VANCOUVER, BRITISH COLUMBIA--(Marketwire - Feb. 21, 2012) - Coro Mining Corp. ("Coro" or the "Company") (News - Market indicators) is pleased to announce that it has entered into an option agreement to acquire the El Desesperado Property from a local Chilean company. The 698 hectare property hosts porphyry copper style mineralization and is located approximately 7km northwest of the city of Calama, and 16km southwest of the world famous Chuquicamata copper mine, in the II Region of Chile, at an elevation of 2,500m (Figure 1: http://file.marketwire.com/release/COPFig1.pdf). The Toki Cluster porphyry copper deposits currently being evaluated by Codelco, are located immediately to the east of the property. They comprise the major Toki, Quetena, Genoveva and Opache centers of porphyry copper mineralization, each containing several hundred million tonnes of copper oxide resources, grading 0.4-0.5%Cu, and entirely covered by gravels.
In December 2011, Codelco initiated the permitting process for production of cathode copper from the combined Quetena and Genoveva deposits. According to the publicly available Environmental Impact Study, this will involve an open pit at each of the deposits, the trucking of 30,000tpd of higher grade ore to the existing SXEW facilities at Chuquicamata, and 60,000tpd of Run of Mine dump leaching at the project site, followed by pumping of solution to Chuquicamata. Planned production is 528,000 tonnes of cathode copper over the 10 year life of the project, with an average production of 62,000 tpy Cu in the first five years. Capital investment is estimated to be US$244,000,000.
The Genoveva planned open pit rim is located approximately 1km to the east of the El Desesperado property, while the Opache deposit is located approximately 2km to the east-southeast (Figure 2: http://media3.marketwire.com/docs/COPFig2.pdf).
Alan Stephens, President and CEO of Coro, commented, "We are very pleased to have acquired the El Desesperado property. We believe that it has significant potential for the discovery of a new member of the Toki Cluster deposits, and we intend to complete surface exploration and a drilling program to confirm this. El Desesperado is the latest project in our Chilean porphyry copper exploration portfolio, which consists of the Berta project, where we expect to initiate a second drilling campaign shortly; the Chacay project, where we have a identified a significant chalcocite enrichment blanket; and Llancahue, where we plan additional drilling later this year. Together with San Jorge in Argentina, Coro is now evaluating five porphyry copper deposits, and we expect to add to this total in 2012."
El Desesperado Option Terms
Coro may acquire 100% of the El Desesperado property for a total of US$13,000,000 by making the following staged option payments;
On signing: US$200,000 (paid)
12 months from signing: US$500,000
24 months from signing: US$1,300,000
36 months from signing: US$3,000,000
48 months from signing: US$8,000,000
In addition, a 1.9% sales royalty is payable on any production from the property, over which Coro has a first right of refusal.
About El Desesperado
Based on outcropping alteration, lithologies and copper oxides, Coro believes there is good potential in the untested northern part of the El Desesperado property to host significant mineralization of similar style to the adjacent Genoveva and Quetena deposits. These are associated with swarms of NNE oriented Eocene porphyry dykes and stocks, intruded into both Paleozoic volcanics and precursor Tertiary plutons. Zones of low grade copper mineralization associated with potassic alteration are related to the porphyries and higher copper grades occur where this has been overprinted by sericite alteration, or where later veining is present. The Toki Cluster deposits have been oxidized to depths in excess of 100m beneath the gravel cover and host major copper oxide resources, as well as significant underlying primary sulphide mineralization.
Small scale open pit mining and vat leaching of copper oxide bearing breccias, took place at the Quetena Mine on the property during the 1960-70's, and it was subsequently explored by two major mining companies, firstly in 1997-98 prior to the discovery of the Toki Cluster; and secondly in 2004. The first company completed wide spaced reverse circulation and Diamond drilling (11 holes, 2,582m), mostly aimed at testing geophysical targets, while the second company completed vertical reverse circulation drilling (2 holes, 700m) which tested two conceptual targets. In neither case, was significant mineralization intersected; however, none of the previous drilling was completed in the highly prospective northern part of the property.
As of December 31, 2011 the Company had approximately CA$12 million in cash, and is well funded to advance its projects.
CORO MINING CORP.
Alan Stephens, President and CEO
About Coro Mining Corp.:
The Company was founded with the goal of building a mining company focused on medium-sized base and precious metals deposits in Latin America. The Company intends to achieve this through the exploration for, and acquisition of, projects that can be developed and placed into production. Coro's porphyry copper properties include the Berta, Chacay, Llancahue, and Celeste exploration projects located in Chile and the advanced San Jorge porphyry copper-gold project, in Argentina.
This news release includes certain "forward-looking statements" under applicable Canadian securities legislation. Such forward-looking statements or information, including but not limited to those with respect to the prices of copper, estimated future production, estimated costs of future production, permitting time lines, involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties, and other factors which may cause the actual results, performance or achievements of the Company to be materially different from any future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements or information. Such factors include, among others, the actual prices of copper, 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 the Company's documents filed from time to time with the securities regulators in the Provinces of British Columbia, Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba, Ontario, New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, Prince Edward Island and Newfoundland and Labrador.
