Exploration Updates LRA issued an exploration update press release yesterday evening. Results from early stage work at the Campos Verdes and Colorado do Oeste gold projects is expected in September. They are also planning followup work at the Para-Tocantins extensions of the Falconbridge JVed Para Nickel Project in September:
Press Release
Source: Lara Exploration Ltd.
Lara Exploration Ltd.: Brazil Projects-Exploration Update
Wednesday August 9, 5:22 pm ET
VANCOUVER, BRITISH COLUMBIA--(CCNMatthews - Aug. 9, 2006) - Lara Exploration Ltd. ("Lara" or "the Company") (TSX VENTURE: LRA) is pleased to provide an update on its work programs in Brazil. The Company is currently active on three projects: the Campos Verdes gold project, the Colorado do Oeste gold project and the Para-Tocantins Generative project. Falconbridge Brasil Ltda ("Falconbridge") is exploring Lara's Para Nickel project close to the town of Conceicao de Araguaia.
Campos Verdes
Campos Verdes, in Goias State (Central Brazil), comprises a 26,113 hectare property covering abandoned surface gold workings and geochemical gold anomalies hosted by meta-volcanosedimentary lithologies and intrusives of the Santa Terezinha greenstone belt. The Company has initiated exploration around the old workings in the Modesto and Joao Neves target areas in order to define and delineate known gold mineralization. Prospecting has also been initiated in the northeastern corner of the property in order to determine the bed rock source of a priority gold-instream sediment anomaly (Airstrip target). Fieldwork includes stream sediment and grid soil sampling, geologic mapping, channel sampling and trenching. The current program should be completed in August with analytical results available in September.
Joao Neves is located on a NE-SW structural trend in excess of 12 kilometers ("km") in strike length as interpreted from magnetic survey imagery and remote sensing studies. Interpretation of regional stream sediment sampling survey data shows evidence for the presence of two or three sub-parallel mineralized structures on this trend. Channel sampling across the old workings encountered 5.9 grams per tonne ("g/t") of gold over 5.8 meters ("m") (Lara Press Release May 17, 2006) in the saprolite zone of altered and sheared tonalites. Systematic soil gridding indicates that the gold-in-soil anomaly extends for more than 900 m along strike and is still open both to the NE and to the SW from the old workings. Geologic mapping has shown that the intense sericitic alteration associated with the gold zone in the old workings is also present elsewhere along the trend of the soil gold anomaly. Trenching into the saprolite zone along this trend is underway.
Modesto comprises an area of surface workings and small pits, some of which are believed to date back to Colonial times, developed in meta-sedimentary schists with sheeted quartz veining. The stratigraphic units in this area are relatively flat-lying with much of the target covered by a thick quartzite sequence. Soil and sediment sampling has returned values of up to 1.27 parts per million ("ppm") gold and a trench is currently being excavated across the main area of old workings. Vertical channel sampling has intercepted an interval of 2 m at 1.5 g/t gold at the base of one of the many old pits in the area. This pit will be deepened to test the depth continuity of the mineralization.
Lara has registered five additional exploration claims covering 8,215 hectares, to bring the project total to 26,113 hectares. Three new claims cover the west projection of the Joao Neves trend as interpreted from the airborne magnetic survey and remote sensing data. The other two claims cover possible southwest-strike extensions of the Modesto target. These properties are wholly-owned by Lara and are not subject to any future third-party payments.
Colorado do Oeste
The Colorado do Oeste property comprises 20,000 hectares covering greenstones with acid and maficultramafic intrusive rocks of the Guapore greenstone belt in the southeast of Rondonia State (NW Brazil). The property was the subject of an exploration program in the 1990's that focused on an area of abandoned gold workings known as the Ze Goiano Garimpo. A series of gold-in-soil anomalies were defined and partly drill tested. The target of that work was sub-vertical gold-bearing quartz veins and breccias hosted in shear zones defined by strongly foliated meta-basalts or mafic intrusives.
Lara initiated field work in June by re-establishing the soil grids, and relocating the old trenches and drill hole collar sites. Soil samples have been collected across the main gold-in-soil anomalies and channel samples were cut across the pit walls of the old workings to validate the historical data. At present some 500 m of trenches are being excavated and channel sampled. Reconnaissance work has also identified a separate bedrock gold source associated with a sheeted quartz vein system hosted by a gabbroic intrusive located some 5 km north from the Ze Goiano Garimpo. This area is believed to be the source for the alluvial gold that was worked extensively along the Sete Voltas River close to the town of Colorado do Oeste. Soil gridding has been undertaken. This field campaign should be completed in August with results available in September.
Para Nickel (Falconbridge JV)
The Para Nickel Project comprises 42,905 hectares of claims over mafic-ultramafic lithologies in Para State, northern Brazil. These claims have been joint-ventured with Falconbridge. In June-July Falconbridge flew 220 km of helicopter-borne geophysical survey lines using a VTEM (Versatile Time-Domain Electro-Magnetics) over the two main nickel target areas. In the north block of claims, where drilling earlier this year intercepted significant widths of nickel laterite mineralization at Vila Oito (Lara Press Release May 15, 2006), the survey objective was to determine if resistivity information obtained from the VTEM system is sufficiently detailed to map the thickness variations of the Ni Laterite profiles. In the South Block, where soil sampling has outlined a series of nickelcopper anomalies over 10 km in strike length, the survey was carried out to identify conductors that might be associated with sulphide mineralization. Preliminary results from both surveys are promising but interpretation work is still on-going; final results will be reported when available.
Para-Tocantins Generative
Lara has registered on a 100%-owned basis an additional 326,000 hectares of exploration claims over extensions of the ground in joint venture with Falconbridge (South Block) and other more conceptual targets generated from remote sensing studies in the same district. A reconnaissance team has been in the field reviewing this ground since April and has completed reconnaissance work over about half of the claims. Several target areas have been identified with anomalous gold and base metal values and 51,000 hectares have been relinquished to reduce the property holdings to 275,000 hectares in size. First phase recon work will be completed by year end at which point it is anticipated that further ground will be relinquished. Lara intends to initiate follow-up work on the most promising targets in September.
Quality Control
Direct supervision of the Lara projects is being led by Michael Bennell, Vice President Exploration. Mr. Bennell, a member of the Australasian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy (AusIMM), is a Qualified Person as defined by National Instrument 43-101 and is responsible for the preparation of the technical information in this release.
Lara employs a QA/QC protocol on all aspects of the sampling and analytical procedures. Sampling procedures for stream sediment, soil, rock grab, channel and trench sampling includes the insertion of about 15% QA-QC samples comprising blanks, field and laboratory duplicates, and industry-certified standards. Samples have been prepared and analysed by the following accredited laboratories: ALSChemex, Acme and Lakefield-Geosol.
Forward-Looking Statement
Some statements in this report contain forward-looking information. These statements address future events and conditions and, as such, involve inherent risks and uncertainties. Actual results could be significantly different from those projected.
Lara is a well-funded junior exploration company with fourteen (copper-gold-nickel) projects in Brazil and one copper project in Peru. Lara trades on the TSX Venture Exchange under the symbol "LRA". All dollars are in Canadian currency unless otherwise stated.
On behalf of the Board
Miles Thompson, President & CEO
Disclosures: Long