Update on Alluvial MiningVancouver, British Columbia CANADA, Jun 03, 2010 (Filing Services Canada via COMTEX) -- Sacre-Coeur Minerals Ltd. (SCM - TSX Venture)(S5N - FWB), (the "Company") today announced that it has completed its conversion to hydraulic mining (using high pressure water jets) as well as other mining and processing improvements for the alluvial Area 2 at its Million Mountain Project in Guyana. Implementation of hydraulic mining of the alluvial zone was completed and successfully tested in late May 2010. Initial observations confirm that the revised method of extraction of the alluvial zone results in greatly improved extraction of the alluvial material at the bedrock interface which contains much of the coarse component of alluvial gold.
As previously announced, stripping of overburden will continue utilizing heavy equipment, including excavators and bulldozers while extraction of the alluvial zone will be accomplished utilizing high pressure water jets to "wash" the gold-bearing sands and gravels to gravel pumps for transport to the processing plant. The conversion in extraction methodology has achieved the dual goals of 1) improving recovery of gold at the alluvial/bedrock interface and 2) reduction in reliance on heavy equipment for mining of the alluvial zone, and its attendant cost.
With production capacity now at the target rate, and with a cost effective method to ensure thorough mining extraction of the alluvial gold values, gold production will be maximized through on-going fine tuning of the processing plant over the course of the next two to three months. Production results will be periodically reported hence forth as meaningful quantities of alluvial material are processed and gold production there from is recorded.
We are very pleased that this conversion has been completed for well under the estimated maximum cost of CAD $200,000 and look forward to the benefits aimed at making the Company potentially completely cash self-sufficient as it continues to pursue its principal goal of developing major hard-rock gold resources in Guyana. Achievement of this milestone, together with the recently announced positive results of the Company's step-out drilling program on its Million Mountain Zone 1 resource body sustain our enthusiasm for the Company's growth potential.
Technical Staff
The Company's mining and exploration program is overseen by Mr. A. David Heyl, P. Geo., Director Mining and Exploration for the Company. The refinery is managed by Mr. Ardito Martohardjono, Refinery Manager. Exploration is directed by Mr. Henry Salvado, Chief Geologist - Puruni District. The alluvial exploration program is headed by Mr. Roan Dabuet, assisted by Mr. Johnson Poshiwa, both Senior Project Geologists with many years of alluvial gold experience. Mr. Ardito Martohardjono, a Director of the Company, Refinery Manager, and laboratory specialist, provides assistance establishing lab protocols and sample handling and assay quality control. The undersigned, Mr. Heyl, and Mr. Salvado are qualified persons under NI 43-101.
About Sacre-Coeur
The Company is engaged in the acquisition, exploration and development of properties for the potential mining of gold, metals and diamonds in South America, initially focussing on exploration for gold on its properties in Guyana. The Company presently has an interest in approximately 1000 sq. km of mineral properties in Guyana, including the Million Mountain Property. The Company has offices in Vancouver, Canada and Georgetown, Guyana. More information about the Company is available at www.scminerals.com.
ON BEHALF OF THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS OF
SACRE-COEUR MINERALS, LTD.
"Gregory B. Sparks"
Gregory B. Sparks
President & CEO
For further information, contact:
Gregory Sparks, President and CEO
Email: greg@scminerals.com
Phone: 604-899-0100
Fax: 604-899-0200
Scott Young, Corporate Communications
Email: scott@scminerals.com
Phone: 604-899-0100
Cellular: 705-888-2756
Fax: 604-899-0200
The TSX Venture Exchange has not reviewed and does not accept responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of the content of the information contained herein. The statements made in this press release may contain certain forward-looking statements that involve a number of risks and uncertainties. Actual events or results may differ from the Company's expectations. There is no guarantee that the tenor or continuity of the resource target discussed herein will ultimately prove to be as delineated in the Company's sampling program, nor that the yields obtained by production scale gravity extraction will be comparable to the yields produced in the sampling program.