VANCOUVER, BRITISH COLUMBIA--(Marketwire - June 17, 2008) - Sutter Gold Mining Inc. (TSX VENTURE:SGM) is pleased to announce the discovery of high-grade gold mineralization at the Santa Teresa Project located in the historic and high grade El Alamo District of Baja California Norte, Mexico.
Results to date, highlighted in Table 1 below, confirm the following:
- Drilling has discovered multiple high-grade veins along strike from the historic Princessa Gold Mine, whose average production grade exceeded one ounce per ton.
- Results include multiple intercepts in excess of 1.0 oz/ton gold and up to 13.98 oz/ton Au (479.31 g/tonne) along core widths of between one and three meters.
- Results from hole ST005, the highest grade to date, occur some 210 metres SE of Princess, at more than twice the depth of the deepest known mining at Princessa (possibly the entire district) and remains open at depth.
- Recent drill intersections (assays pending) confirm this high grade mineralization extends up to 500 meters to the southeast of the Princessa Mine and currently remains open in that direction.
- Additional discovery potential is indicated by a single drill hole, ST006 (assays pending), that has intersected favorable looking veining and mineralization in a parallel structure.
The Santa Teresa Project is located adjacent to and on strike from the past-producing Princessa Mine (the district's largest gold producer), which was mined to a maximum depth of only 110 metres, and whose orebody was known to extend close to the northern boundary of the Santa Teresa Property. Gold production at El Alamo, a 16-kilometre long district, was halted at its peak owing to technological and political circumstances early in the 20th century. Since then, only minimal exploration has taken place, presenting a unique opportunity for the Sutter and Premier joint venture.
Results to date indicate that high grade gold mineralization, with intersections as high as 479.31g/t Au (13.98 oz/ton) over 2.0 meters, occurs over a minimum strike length of 150 meters, open to the south, and to a minimum depth of over 200 meters where the horizon remains open. Table 1 includes all holes drilled to-date with significant assay results received and/or preliminary comments listed for each.
Table 1 Significant Results to Date----------------------------------------------------------------------------Hole-ID Zone Section From To Length AU Length AU Comment (m) (m) (g/t) (ft) (opt)----------------------------------------------------------------------------ST001 QUINOTA 150 SE 127.4 128.6 1.2 26.19 3.9 0.76 VG NEW 133.5 134.5 1.0 2.55 3.3 0.07 VG----------------------------------------------------------------------------ST002 150 SE ASSAYS PENDINGST003 150 SE ASSAYS PENDINGST004 150 SE ASSAYS PENDING----------------------------------------------------------------------------ST005 QUINOTA 210 SE 239.0 241.0 2.0 479.31 6.6 13.98 VG; ASSAYS PENDING WITH VG----------------------------------------------------------------------------ST006 NEW 490 SE ASSAYS PENDING; VG NOTED----------------------------------------------------------------------------ST007 NEW 100 SE 47.5 48.5 1.0 14.55 3.3 0.42 NEW 56.5 57.5 1.0 2.35 3.3 0.07 BORRACHA 88.8 90.0 1.2 13.90 3.9 0.41 PRINCESSA 163.0 164.0 1.0 17.04 3.3 0.50----------------------------------------------------------------------------ST008 BORRACHA 100 SE 55.0 56.0 1.0 33.87 3.3 0.99 PRINCESSA 121.1 122.1 1.0 39.41 3.3 1.15 FW PRINCESSA 128.5 129.5 1.0 3.07 3.3 0.09 VG----------------------------------------------------------------------------ST009 100 SE nsv ALL ASSAYS less than 1.0 GPT----------------------------------------------------------------------------ST010 QUINOTA 100 SE 142.1 143.0 0.9 2.56 3.0 0.07 CRUDA 214.0 217.0 3.0 8.17 9.8 0.24 includ- ing 215.0 216.0 1.0 13.00 3.3 0.38----------------------------------------------------------------------------ST011 QUINOTA 50 SE 83.0 84.0 1.0 1.82 3.3 0.05----------------------------------------------------------------------------ST012 QUINOTA 50 SE 52.6 53.6 1.0 2.01 3.3 0.06 NEW 141.5 142.5 1.0 3.06 3.3 0.09 NEW 149.5 150.5 1.0 3.00 3.3 0.09 CRUDA 201.5 204.0 2.5 12.58 8.2 0.37 includ- ing 201.5 202.5 1.0 29.11 3.3 0.85 HW PRINCESSA 249.0 250.0 1.0 1.78 3.3 0.05 PRINCESSA 258.5 259.5 1.0 1.84 3.3 0.05----------------------------------------------------------------------------ST013 BORRACHA 50 SE 25.0 26.4 1.4 6.73 4.6 0.20 NEW 42.0 43.0 1.0 2.25 3.3 0.07 CRUDA 83.1 84.1 1.0 102.89 3.3 3.00 VG PRINCESSA 110.5 113.7 3.2 6.89 10.5 0.20 includ- ing 112.7 113.7 1.0 18.84 3.3 0.55----------------------------------------------------------------------------ST014 CRUDA 00 SE 183.0 184.0 1.0 1.54 3.3 0.04----------------------------------------------------------------------------ST015 490 SE ASSAYS PENDING----------------------------------------------------------------------------ST016 00 SE nsv ALL ASSAYS less than 1.0 GPT----------------------------------------------------------------------------ST017 210 SE ASSAYS PENDING; VG NOTED----------------------------------------------------------------------------- True widths estimated between 65-85% of intersection width
