Timberline Intercepts High-Grade Gold Mineralization Down Dip of Current Resource at Lookout Mountain
COEUR D'ALENE, IDAHO, Aug 23, 2012 (MARKETWIRE via COMTEX) -- Timberline Resources Corporation (nyse mkt:TLR) TLR 0.00% CA:TBR +6.67% ("Timberline" or the "Company") announced today that it intercepted high-grade gold mineralization beneath the currently-defined resource at its Lookout Mountain Project near Eureka, Nevada. This significant intercept graded 0.138 opt (4.72 g/t) gold over the final 15 feet (4.6 metres) of the hole, which was terminated in mineralization due to ground conditions. The intercept establishes that high-grade mineralization occurs down dip of the presently-defined resource. This newly discovered zone is below the existing historical pit at Lookout Mountain where gold was produced in the late 1980's.
Timberline's Chief Executive Officer, Paul Dircksen, said, "The significance of the BHSE-152 drill intercept is that it demonstrates the potential for increased tonnages of higher-grade mineralization at depth. This deeper potential has never been tested along the 4,000 feet (1.22 km) of strike length where the existing resource has been defined. These drill results validate Timberline's continued confidence in the larger potential of the greater South Eureka Property and, specifically, in the Lookout Mountain Project. It is important to note that the drill hole bottomed in the mineralized zone when we were forced to abandon the hole. With these very encouraging results, we are planning to follow up with testing the high-grade mineralization at depth with core and RC drilling later this year and in future drill programs."
The current drill program at Lookout Mountain is focused on upgrading a larger portion of the current resource into the Measured and Indicated category; obtaining material for additional metallurgical studies; testing deeper zones of mineralization; and establishing a series of monitor wells to facilitate advancing the project to a near term production decision. Initial metallurgical recoveries of gold continue to indicate the potential for a low capital, low operating cost, heap-leach operation.
Recent drill results from Lookout Mountain include the following intervals:
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From Length Gold From Length Gold NaCN
Drill Hole (feet)(feet)(1) (opt)(2)(metres)(metres)(1) (g/t)(2) Recovery(3)
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BHSE-142 270 210 0.013 82.3 64.0 0.45 95%
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BHSE-146 20 20 0.013 6.1 6.1 0.45 86%
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BHSE-152 1025 15 0.138 312.4 4.6 4.73 34%
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BHSE-126C 21 28 0.531 6.4 8.5 18.19 8%
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BHSE-126C 81 128 0.020 24.7 39.0 0.69 86%
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BHSE-128C 100 69 0.014 30.5 21.0 0.48 100%
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BHSE-130C 167 89 0.012 50.9 27.1 0.41 97%
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Notes:
(1) True widths of the drill intercepts have not been determined
(2) Troy ounces per ton (opt) and grams per tonne (g/t)
(3) NaCN represents a Sodium Cyanide leach recovery of the gold content
of the sample
The South Eureka property features three extensive mineralized trends and also includes a pipeline of earlier-stage projects that feature past-producing open pits along with several areas containing historic gold resources. Timberline's current gold resource estimate at Lookout Mountain, which was prepared by Mine Development Associates ("MDA") of Reno, Nevada, consists of:
-- 390,000 ounces Measured & Indicated Gold Resource(1)
(20,765,000 tons at 0.019 opt gold (18,838,000 tonnes at 0.65 g/t))
-- 221,000 ounces Inferred Gold Resource(2)
(18,385,000 tons at 0.012 opt gold (16,679,000 tonnes at 0.41 g/t))
The resources were calculated utilizing a cut-off grade of 0.006 ounces of gold per ton (opt) (0.21 grams per metric tonne (g/t)) for oxide material and 0.030 opt (1.03 g/t) for sulfide material. Approximately 83-percent of the resource ounces are from oxide material and 17-percent are from sulfide material. The effective date of the resource is April 17, 2012, and the complete technical report is filed on SEDAR. The full MDA Resource Estimate with various cut-off grades may be viewed at http://timberline-resources.com/main.php?page=208 .
Gary Edmondo, Timberline's Great Basin District Geologist, is a Qualified Person as defined by National Instrument 43-101 and has reviewed and approved the technical contents of this release. He has verified the drill results and other data disclosed in this news release, including sampling, analytical and test data. Field work has been conducted under his supervision. The Timberline sampling and analysis program included an industry standard QA/QC program. After logging and cutting or dividing the sample intervals in half, the samples were picked up by Inspectorate America Corporation and taken to their ISO-9001 certified assay lab in Sparks, Nevada for analysis. The samples were analyzed for gold using a standard 30g fire assay with an AA finish. Samples returning a gold value in excess of 3 ppm were re-analyzed using a 30g fire assay with a gravimetric finish.
The Lookout Mountain mineral resources were modeled and estimated by MDA by evaluating the drill data statistically, utilizing geologic interpretations provided by Timberline to interpret gold mineral domains on cross sections spaced at 50- to 100-foot intervals across the extents of the Lookout Mountain mineralization, rectifying the mineral-domain interpretations on level plans spaced at 10-foot intervals, analyzing the modeled mineralization geostatistically to aid in the establishment of estimation parameters, and interpolating grades into a three-dimensional block model. Mike Gustin is a Qualified Person as defined by National Instrument 43-101 and is responsible for the resource estimate.
To read the entire news release follow the link below:
August 23, 2012 (Source: Market Watch)
Disclosure: Timberline Resources is a Vulture Bargain Candidate of Interest (VBCI) and is our fully fledged Vulture Bargain #4. Members of the GGR team are actively accumulating shares of TLR and continue to hold a speculative long position in the company.
