- Deposit remains open in two directions
- Drill Hole DUB 204 intersects 63 metres of 4.35 grams/tonne gold
WINNIPEG, MANITOBA, May 22, 2008 (Marketwire via COMTEX News
Network) --
HudBay Minerals Inc. (TSX:HBM) (HudBay) today announced additional
positive drill results from its Lalor Lake zinc exploration project near
Snow Lake, Manitoba in the Flin Flon Greenstone Belt. The results
continue to support the deposit's previously announced conceptual
estimate of a potential of 18 - 20 million tonnes of 7.7% to 8.8%
zinc(i).
Commenting on the latest assays, Allen Palmiere,
President & CEO said, "these latest results from Lalor Lake are not
only consistent with our previous assessments of the deposit, but are
also continuing to indicate the potential for some very attractive
precious metal as well as copper content on the northwest side of the
deposit."
Drill hole DUB 204 intersected mineralization that
assayed 4.35 grams/tonne gold over 63.43 metres from 838.57 to 902.00
metres. Notably the interval is much thicker than the 21.86 metre
footwall zinc rich
intersection that occurs from 838.57 to 860.43 metres within the same
drill interval.
The following tabulations are selected notable intersections.
Main Zone Intersections
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From To Length Au Ag Copper Zinc
Drill Hole metres metres metres g/t g/t % %
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DUB 174W03 735.15 764.84 29.69 0.23 17.50 0.33 10.58
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includes 735.15 738.95 3.80 0.10 23.90 0.48 23.61
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and 749.75 764.84 15.09 0.25 16.74 0.43 14.70
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DUB 205 786.45 803.9 17.45 0.76 14.02 0.36 13.20
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Footwall Intersections
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From To Length Au Ag Copper Zinc
Drill Hole metres metres metres g/t g/t % %
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DUB 174W01 841.00 852.28 11.28 0.68 9.53 0.31 5.05
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including 848.13 850.90 2.77 1.56 12.85 0.33 12.80
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DUB 174W01 919.90 936.10 16.20 1.76 42.46 0.22 4.67
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DUB 174W01 953.81 959.33 5.52 1.13 27.77 0.15 6.43
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DUB 204 838.57 860.43 21.86 4.26 33.36 1.05 4.66
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includes 846.01 857.57 11.56 4.38 34.30 1.80 6.83
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includes 846.01 848.75 2.74 1.75 19.53 1.45 13.25
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Precious Metal Intersections
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From To Length Au Ag Copper Zinc
Drill Hole metres metres metres g/t g/t % %
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DUB 174W01 900.75 903.30 2.55 32.89 104.04 0.56 4.38
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DUB 201 931.40 932.45 1.05 5.04 130.29 0.17 0.00
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DUB 201 1162.59 1163.00 0.41 12.55 41.83 3.33 0.12
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DUB 203 1033.57 1034.80 1.23 22.67 59.08 1.29 0.09
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Includes 1034.37 1034.80 0.43 53.11 136.46 2.81 0.21
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DUB 204 761.00 766.37 5.37 2.97 128.44 0.11 0.01
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includes 761.00 763.00 2.00 5.01 214.63 0.19 0.00
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DUB 204(2) 838.57 902.00 63.43 4.35 28.67 0.46 1.82
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includes 871.00 878.00 7.0 20.63 104.67 0.35 0.70
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includes 874.00 877.00 3.00 42.08 203.20 0.49 0.49
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DUB 204 975.39 977.00 1.61 11.01 127.59 0.26 0.69
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DUB 205 803.90 815.55 11.65 7.00 31.16 1.41 0.15
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(2) This overall interval also includes intervals noted in the Footwall
Intersections table.
A complete tabulation of drilling results and assayed
intersections to date as well as a plan map of the Lalor Lake drilling
are included as attachments to this news release.
The conceptual
estimate of potential tonnes and grade at Lalor Lake was announced on
October 23, 2007 and was based on assay results from 16 drill holes. The
estimate excluded copper and zinc mineralization interpreted to be
outside the main and footwall zones as well as all gold and silver
values. The estimate also excluded dilution and recovery. The
mineralization at Lalor Lake occurs in the main and three footwall zones
and is similar to the coarse grained pyrite and sphalerite at the
nearby Chisel North zinc mine as well as the previously mined Chisel
Lake zinc mine.
