Silvercorp Reports Intercept of 7.39
Meters Grading 678 Grams per tonne Silver and 7.90 percent Lead among results
from Successful 2011 Underground Drilling Program at the LM Mine West, Ying
Mining District, Henan Province, China
Silvercorp
Metals Inc. ("Silvercorp� or �the Company�) is pleased
to report the results of its successful 2011 underground diamond drilling
program at the southwest corner (also called LM Mine West) of the TLP Mining
Permit area, Ying Mining District, Henan, China. The drill program discovered
four new high grade silver-lead veins, increasing the total number of
mineralized veins at the LM Mine West to 31. The program also extended the
previously known veins further to the down dip and striking directions. It is
expected that the success of the 2011 drilling program will result in
additional mineral resources being defined in the Resource and Reserve
technical updates currently underway (see press release of December 29, 2011
- Silvercorp To Commence Work On Resource And Reserve Updates).
2011
Drill Results
The 2011 drilling program at the LM Mine West
was designed to follow up on the successful 16,984 meter (m) 2010 drilling
campaign (Press Release dated January 4, 2011), the results of which were
incorporated into a new resource estimate (Press Release dated July 7, 2011).
The 2011 drill program at the LM Mine West consisted of a total of 37,359 m
of underground diamond drilling in 78 drill holes completed using six
underground drill rigs.
Table 1 below lists assay results from the 40
drill holes which have mineralization interceptions yielding significant
silver (Ag) � lead (Pb) grades while the remaining holes not listed only
intersected vein structures with weak mineralization. Selected significant
intercepts are as follows:
1.
Hole ZKX0509
intercepted 7.39 m of vein LM13 grading 678 g/t Ag, 7.9% Pb and 0.85% Zn at
the 572m elevation, including a 4.75m interval grading 863g/t Ag, 12.01% Pb
and 1.16% Zn;
2.
Hole ZKX0001
intercepted 2 veins: (1) 2.52 m of vein LM12-3 grading 963 g/t Ag and 1.31%
Pb at the 637m elevation, including a 1.63m interval grading 1430 g/t Ag and
2.00% Pb; and (2) 1.03 m of vein LM12-1 grading 572 g/t Ag and 7.09% Pb at
the 629m elevation;
3.
Hole ZKX2801
intercepted 4.22 m of vein LM17 grading 327 g/t Ag and 0.54% Pb at the 840m
elevation, including a 1.03m interval grading 982 g/t Ag and 0.65% Pb;
4.
Hole ZKX1705
intercepted 4.20 m of vein LM17 grading 314 g/t Ag and 0.45% Pb at the 724m
elevation, including a 2.10m interval grading 554 g/t Ag and 0.36% Pb;
5.
Hole ZKX0002
intercepted 1.70 m of vein LM13W grading 688 g/t Ag, 2.96% Pb and 0.54% Zn at
the 632m elevation, including a 0.55 m interval grading 1,981g/t Ag, 8.20% Pb
and 1.50% Zn;
6.
Hole ZKX0902
intercepted 1.20 m of vein LM12-2 grading 1,137 g/t Ag, 0.36% Pb and 0.54%
Zn, including a 0.52 m interval grading 2,525 g/t Ag, 0.32% Pb and 0.74% Zn;
7.
Hole ZKX0903
intercepted 2.67 m of vein LM10 grading 899 g/t Ag and 5.52% Pb at the 867m
elevation, including a 2.03 m interval grading 1,128 g/t Ag and 6.88% Pb.
Four
Newly Discovered Veins
The four newly discovered veins are LM12E, W1,
W6 and W18. Vein LM12E is a blind zone parallel to vein LM12, while the other
three veins occur as blind zones at an area about 600 m west of the major
known vein systems of the LM Mine West in the southwest corner of the TLP
Mining Permit area. For a description of many of the other 27 veins please
refer to the Company�s press releases dated April 08, 2008 and January 4,
2011.
