionary Note Concerning Scoping Study and Inferred
Mineral Resources
The scoping study is an assessment that is preliminary
in nature and includes inferred mineral resources that are considered too
speculative geologically to have the economic considerations applied to them
that would enable them to be categorized as mineral reserves, and there is no
certainty that the preliminary assessment in the scoping study will be
realized. Mineral resources that are not classified as mineral reserves do not
have demonstrated economic viability.