The Santa Teresa Project is accessible by road, and is located approximately 100 kms southeast of Ensenada and about 250 kms south of San Diego, California, USA. Premier's initial Phase One 5,000 meter drill program was designed to test the extent, continuity and grade of known gold-bearing vein structures previously evaluated only within 20 meters of the surface. The program has since been expanded to a minimum of 21 holes in Phase One due to current results and continued quartz vein-hosted mineralization (including visible gold, pyrite, chalcopyrite and galena) noted in holes recently drilled, but not yet assayed. Of particular note is the mineralized vein intersection in drill hole ST006, a single hole drilled to test a structure parallel to \"main zone\" which is the currently the focus of ongoing drilling. Follow-up drilling will be performed in this area in the near future.
Premier is attracted to the El Alamo District because of a unique history of high mined grades, but little modern exploration. The properties, being explored by Premier and Sutter are:
- Located within a proven (some 220,000 ounces of past production) gold district.
- Historical data indicates that mined grades within the district are between 1.00 and 2.00 ounces per ton (opt).
- The majority of district production occurred within 120 meters of the surface, but remains open at depth.
- Geologically similar to the historic Mother Lode District of California.
Recently, Premier announced that, on behalf of the joint venture, it had signed a Memorandum of Understanding (\"MOU\") with Compania Minera Quasaro SA DE CV (\"Quasaro\"), a private, arms-length company, to purchase the \"La Victoria Concession\" located within the Santa Teresa Concession for the joint venture. Veins currently being explored in the Phase One program may extend along strike into La Victoria.
Hal Herron, President and CEO, said, \"The positive core drilling results from Santa Teresa confirms the geologic model developed by the Sutter/Premier geologists. The goal of the joint venture is to develop a high grade gold resource at Santa Teresa and it appears that the joint venture is well on its way to make that potential quite real.\"
Stephen McGibbon, P.Geo., Executive Vice-President and Chief Operating Officer of Premier, is the qualified person for the information contained in this press release and is a Qualified Person within the meaning of National Instrument 43-101. A stringent QAQC program utilizing blanks, standards and replicates has been developed by Mark Payne, Consulting Geologist, for the STC joint venture. All sample prep and analysis is being conducted by American Assay Laboratories Inc. of Sparks, Nevada utilizing conventional 1 assay-ton fire assay and 500-gram screen metallic methods.
About Premier
Premier Gold Mines Limited (TSX:PG) is a Canadian-based mineral exploration and development company with a strong treasury and has diverse property holdings that include several projects and deposits in Northwestern Ontario and a joint venture in Mexico.
About Sutter Gold
The Sutter Gold project contains a 3.2 mile segment of the Mother Lode belt from which 10 historic mines produced 2.3 million ounces of gold. The historic mines bracket a one-mile-long portion of the Mother Lode belt with no historic gold production and which contains the Lincoln and Comet zones. The Lincoln and Comet zones were blind discoveries that did not outcrop at surface and which represent the first significant new gold discoveries made along the Mother Lode belt in the last 50 years. The Sutter Gold project has been the subject of considerable modern exploration activity, most of it centering on the Lincoln and Comet zones, which are adjacent to each other and together referred to as the Lincoln project. A total of 101,385 feet of drilling have been accomplished in 230 diamond drill holes, and modern underground development consists of a 2,850-foot declined ramp with 2,400 feet of crosscuts plus five raises. The historic gold production was documented in a detailed report completed by Mark Payne, the consulting geologist to Sutter Gold and a qualified person as defined by National Instrument 43-101. Further information is available at the Company's Lincoln Project and the El Alamo joint venture's Mexico gold concession at
www.suttergoldmining.com.
The TSX Venture Exchange has in no way passed upon the merits of the proposed transaction and has neither approved nor disapproved the contents of this news