Jan 4 2017
Almadex Minerals Limited ("Almadex" or the "Company") (TSX VENTURE: AMZ) (OTCQB: AXDDF) is pleased to announce it has received complete assay results from hole EC-16-017, drilled from the same pad as the previously announced holes EC-16-010, 012, 013 and 016, but at an azimuth of 150 degrees and a dip of -55. In addition results from the bottom of Hole EC-16-016 have also been received. Hole EC-16-017, like the previous holes drilled from this pad, intersected significant mineralisation from the collar. With these new results the last of the 2016 Norte drill program, the Company interprets that a distal and high level portion of a porphyry system with significant gold values has been intersected.
The current data suggests that the mineralisation trends to the south towards the undrilled high chargeability and magnetics target known as Villa Rica. Extending from the Norte Zone to the Villa Rica zone there is a roughly 2.5 kilometer long by 1 kilometer wide zone of high chargeability, high magnetics and high copper, gold and molybdenum in soil that has never been drill tested (see attached maps and IP section summary). Highlights from hole EC-16-017 and 016 include the following intercepts which are also shown on the attached plan and sections:
* Interval previously reported in press release of December 15, 2016.
J. Duane Poliquin, Chairman of Almaden, commented, "With the completion of the 2016 drill program at the El Norte Zone, a picture is developing of the porphyry system we have intersected. We are now looking forward to carrying out a systematic drill campaign to follow-up these results with further drilling in the Norte zone and elsewhere on the project in 2017."
The Norte Zone is located at the north end of a large area (roughly 5 by 4 kilometer in size) of intense hydrothermal alteration, high magnetics and chargeability geophysical responses as well as a broad zone of anomalous gold, copper and molybdenum in soils. The mineralisation in the Norte Zone encountered to date is interpreted to be lithologically controlled and hosted by country rocks distal to the core of a porphyry system which management believes is yet to have been intersected. Geophysical sections highlight that the intersections are in a high level feature connected to a large coincident Induced Polarisation "IP" chargeability and magnetic susceptibility high at depth.
The 2016 drill program was designed to provide geochemical and alteration vectors for future drilling while following up significant results from historic drilling. The Norte Zone holes to date have been successful in defining the potential of the El Cobre project to host a large porphyry copper-gold deposit. At the same time it is clear that the intersections of porphyry mineralisation encountered in past drilling, which has been the focus of the 2016 drill prgram, are peripheral to a possible porphyry centre. In the past, the Company has conducted several campaigns of geophysical surveys including airborne magnetics, shallow IP and 35.8 line kilometers of deep Titan-24 IP. The shallow IP survey has highlighted a large area of high chargeability interpreted to represent sulphides which coalesces into a deep IP chargeability feature which has never been tested. Several plan maps and a section are appended to this news release which show the magnetics and IP chargeability responses in relation to the Norte Zone drilling.
About the El Cobre Project
The El Cobre Project has a total area of 7,456 hectares and is located adjacent to the Gulf of Mexico, about 75 kilometres northwest of the major port city of Veracruz, Mexico and has uniquely excellent infrastructure. The project area is situated below 200 meters above sea level with extensive road access and is located less than 10 kilometers from a power plant, highway, gas line and other major infrastructure. Major power lines cross the property area. Almadex has its full drill permits from SEMARNAT and has land access agreements in place. The land ownership is private over most of the project area, has previously been cleared and is used for local agricultural purposes.
The four copper-gold porphyry targets currently known within the El Cobre Project, Encinal, El Porvenir, Norte and Villa Rica are defined by distinct Cu-Au soil anomalies, discrete, positive magnetic features and a large IP chargeability anomaly. The largest target area is the Villa Rica zone which has not been drill tested. Limited past RC and diamond drill testing at Encinal, El Porvenir, and Norte has returned wide intercepts of porphyry copper-gold and narrow zones of intermediate sulphidation epithermal gold-silver vein mineralization, with selected intercepts as follows:
El Porvenir Zone: Drilling has demonstrated that the system persists at least to 400 m depth. Significant copper and gold grades were intersected such as 0.16% Cu and 0.39 g/t Au over 290 m in hole DDH04CB1. In addition, hole EC-13-004 intersected 0.23% Cu and 0.36 g/t Au over 106 m, to a depth of 504 m, again indicating potentially significant mineralization at depth.
Deep IP Zone: To the north of the El Porvenir Zone a large area of high chargeability responses located at depth. This zone is interpreted to be a possible core to the entire El Cobre porphyry system.
Encinal Zone: Hole CB5 intersected a highly altered breccia pipe containing fragments of stockwork veining and porphyry mineralisation across which 15 meters returned 1.63 g/t Au and 0.12% Cu. The breccia pipe occurs in a large alteration zone, IP chargeability high and magnetics low which has not been tested to depth. On July 1, 2016, Almadex reported results of drilling at Encinal, which were consistent with the interpretation that the drilling was located in a zone marginal to a potential copper-rich portion of the porphyry system.
Norte Zone: All five holes drilled in the Norte Zone prior to 2016 intersected porphyry-style mineralization. Hole 08-CBCN-022, one of the deepest holes drilled at Norte in 2008, returned values of 0.14% Cu with 0.19 g/t Au over 259 m and 08-CBCN-19 intersected 41.15 meters averaging 0.42 g/t gold and 0.27% copper to the end of the hole at 187.45 meters. Drilling in 2016 has been designed to test this zone to depth.
In addition to the above, several anomalous areas remain untested by drilling, including the Villa Rica Zone, a roughly 2.5 kilometer by 1 kilometer area defined by a strong north-northwest trending magnetic-chargeability high and associated copper-gold soil geochemical anomaly.