-- Aggressive Exploration Continues --
WINNIPEG, MANITOBA, Dec 11, 2007 (Marketwire via COMTEX News Network) --
HudBay Minerals Inc. (TSX:HBM) today announced plans to spend $42.8 million on its 2008 exploration program.
"Exploration
delivers HudBay's organic growth," said Peter Jones, President and CEO.
"Our long track record of discovery and ongoing aggressive exploration
provides for significant potential future benefit."
The 2008
budget builds on the 2007 $45.2 million program that delivered the Lalor
Lake deposit. Lalor Lake has an indicative potential mineral resource
to date of 18 to 20 million tonnes (1) at 7.7% to 8.8% zinc, making it
what HudBay believes to be a significant new zinc discovery in Canada.
Preliminary 2008 Exploration Plan (2)
------------------------------------------------
Flin Flon Greenstone Belt ($ millions)
------------------------------------------------
Grassroots exploration 15.2
------------------------------------------------
Lalor Lake deposit 10.2
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Underground mine exploration 6.1
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Administration and studies 5.0
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36.5
------------------------------------------------
Elsewhere
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Balmat and district 2.1
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Other districts 4.2
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6.3
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Total 42.8
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HudBay's exploration properties include approximately 400,000
hectares in the prolific Flin Flon Greenstone Belt of Manitoba and
Saskatchewan and approximately 20,000 hectares in the Balmat district of
New York state. HudBay owns the Tom/Jason zinc/lead/silver mineral
deposit in the Yukon, zinc exploration properties in Southwestern
Ontario and copper exploration properties in Chile. HudBay has also
optioned mineral properties to six other exploration companies as a
means to leverage its expenditures in the Flin Flon Greenstone Belt.
Flin Flon Greentone Belt
Exploration
targets in 2008 in the Flin Flon Greenstone Belt include drilling known
mineral deposits, structural re-interpretations and geophysical
anomalies. HudBay also plans exploration within its operating mines, in
an effort to further expand mineral reserves and resources.
Lalor Lake Deposit
HudBay plans to spend approximately $10.2 million in 2008 to further
define the extent of the deposit and for in-fill drilling to produce a
National Instrument 43-101 ("NI 43-101") compliant mineral resource
estimate as well as collect data for a feasibility study, expand
geophysical coverage and perform mineralogical and other studies.
Bur Deposit
An
NI 43-101 compliant mineral resource estimate for the Bur deposit is
expected to be released prior to the end of 2007. Given the significance
of the Lalor Lake deposit, the close by Bur deposit, which is small,
will be held in abeyance and the recently discovered Lalor Lake deposit
will be prioritized.
Watts Deposit
An NI 43-101 compliant
mineral resource estimate for the Watts deposit is expected to be
released prior to the end of 2007. Watts is located approximately 45
kilometres from the Snow Lake
concentrator.
Elsewhere
Balmat, New York state
At
Balmat, exploration will focus both on extension of the underground
mineral resources as well as new discoveries in the company's 20,000
hectares of exploration lands.
Southwest Ontario
Plans include drilling, geophysics and geochemistry on HudBay's exploration lands in this district.
Tom/Jason Deposit, Yukon
Expenditures
in 2008 will be in support of permitting and scoping studies as well as
a more extensive exploration program in 2009.
Chile
In
2008, plans include evaluation and drilling of HudBay's San Antonio
copper project to define the extent of copper mineralization.
About HudBay Minerals Inc.
HudBay
is an integrated mining company operating mines, concentrators and a
metal production facility in northern Manitoba and Saskatchewan. HudBay
also owns a zinc
oxide production facility in Ontario, the White Pine copper refinery in
Michigan and the Balmat zinc mine operations in New York state. HudBay
is a member of the S&P/TSX Composite Index and a member of the
S&P/TSX Global Mining Index.
(HBM-G)
Forward-Looking Information
This
news release contains "forward-looking information", within the meaning
of applicable Canadian securities legislation. Forward-looking
information includes, but is not limited to, information with respect to
HudBay's exploration program and planned expenditures, possible results
with respect to the Lalor Lake property as well as HudBay's future
prospects. Generally, forward-looking information can be identified by
the use of forward-looking terminology such as "plans", "seeks",
"expects", "budget" or variations of such words or state that certain
actions, events or results "may", "could", "will",
"will be", "would be" or "is expected to be". Forward-looking
information is subject to known and unknown risks, uncertainties and
other factors that may cause the actual results, level of activity,
performance or achievements of HudBay to be materially different from
those expressed or implied by such forward-looking information,
including risks associated with the mining industry such as economic
factors, government regulation and approvals, environmental risks,
actual results of exploration activities, future commodity prices,
permitting timelines, capital expenditures, possible variations in ore
reserves, resources, grade or recovery rates, requirements for
additional capital, changes in project parameters as plans continue to
be refined, conclusions of economic evaluations as well as those factors
discussed in the section entitled "Risk Factors" in HudBay's Annual
Information Form
for the year ended December 31, 2006, available on www.sedar.com.
Although HudBay has attempted to identify important factors that could
cause actual results to differ materially from those contained in
forward-looking information, there may be other factors that cause
results not to be as anticipated, estimated or intended. There can be no
assurance that such statements will prove to be accurate, as actual
results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated
in such information. Accordingly, readers should not place undue
reliance on forward-looking information. HudBay does not undertake to
update any forward-looking information, except in accordance with
applicable securities laws.
The data herein and the contents of
this news release have been reviewed by Kelly Gilmore, B.Sc. P. Geo.,
Chief Exploration
Geologist with HudBay's Hudson Bay Exploration and
Development Company Limited subsidiary, who is a Qualified Person within
the meaning of National Instrument 43-101, with the ability and
authority to verify the authenticity and validity of the data.
(1)
The estimate of potential tonnes and grade of the Lalor Lake potential
mineral deposit are conceptual in nature. There has been insufficient
exploration to define a mineral resource and it is uncertain if further
exploration will result in the Lalor Lake deposit being delineated as a
mineral resource. Further details are available in HudBay's news release
dated October 23, 2007.
(2) All values are preliminary
estimates, and actual expenditures may vary and will depend on several
factors and may be subject to change.
SOURCE: HudBay Minerals Inc.
HudBay Minerals Inc.
Brad Woods
Director, Investor Relations
(204) 949-4272
Email: brad.woods@hbms.ca
Website: www.hudbayminerals.com
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