PROJECT UPDATE AND FINANCIAL RESULTS
FOR FIRST QUARTER ENDED OCTOBER 31, 2008
Vancouver, BC - December 22, 2008 - Creston Moly Corp. ("Creston" or the "Company") (TSX-V: CMS) is pleased to provide an update on its 100% owned Creston Molybdenum Project in the State of Sonora, Mexico and financial results for the three-month period ended October 31, 2008.
C. K. Benner, Chairman of the Company said; �We are very pleased with the progress made on the project during the quarter and expect to release our prefeasibility report early in the New Year. However, in view of the state of the present financial markets, we have decided to defer some of the engineering work related to the Bankable Feasibility Study and to slow down the remainder of the work as we seek to conserve our cash and resources in this difficult market. The presumed inability of most, if not all, mining projects to acquire adequate funding for ongoing projects at this time is a clear indication that while the Company must move forward it is best to do so in a more measured and cash conservative manner and monitor all markets.�
Exploration/Development activities at the Creston Molybdenum Deposit
Main Zone
The Company completed its infill drill program on the Main Zone of the Creston Deposit. The program consisted of 53 diamond drill holes totalling 15,835 metres, and was designed to upgrade inferred resources to the indicated category. The infill drill program originally contemplated a 40 drill hole program, but was augmented to investigate previously unidentified mineralized areas, especially along the northern and eastern sectors of the deposit.
Drill results and drill hole locations for results received to date from this program are available on the Company�s website at www.crestonmoly.com.
A new resource calculation was completed in October 2008 by Mine Development Associates (�MDA�) of Reno, Nevada. The estimate is based on data provided from 116 drill holes and the mineral domain polygons interpreted from a total of 111 cross sections. MDA is the independent consulting firm that was retained to oversee quality assurance/quality control (�QA/QC�) procedures and to carry out an updated resource estimate of the Creston Main Zone. The report, written by Michael M. Gustin, P.Geo, a Qualified Person as defined by National Instrument 43-101, of MDA, has been filed on SEDAR at www.sedar.com and is also available on Creston�s website at www.crestonmoly.com. Highlights are as follows:
-
Measured and Indicated Resources (at a 0.03% molybdenum (�Mo�) - equivalent cut-off) are estimated to be 176.9 million tonnes averaging 0.071% Mo and 0.046% copper (�Cu�) (278 million pounds of molybdenum contained and 179 million pounds of copper contained).
-
40% of the total Measured and Indicated Resources, approximately 73.5 million tonnes, average 0.103% Mo and 0.054% Cu (167 million pounds of molybdenum contained and 88 million pounds of copper contained) applying a 0.08% Mo - equivalent cut-off.
-
A near surface, high grade breccia has been defined, within the eastern portion of the deposit, that contains approximately 19 million tonnes of Measured and Indicated Resources averaging 0.098% Mo (41 million pounds of molybdenum contained) at a 0.03% Mo - equivalent cut-off.
Red Hill and Alejandra Zones
A 12 hole, 2,808 metre diamond drill program on the Red Hill Zone has been completed.
The Red Hill Zone is a mineralized area located approximately 300 metres southwest of the Creston Main Zone deposit, below a low angle normal fault known as the Creston Fault. The 2008 drill program was aimed at evaluating the extent of shallow molybdenite mineralization encountered by previous operators and also to further investigate a buried porphyry system intersected by Amax in drill hole A-35. The twelve (12) holes drilled by Creston are widely spaced and, cover an area of 900 metres x 300 metres.
The results of this drilling confirmed the presence of shallow, high grade molybdenum mineralization, immediately south of the Creston Fault between sections 532700 E and 533000 E (61.15 metres of 0.19% Mo and 0.10% Cu in hole EC08-057 and 83.8 metres of 0.07% Mo and 0.07% Cu in hole EC08-058). This style of mineralization is akin to that found within the bulk of the Creston Main Zone deposit, consisting of molybdenite-bearing quartz stockworks hosted by a leucocratic Proterozoic granitoid (Creston Granite).
Two deep vertical holes were drilled to investigate the extent of the porphyry system; both encountered extensive Mo-Cu mineralization and were stopped in mineralization at 496.5 and 499.1 metres respectively. The mineralized intercepts included 241.4 metres of 0.08% Mo and 0.06% Cu in hole 054 and 315.5 metres of 0.06% Mo and 0.07% Cu in hole EC08-062. The mineralization in these intersections is hosted by a series of porphyry dykes and apophyses interfingering with pre-existing lithologies. Both porphyries and country rocks are pervasively altered (silica, phyllic alteration and Kspar flooding) and locally brecciated. Although molybdenite bearing quartz veins are present, the bulk of mineralization occurs as clots, disseminations and, locally in, molybdenite veinlets without accompanying quartz.
The results from these two holes and a hole drilled by Amax some years earlier indicate that the porphyry-style mineralization is open in all directions and at depth.
Drill results and drill hole locations for results received to date from this program are available on the Company�s website at www.crestonmoly.com.
