Stornoway Provides Aviat Project Spring Update
Stornoway Provides Aviat Project Spring Update
Increases project interest to 90%
VANCOUVER, BRITISH COLUMBIA, May 15, 2008 (Marketwire via COMTEX News Network) --
Stornoway Diamond Corporation (TSX:SWY) and Hunter Exploration Group (Hunter) are pleased to provide the following update for the 486,000 acre Aviat Project, host to eleven significantly diamondiferous kimberlites and located on the Melville Peninsula in eastern Nunavut, Canada (see map available at
https://www.stornowaydiamonds.com/_resources/Kimberlite-Bodies.jpg).
Spring 2008 highlights include:
- Joint venture has approved a $3.05 million program for 2008
- Acquisition of BHP Billiton Diamonds Inc.'s 14.4% interest in the project, bringing Stornoway's project interest to 90% (Hunter holds a 10% interest, carried to production)
- Acquisition of Hunter's right to market 10% of the diamonds (previously purchased by BHP Billiton), bringing Stornoway's diamond marketing rights to 100%
- 82 carats per hundred tonnes (cpht) from Dense Media Separation (DMS) processing of 1.96 dry tonnes from the AV8 Upper kimberlite
- Mobilization of crews for the 2008 exploration program (work to include ground geophysics and drilling at the recently discovered AV9 kimberlite pipe, drilling on the AV267 sheet in support of a conceptual resource study and collection of a 150-200 tonne bulk sample from the AV267 body)
Earlier this year, Stornoway and BHP Billiton Diamonds Inc. ("BHP Billiton") unanimously approved a $3.05 million program at Aviat for 2008. This included the collection of a larger tonnage kimberlite sample from the AV267 sheet, of which the initial 200 tonne sample was to be solely funded by BHP Billiton under the terms of the Joint Venture Agreement. Under an assignment agreement between Stornoway and BHP Billiton, BHP Billiton assigned to Stornoway all of its interest in the Aviat Project and its rights to market all diamonds of Hunter Exploration Group produced from the Project in consideration for the assumption by Stornoway of BHP Billiton's obligations under the joint venture agreement, including this bulk sampling obligation and all future funding obligations.
Stornoway's CEO Eira Thomas stated: "Results from 2007 confirmed the potential for a large tonnage, high grade diamond resource at Aviat and the project will continue to be a top priority for the Company in 2008. Consolidation of the Aviat project interest allows Stornoway to move forward expeditiously with our plans to complete a high level conceptual resource study on the AV267 kimberlite complex and further drill-test the diamondiferous AV-9 kimberlite pipe which was discovered late last year and remains open both laterally and vertically. It is possible that AV-9 could represent an important feeder zone related to the AV267 sheet."
DMS processing of 1.956 tonnes (dry) of kimberlite collected during 2007 as a single sample from a freshly excavated surface expression of the AV8 Upper kimberlite returned a total of 1.6065 carats of diamonds, indicating a diamond content of 82 cpht for stones retained on a 0.85mm square mesh screen. The largest stone recovered from this small sample was a 0.38 ct light grey tetrahexahedroid. The AV8 diamonds are described as a mix of white, grey and brown stones representing mostly tetrahexahedroid and combination forms.
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No. Stones Diamond Largest
Dry Weight greater than Carats Content (2) Diamonds
Sample (tonnes) 0.85mm (1) (cpht)(3) (carats)
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2007 AV8
Upper 1.956 54 1.6065 82.1 0.38, 0.18, 0.10
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1 Represents stones retained on a +0.85mm square mesh screen
2 The estimated diamond content, expressed as carats per hundred tonnes,
may not be representative of the overall diamond content of the body
due to a number of factors, including location and size of the samples
3 Carats per hundred tonnes
Eira Thomas stated: "We collected a fresher sample from AV-8 in 2007 which returned a much better result than our previous sample from 2005 and is consistent with the results from the other Aviat bodies tested. We are particularly encouraged by the presence of larger stones in a small DMS sample, once again supporting previous suggestions of a potentially commercial sized diamond distribution for the significantly diamondiferous kimberlite bodies at Aviat."
AV8, originally discovered as outcrop in 2005 and situated some 3km east-southeast of AV267, was drill tested in 2005 and 2006. Drilling intersected three distinct sheets of kimberlite (Upper, Middle and Lower), striking roughly north-south, dipping at about 10-20 degrees to the west, separated by a vertical distance of 20-30m and extending over a drilled surface area of about 650m by 375m. The AV8 Upper sheet averages 2.9m true thickness in the vicinity of the original AV8 outcrop (see press release dated October 11, 2006:
https://www.stornowaydiamonds.com/investor_relations/news_releases/2006/ index.php?&content_id=54) (Due to the length of this URL, it may be necessary to copy and paste this hyperlink into your internet browser's URL address field). The heavily weathered discovery outcrop of AV8 Upper was the site of an earlier 2.5t surface DMS sample, historical results of which are restated below. The improved diamond content for AV8 Upper derived from the new 2007 work reported herein is ascribed to the collection of a fresher, less weathered sample, and is more consistent with the other Aviat bodies.