To date, HudBay has completed 61 drill holes including fourteen wedge cuts and 6 deepened holes. Six rigs are now drilling
to confirm correlation between intersections in the main and three footwall zones and to collect metallurgical samples.
Kelly
Gilmore, Chief Exploration Geologist with HudBay's Hudson Bay
Exploration and Development Company Limited (HBED) subsidiary, stated
"we are currently drilling in fill holes to improve confidence in the
interpretation and collect metallurgical samples to produce a National
Instrument 43-101 (NI 43-101) compliant resource estimate, which we
expect to be completed near the end of the first half of 2008. Now that
we have added a sixth drill, we will again be stepping outside the
limits of the October 23rd conceptual estimate to define the extent of
the more copper and gold rich mineralization on the northwest side of
the deposit".
2008 Exploration Procedures
Exploration core
drilling was either BQ or NQ size. The core was logged and mineralized
intersections were marked for sampling and assaying by geologists and
geotechnicians employed by HudBay's HBED subsidiary. The marked
intersections or intervals were sawn in half by a diamond saw and one
half of the core was placed in plastic bags and tagged with unique
sample numbers, while the second half was returned to the core box and
stored. Each bagged core sample was transported to HudBay's Hudson Bay
Mining and Smelting Co., Limited subsidiary's assay laboratory in Flin
Flon, Manitoba where it was dried, crushed and pulverized and a 250-gram
sample was prepared for assaying. From each 250 gram sample 0.25 grams
was removed and leached in aqua regia and analyzed by ICP-AES for Ag,
Cu, Zn, As, Pb, Ni and Fe. Also from the 250-gram sample, 15 grams was
removed for gold determination by fire assaying with Atomic Absorption
finish.
Assaying integrity is monitored internally
with a quality control program, which includes the use of assay sample
standards, blanks, duplicates and repeats and externally through
national and international programs. In addition, within each group of
20 core samples, one core sample has a second 250 gram split collected
for check assaying at Acme Analytical Laboratories Ltd. in Vancouver,
B.C. This news release provides core lengths and additionally where
indicated, calculated vertical thickness of mineralization intersected.
True widths are not provided. Where metal assays are provided for
intersections they are either a single assay of a sample of the entire
intersection length or a composite of assays calculated from interval
weighted assays over the intersection length. The data herein and the
contents of this news release have been reviewed by Kelly Gilmore, B.Sc.
P. Geo., Chief Exploration Geologist with HBED, who is a
Qualified Person within the meaning of NI 43-101, with the ability and
authority to verify the authenticity and validity of the data.
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
future exploration plans and results with respect to the
Lalor Lake exploration project. Generally, forward-looking information
can be identified by the use of forward-looking terminology such as
"plans", "expects", or "does not expect", "is expected", "budget",
"scheduled", "estimates", "forecasts", "intends", "anticipates", or
"does not anticipate", or "believes" or variations of such words and
phrases or state that certain actions, events or results "may", "could",
"would", "might", or "will be taken", "occur", or "be achieved".
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 as they effect exploration, future commodity prices,
actual results of current exploration activities, government regulation,
environmental risks, permitting timelines, capital expenditures,
changes in project parameters as plans continue to be refined as well as
those factors discussed in the section entitled "Risk Factors" in
HudBay's Annual Information Form for the year ended December 31, 2007,
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 information 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.
(i) The
estimate of potential tonnes and grade of the Lalor Lake mineral deposit
are conceptual in nature. The basis upon which the disclosed potential
tonnes (18 - 20 million tonnes) and grade (7.7% - 8.8% zinc) has been
determined is provided in the Company's news release dated October 23,
2007. 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.
To view the Lalor Lake Drill Hole Locations please click on the following link: http://media3.marketwire.com/docs/lalorlakedrillhole.pdf
To view the Lalor Lake Assay Results
please click on the following link:
http://media3.marketwire.com/docs/lalorlakeassayresults.pdf
To view the Lalor Lake Plan Map please click on the following link: http://media3.marketwire.com/docs/lalorlakeplanmap.pdf
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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