Vein LM12E:
Vein LM12E occurs as a blind vein striking
northeast and dipping northwest at an angle from 60 to 70 degrees on the
footwall of vein LM12. The new vein was revealed by an exploration drift at
the 898m level and is about 45m southeast of vein LM12. The dip extension has
been tested with nine diamond drill holes sporadically distributed between
650m to 516m levels over 500m along strike. Seven holes intercepted Ag-Pb
mineralization, including 302 g/t over 0.55 m true width in hole ZKX0001, 272
g/t Ag over 1.45m true width in hole ZKX1122, and 86.2 g/t Ag and 11.32% Pb
over 0.79m true width in hole ZKX0903. The mineralized structure has been
successfully traced for 500m along strike and more than 400m downdip.
Vein W1:
Vein W1 is located about 600m west of LM11 and
dips northwest at an angle from 65 to 75 degrees. The vein was revealed in an
exploration tunnel at the 930m level, and 11 underground holes were drilled
from the tunnel to test the downdip extension between the 817m and 930m
levels. Eight of the 11 drill holes intercepted significant mineralization,
including 34.69 g/t Ag, 6.42% Pb and 1.43% Zn over 0.74 m true width in hole
ZKX13801, 297 g/t Ag and 3.01% Pb over 0.96 m in hole ZKX13402, and 234.5 g/t
Ag and 2.97% Pb over 0.39 m in hole ZKX13403. A mineralized zone of 100m in
length and 60m in depth has been defined by the drilling and tunneling.
Vein W18:
Vein W18 strikes 330� with a dip angle of 65 to
75� to the northeast and crosscuts vein W1 near the south end. Eight holes
were drilled to test the mineralized structure in 2011. All the drill holes
cut through the vein structure, and 2 of the 8 holes, ZKX13402 and ZKX13403,
intercepted significant Ag-Pb mineralization including 25 g/t Ag and 11.69%
Pb over 0.34 m true width at the 930m level in hole ZKX13402 and 177 g/t Ag
and 1.20% Pb over 0.76 m true width at the 879m level in ZKX13403.
Vein W6
Vein W6 is approximately 160m east of Vein W18
and the two vein structures are parallel to each other. The mineralized
structure was revealed in an exploration tunnel at the 930m level. Twelve
exploration holes were drilled to test the downdip extension of the
mineralized structure between 930m and 700m levels. Whiles all holes detected
the mineralized structure, four drill holes intercepted apparent Ag-Pb
mineralization, including 122 g/t Ag and 19.18% Pb over 0.36 m true width at
the 860m level in hole ZKX13601, 271 g/t Ag and 1.82% Pb over 0.39 m true
width at the 879m level in hole ZKX13804, 217 g/t Ag over 0.63 m at the 835m
level in hole ZKX14001, and 23 g/t Ag and 4.98% Pb over 0.65cm at the 772m
level in hole ZKX14002.
Mine
development Program at the LM Mine West
Based on the successful 2010 and 2011
underground diamond drilling programs at the LM Mine West, the Company has
decided to develop a shaft and a ramp at the LM Mine West to expand its
production. Shaft 969 is 3.5m in finished diameter, starting at 980m
elevation and bottoming at 600m elevation for a total depth of 380 m. Shaft
969 is nearing completion having already been sunk to the 650m elevation, and
is expected to be fitted with lifts and in operation in July 2012.
In addition to constructing the vertical Shaft
969, development of a 4,500m long, 4.2m by 3.8m dimension ramp commenced in
November 2011. The ramp has been collared at the 980m elevation and will be
developed to 550m elevation with a vertical depth of 430 metres. The ramp
will be used to transport materials, provide ventilation, allow underground
exploration, and allow development access.