Financial Results
The Company incurred an operating loss before write-offs of $1,276,259 (2007 - $660,489) during the three months ended October 31, 2008 and has also incurred operating losses for some time previously. As at October 31, 2008 the Company had working capital of $2,879,057 which included $4,742,630 of cash and cash equivalents (2007 - working capital of 11,666,262 which included $13,723,975 of cash and cash equivalents. As at July 31, 2008 the Company had working capital of $5,112,325 which included $7,220,728 of cash and cash equivalents.
The Company�s operating activities used cash of $509,906 (2007 � $601,306) during the three months ended October 31, 2008, arising from a net loss of $1,276,259 (2007 - $660,489), adjusted for add-back of non-cash items for amortization of $6,387 (2007 � amortization of $7,163), stock based compensation expense of $251,733 (2007 � $190,837) and from changes in non-cash working capital items of $508,233 (2007 � ($138,817)).
During the three months ended October 31, 2008 the Company invested a total of $2,508,191. A total of $2,507,051 was invested in mineral property expenditures on the Creston Project and $1,140 on the acquisition of equipment.
During the three months ended October 31, 2007 the Company invested a total of $702,244. A total of $672,541 was invested in mineral property expenditures on the Creston Project and $29,703 on the acquisition of equipment.
During the three months ended October 31, 2008, the Company issued 599,999 shares at an average price of $0.90 per share pursuant to the exercise of share purchase warrants.
During the three months ended October 31, 2007, the Company�s financing activities generated at total of $96,666 upon the exercise of 483,334 warrants.
All financial information contained herein should be read in conjunction with the Company's Management Discussion and Analysis and interim consolidated financial statements for the period ended October 31, 2008 and 2007 and related notes thereto available under the Company's profile on www.sedar.com.
About Creston Moly Corp.
Creston Moly Corp. is a Canadian mineral exploration company focused on the development of the Creston Molybdenum Deposit located 145 kilometres north-east of Hermosillo, Sonora State, Mexico, near the village of Opodepe. The Creston Molybdenum Deposit contains the following mineral resources at a 0.030% Mo equivalent* cut-off grade:
Category |
Tonnes
(x1000) |
Mo
(%) |
lbs Mo
(x1000) |
Cu
(%) |
lbs Cu
(x1000) |
|
|
|
|
|
|
Measured |
52,240 |
0.074 |
85,490 |
0.050 |
58,080 |
Indicated |
124,650 |
0.070 |
192,720 |
0.044 |
121,060 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
Total (M + I) |
176,890 |
0.071 |
278,210 |
0.046 |
179,140 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
16,300 |
0.051 |
18,320 |
0.061 |
21,860 |
* Mo equivalent cut-off: Mo% + (Cu%/7.5)1 Mineral resources which are not mineral reserves do not have demonstrated economic viability. The estimates of mineral resources may be materially affected by environmental, permitting, legal, title, taxation, sociopolitical, marketing or other relevant issues.
2 The quantity and grade of reported inferred resources in this estimation are conceptual in nature and there has been insufficient exploration to define these inferred resources as an indicated or measured mineral resource and it is uncertain if further exploration will result in upgrading them to an indicated or measured mineral resource category.
3 The mineral resources referred to herein have been estimated in a NI 43-101 technical report (the �MDA Report�) prepared for the Company in December 2008 by Mine Development Associates (�MDA�). The person responsible for the resource estimate on behalf of MDA is Michael Gustin, P.Geo, and a Qualified Person for the purposes of National Instrument 43-101.The MDA Report is available at www.sedar.com.
Luca Riccio, PhD, P. Geo, a Qualified Person as defined by National Instrument 43-101, is responsible for the technical information contained in this News Release.
The Company will no longer be maintaining its OTC listing in the United States under the symbol �CMSJF-Q�. Information and quotations can be obtained through the TSX Venture Exchange under the symbol (�TSXV - CMS).
For further information please contact:
Mr. Jonathan George
Mr. C. K. Benner
Mr. John McCleery
604-694-0005 (TEL)
604-684-9365 (FAX)
Website: www.crestonmoly.com
Renmark Financial Communications Inc.
Christine Stewart : cstewart@renmarkfinancial.com
�ric St-Pierre : estpierre@renmarkfinancial.com
Media � Vanessa Napoli : vnapoli@renmarkfinancial.com
Toronto � Tel.: 416 644-2020 / Fax: 416 644-2021
Montreal � Tel.: 514 939-3989 / Fax: 514 939-3717
www.renmarkfinancial.com
The TSX Venture Exchange has not reviewed and does not accept responsibility for the adequacy and accuracy of this release.
Forward Looking Statements: The above contains forward looking statements that are subject to a number of known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause actual results to differ materially from those anticipated in our forward looking statements. Factors that could cause such differences include: changes in world commodity markets, equity markets, costs and supply of materials relevant to the mining industry, change in government, and changes to regulations affecting the mining industry. Forward-looking statements in this release include statements regarding future exploration programs, operation plans, geological interpretations, mineral tenure issues, and mineral recovery processes. Although we believe the expectations reflected in our forward looking statements are reasonable, results may vary, and we cannot guarantee future results, levels of activity, performance, or achievements.
<