Apr 1 2016
Copper Fox Metals Inc. ("Copper Fox" or the "Company") is pleased to provide its shareholders with an outline of the 2016 program planned for the Schaft Creek project located in northwestern British Columbia.
Highlights:
- Estimated cost of the 2016 program is approximately $0.7 million,
- Resource modelling of the Schaft Creek deposit,
- Environmental monitoring, and
- Permitting and Social aspects of the project.
Elmer B. Stewart, President and CEO of Copper Fox, stated, "The work planned for 2016 is an extension of the past three years of work at Schaft Creek and will provide the Schaft Creek Joint Venture ("SCJV") with a better understanding of the project. We are very pleased with the progress to date on the Schaft Creek project."
2016 Program:
Resource Model
This aspect of the 2016 work program includes incorporating the work completed in 2014 and 2015 to update the resource model for the Schaft Creek deposit. This phase of the program will emphasize getting a better understanding of the precious metals content of the deposit.
Environmental
Ongoing environmental monitoring of the project is planned in 2016. This work will include the services of external consultants and will continue with field data collection including humidity cell tests and other environmental base line data.
Permitting/Social
This consists of an application for a Multi-Year Area Based Permit. These permits are for a period of five years and are intended to streamline the consultation and application process related to exploration of resource properties. The 2016 program also includes ongoing consultation with the Tahltan First Nations on social and cultural matters.
Current Activities:
Environmental Assessment/BC Hydro
The SCJV has voluntarily withdrawn the Schaft Creek project from the Environmental Assessment ("EA") process. The SCJV is of the opinion that keeping the EA active would not be significantly beneficial to the project at this time and there are no technical or procedural disadvantages to leaving the EA process and then re-entering at a later date. Separately, the SCJV has agreed that BC Hydro's current planning for overall transmission system upgrades would be facilitated in the shorter term by not including the specific load profile of the Schaft Creek project, which is still under evaluation. The project has therefore agreed to be removed from the interconnection queue, and it is expected that re-initiation of the load interconnection process in the future will not be an impediment to the project.
Comminution Work
The 2015-2016 throughput modelling for the Schaft Creek project has been completed. Throughput estimates for the various GeoMet Units (based on 50th percentile of hardness) range from 118 to 153 kt/d, while maintaining a 150 micron flotation feed size.
LaCasse Drilling
Compilation of the results from the 2015 drilling program indicated that the short intervals of higher grade copper mineralization intersected in 2015 and the 74m at 0.5% Cu in DDH 2012CF427 in the Discovery zone are analogous to the styles of mineralization in the Paramount zone. This suggests potential for discovering larger zones of mineralization in the LaCasse-Discovery target areas.
New Targets
Mapping and geophysical and geochemical surveys have identified the Grizzly target located north of the LaCasse target area as well as the Wolverine Creek target area adjacent to but south of the Schaft Creek deposit.
Modelling
The 3D lithology model has been updated and incorporates the re-logging efforts over the past three field seasons. Over 40% of the drill core from the deposit has now been re-logged. Further work includes upgrading the 3D structural model as well as 3D models for alteration, mineralization and geo-metallurgical zones.
Skeeter Lake
The surficial geological mapping of the proposed tailings impoundment area in the Skeeter Lake Valley has identified various surficial materials that could impact the infrastructure design. The 2015 mapping did not find any evidence to support the existence of a large slope sagging feature east of Skeeter Lake, previously reported in 2011.
Elmer B. Stewart, MSc. P. Geol., President of Copper Fox, is the Company's non-independent, nominated Qualified Person pursuant to National Instrument 43-101, Standards for Disclosure for Mineral Projects, and has reviewed and approves the scientific and technical information disclosed in this news release.