So far the ramp has advanced over 250m in
length as at January 15, 2012 and is expected to be fully completed by
January 2014. As the ramp advances it will provide access to 10 mining levels
with connections to Shaft 969 and to main tunnels PD924 at the north and
PD991 at the south. According to the executed development contract, the ramp
will cost approximately RMB6,000 (or ~US$953) per
metre to complete, for a total anticipated capital cost of US$4.3 million. As
a comparison, a similar ramp development in Canada may cost as much as
US$5,000 to $6,000 per metre to develop.
Once the shaft is operational in July 2012, it
is expected that the ore production from the LM Mine West will gradually
increase from current 31,000 tonnes per year to 120,000 tonnes per year in
2014 when the ramp is completed in early 2014. The production increase at the
LM Mine West is part of Silvercorp�s effort to boost its mine production to
match its existing 3,200 tonne per day milling capacity within the Ying
Mining District.
Please
click here to view table 1
Quality
Control
Drill cores are in NQ size. Drill core samples,
limited by apparent mineralization contact or shear/alteration contact, were
split into halves by saw-cutting. The half cores are stored in Company�s core
shacks for future reference and checking, and the other half core samples are
shipped in securely sealed bags to the four labs, the Analytical Lab of Henan
Non-Ferrous Metals Geological and Exploitation Institute in Zhengzhou
(Zhengzhou Lab), the Analytical Lab of the 6th Nonferrous Geo-exploration
Team in Luoyang (Luoyang Lab), Henan Province, the ALS-Chemex Lab in
Guangzhou, Guangdong Province, and SGS lab in Tianjin. All labs are
officially accredited labs in China. Adopted analytical methods in the four
labs are as follows:
Zhengzhou Lab and Luoyang Lab:
The sample preparation consists of drying, crushing
and splitting of the sample to 250 grams, and then the sample is pulverized
to minus 200 mesh. Two acid digestion and AAS finish are utilized on a 0.5
gram sample for lead and zinc. Titration is utilized as a modified process
for higher grade materials. Silver is also analyzed using a
two acid digestion on a 0.5 gram sample and AA finish.
ALS Chemex:
Sample is dried, crushed and split to a 250 gram subsample which is further pulverized to 85% passing
200 mesh. Four acid digestion and ICP-AES finish are utilized on a 1 gram
sample for analyzing silver, lead, zinc and copper. For samples containing
more than 1500 g/t silver, fire assay and gravimetric finish is utilized.
Titration method is utilized as a modified process for samples with more than
10% Pb.
SGS Lab:
Sample is dried, crushed and split to a 250 gram subsample which is further pulverized to 85% passing
200 mesh. Fire assay and AAS finish are utilized for gold assay. Four acid
digestion and ICP-AES finish are used in analyzing silver, lead, zinc and
copper.
A routine QA/QC procedure is adopted at each
lab to monitor the analytical quality at the lab. Certified Reference
Materials (CRM), pulp duplicates, and blanks are inserted into each lab batch
of samples. QA/QC data at the lab are attached to the assay certificates for
each batch of samples.
The Company maintains a comprehensive quality
assurance and quality control program to ensure best practice in sample
preparation and analysis of the drill core samples. Project geologists
regularly insert Reference Material Samples (RMS) and blanks to each batch of
core samples to monitor the sample preparation and analysis procedures at the
labs. The analytical quality of the labs is further evaluated with external
checks by sending about 3% of the pulp samples to higher-level labs to check
for lab bias.
Data from both the Company�s and the labs�
QA/QC programs are timely reviewed and evaluated by project geologists.
Myles Gao, P.Geo., is the Qualified Person on
the project as defined under National Instrument 43-101. He has verified the
information and has reviewed and approved the contents of this news release.
About
Silvercorp Metals Inc.
Silvercorp Metals Inc. is engaged in the
acquisition, exploration, development and mining of high-grade silver-related
mineral properties in China and Canada. Silvercorp is the largest primary
silver producer in China through the operation of the four silver-lead-zinc
mines at the Ying Mining District in the Henan Province of China. Silvercorp
recently acquired the XBG and XHP silver-gold-lead-zinc mines nearby the Ying
Mining District in Henan Province, further consolidating the region.