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Diamond Largest
Disclosure Sample Dry Weight Carats Content (2) Diamond
Date Type (tonnes) (1) (cpht)(3) (carats)
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11-Jan-07 AV8 Upper 2.53 0.6545 26 0.129
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1 Represents stones retained on a +0.85mm square mesh screen
2 The estimated diamond content, expressed as carats per hundred tonnes,
may not be representative of the overall diamond content of the body
due to a number of factors, including location and size of the samples
3 Carats per hundred tonnes
The Aviat exploration camp is currently being readied for the 2008 exploration program, which will commence on or about May 14, 2008. Exploration activities during 2008 will initially focus on the AV9 kimberlite pipe, discovered at the end of the 2007 program (see press release dated August 23, 2007:
https://www.stornowaydiamonds.com/investor_relations/news_releases/2007/ index.php?&content_id=10) (Due to the length of this URL, it may be necessary to copy and paste this hyperlink into your internet browser's URL address field). Kimberlite was intersected within a horizontal area measuring approximately 60 x 60 meters, and to a vertical depth greater than 100 meters, but neither the lateral nor vertical extent of AV9 are known at the present time. AV9 is described as a transitional kimberlite pipe, containing both macrocrystic hypabyssal and transitional hypabyssal breccia phases. Caustic fusion of 307.26kg (dry) of kimberlite core from AV9 returned 236 diamonds (stones retained on a 0.106mm square mesh sieve) and was previously reported on December 12, 2007 (https://www.stornowaydiamonds.com/investor_relations/news_releases/2007/ index.php?&content_id=403) (Due to the length of this URL, it may be necessary to copy and paste this hyperlink into your internet browser's URL address field). AV9 is situated along the same regional structural feature that hosts the AV1 kimberlite pipe, and additional targets along this regional feature have been identified and prioritized for drill testing in 2008.
Drilling will also be undertaken on the AV267 sheet to support a conceptual resource study. AV267 is one of seven separate kimberlite sheets intersected over an area measuring about 1.5 by 3.5km within the Eastern Sheet Complex, part of the Tremblay Corridor. These shallowly dipping (8 to 20 degrees), macrocrystic, hypabyssal kimberlite sheets with associated zones of kimberlite breccia are thought to be part of a sequence of layered, horizontally stacked sheets separated by vertical distances of 10 to 30m. Drilling to date has intersected AV267 over approximately 2km of strike length and up to 500m down dip. True thickness averages about 3m, with most intersections ranging from 2.5 to 4.0m. At the present time the sheet is thought to thicken from northeast to southwest, achieving widths of up to 7m as it approaches the regional fault hosting the AV1 and AV9 kimberlite pipes. The Company is investigating the hypothesis that the eastern kimberlites represent occurrences of a single system of stacked kimberlite sheets underlying the entire 1.5 by 3.5 kilometer area. One such sheet alone would represent a substantial potential tonnage of diamondiferous material.
On January 29, 2008 (https://www.stornowaydiamonds.com/investor_relations/news_releases/2008/ index.php?&content_id=412) (Due to the length of this URL, it may be necessary to copy and paste this hyperlink into your internet browser's URL address field), Stornoway reported a diamond content of 162 carats per hundred tonnes (cpht) from DMS processing of 20.6 dry tonnes from the AV267 kimberlite, including the recovery of a 3.64 carat gem quality white dodecahedron, the largest stone from the Aviat Project to date. An additional 150-200 tonne sample of kimberlite will be collected from surface exposures of the AV267 sheet this season, once weather and logistical considerations allow. The sample will be shipped south by scheduled barge for DMS processing, with results expected late in 2008. The purpose of the 150-200 tonne sample will be to establish a value for the Aviat diamonds that can be used in conjunction with the conceptual resource study to examine the economic potential of the Aviat Project.
Scientific and Technical Data
Diamond results reported above are based on work completed by Microlithics Laboratories, Thunder Bay, Ontario, an independent mineral process laboratory currently providing services exclusively to Stornoway and its affiliates. The 1.96 tonne sample was processed through a 1.5 tonne per hour (tph) DMS plant designed to recover stones retained on a 0.85mm square mesh sieve. Kimberlite was prepared through a primary jaw crusher, with -10 mm material fed directly into the DMS. All +10 mm material was subsequently reduced through secondary cone crushing. DMS concentrates were submitted for caustic fusion and the residues hand sorted to extract diamonds. As part of Stornoway's ongoing QA/QC programs, DMS tails, concentrate residues and other materials are subject to audit. Any significant changes to recovered diamond grades will be reported when available. Stornoway's diamond exploration programs are conducted under the direction of Robin Hopkins P.Geol. (NT/NU), Vice President, Exploration, a Qualified Person under NI 43-101.
Stornoway Diamond Corporation
Stornoway Diamond Corporation is one of Canada's leading diamond exploration and development companies, involved in the discovery of over 150 kimberlites in seven Canadian diamond districts. The Company benefits from a diversified diamond property portfolio, a strong financial platform and management and technical teams with experience in each segment of the diamond "pipeline" from exploration to marketing.
On behalf of the Board
STORNOWAY DIAMOND CORPORATION
Eira Thomas, Chief Executive Officer
This news release may contain forward looking statements, being statements which are not historical facts, including, without limitation, statements regarding potential mineralization, exploration results, resource or reserve estimates, anticipated production or results, sales, revenues, costs, "best-efforts" financings or discussions of future plans and objectives. There can be no assurance that such statements will prove accurate. Such statements are necessarily based upon a number of estimates and assumptions that are subject to numerous risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results and future events to differ materially from those anticipated or projected. Important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from the Company's expectations are in Company documents filed from time to time with the Toronto Stock Exchange and provincial securities regulators, most of which are available at
www.sedar.com. The Company disclaims any intention or obligation to revise or update such statements.
SOURCE: Stornoway Diamond Corporation
Stornoway Diamond Corporation Nick Thomas (604) 331-2271 or 1-877-331-2232 Email: info@stornowaydiamonds.com Website:
www.stornowaydiamonds.com
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