Silvercorp has commenced production at its second production foothold in
China, the BYP gold-lead-zinc project in Hunan Province, and is currently
constructing the mill and related facilities in preparation for mining at the
GC silver-lead-zinc project in Guangdong Province. In Canada, Silvercorp is
preparing an application for a Small Mine Permit for the Silvertip high grade
silver-lead-zinc mine project in northern British Columbia to provide a
further platform for growth and geographic diversification. The Company�s
shares are traded on the New York Stock Exchange (symbol: SVM) and Toronto
Stock Exchange (symbol: SVM) and are included as a component of the
S&P/TSX Composite and the S&P/TSX Global Mining Indexes.
For
further information: SILVERCORP METALS INC., Rui Feng,
Chairman & CEO and Lorne Waldman, Corporate Secretary, Phone: (604)
669-9397, Fax: (604) 669-9387, Toll Free 1(888) 224-1881, Email:
info@silvercorp.ca, Website: www.silvercorp.ca.
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DISCLAIMER -- FORWARD LOOKING STATEMENTS
Certain of the statements and information in
this press release constitute �forward-looking statements� within the meaning
of the United States Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 and
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statements or information relate to, among other things: the price of silver
and other metals; the accuracy of mineral resource and mineral reserve
estimates at the Company�s material properties; the sufficiency of the
Company�s capital to finance the Company�s operations; estimates of the
Company�s revenues and capital expenditures; estimated production from the
Company�s mines in the Ying Mining Camp; timing of receipt of permits and
regulatory approvals; availability of funds from production to finance the
Company�s operations; and access to and availability of funding for future
construction, use of proceeds from any financing and development of the
Company�s properties.
Forward-looking statements or information are
subject to a variety of known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other
factors that could cause actual events or results to differ from those
reflected in the forward-looking statements or information, including,
without limitation, risks relating to: fluctuating commodity prices;
calculation of resources, reserves and mineralization and precious and base
metal recovery; interpretations and assumptions of mineral resource and
mineral reserve estimates; exploration and development programs; feasibility
and engineering reports; permits and licences; title to properties; First
Nations title claims and rights; property interests; joint venture partners;
acquisition of commercially mineable mineral rights; financing; recent market
events and conditions; economic factors affecting the Company; timing,
estimated amount, capital and operating expenditures and economic returns of
future production; integration of future acquisitions into the Company�s
existing operations; competition; operations and political conditions;
regulatory environment in China and Canada; environmental risks; foreign
exchange rate fluctuations; insurance; risks and hazards of mining
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internal control over financial reporting as per the requirements of the
Sarbanes-Oxley Act; and bringing actions and enforcing judgments under U.S.
securities laws.
This list is not exhaustive of the factors that
may affect any of the Company�s forward-looking statements or information.
Forward-looking statements or information are statements about the future and
are inherently uncertain, and actual achievements of the Company or other
future events or conditions may differ materially from those reflected in the
forward-looking statements or information due to a variety of risks,
uncertainties and other factors, including, without limitation, those
referred to in the Company�s Annual Information Form for the year ended March
31, 2011 under the heading �Risk Factors�. Although the Company has attempted
to identify important factors that could cause actual results to differ
materially, there may be other factors that cause results not to be as
anticipated, estimated, described or intended. Accordingly, readers should
not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements or information.
The Company�s forward-looking statements and
information are based on the assumptions, beliefs, expectations and opinions
of management as of the date of this press release, and other than as
required by applicable securities laws, the Company does not assume any
obligation to update forward-looking statements and information if
circumstances or management�s assumptions, beliefs, expectations or opinions
should change, or changes in any other events affecting such statements or
information. For the reasons set forth above, investors should not place
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