VANCOUVER, BRITISH COLUMBIA--(Marketwire - Sept. 2, 2010) - VMS Ventures Inc. (TSX VENTURE:VMS) ("VMS") is pleased to update its shareholders on various activities related to its extensive property package in Manitoba, Canada.
VMS-HUDBAY REED LAKE DEPOSIT JOINT VENTURES
HudBay Minerals Inc. (TSX:HBM) ("HudBay") has advised that a previously-disclosed infill drilling program intended to enable the compilation of a resource estimate by year-end 2010 is well underway.
On July 6, 2010 VMS and HudBay announced that they had entered into a joint venture agreement pursuant to which HudBay has a 70% interest and VMS has a 30% interest in the Reed Lake property and the two claims immediately to the south. As disclosed in VMS' August 10, 2010 press release, the drilling program is initially targeting the high-grade core of the deposit, with drilling then moving outwards to explore the periphery of the deposit and down-plunge to assess exploration potential.
VMS and HudBay have also entered into four option agreements which grant HudBay the right to earn a 70% joint venture interest in properties held by VMS adjacent to the Reed Lake property. VMS expects work on the option properties to begin in winter 2011.
SNOW LAKE PROPERTY PACKAGE
Summer exploration programs at VMS' Snow Lake properties were delayed until mid-July as a result of a travel ban put in place by the Manitoba Government due to risk of forest fires. During that time, the VMS geological team continued its compilation of recent and historical data and is now near prioritizing drill targets for each of the Company's Snow Lake projects. Permits are expected shortly for Sails Lake. Final steps are underway to establish drill targets at Morton Lake and at the Copper Project for winter 2011.
Sails Lake
Although optioned as a VMS project, the Sails Lake property is also well known to host gold mineralization. A soil geochemical survey was undertaken in late July to follow up on prospecting and historical exploration that discovered gold mineralization at Sails Lake. In this particular area, surface rock chip samples have returned assays of up to 30 grams per tonne gold, but they have never been drilled or surveyed by ground geophysics. An IP ground geophysical survey is planned to cover the gold targets later this month. It will also test adjacent areas prospective for copper-zinc.
This project has already produced over 50 discrete drill targets. They are now being evaluated to select the best prospects for drilling. Permitting for the planned mid-October drill program is now in process.
Morton Lake
The Company originally staked the Morton Lake project, located 25 km west of Snow Lake, in part, because of its geological similarity to the rocks hosting the past producing Dickstone copper-zinc mine, only 500 metres to the west. In addition, historic drill holes, some as early as 1956, intersected copper and zinc mineralization with typical VMS-type alteration, indicative of a strong hydrothermal mineralizing system, capable of hosting significant VMS deposits.
The project moved up the VMS Ventures priority list this summer after Dr. Alan Bailes visited the Reed Lake Deposit and used high precision rock geochemistry to assist with geological interpretations. He discovered that the host rocks at the Reed Lake Deposit are connected to the same rock package hosting the Dickstone Mine and Morton Lake approximately 30 km north of Reed Lake.
As a result, the Company has doubled its land position in the area, including the prospective rock package to the south towards Reed Lake. The Morton Lake Project now is over 23 km in length and approximately 90 sq km in area.
VMS has previously surveyed the northern half of the property with the VTEM airborne system. In late July, VMS geologists began a program of MMI soil geochemistry over the VTEM anomalies. These prioritized VTEM targets occur along strike from, and at greater depths than, the prospective mineralized zones identified from historical data. These anomalies comprise the preliminary list of drill targets. Additional targets will be established following completion of ongoing field work and final review of the historical data base. An initial drill program is planned for winter 2011.
Copper Project
Advances in exploration technology have created new opportunities in old areas. The VMS discovery at Reed Lake indicates the prospectivity of the "covered" areas of the Snow Lake belt, and how using old data sets with new methodologies and insights can help the Company locate drill targets in areas that in the past may have been ignored, left behind, or missed completely.
Most of the 250 sq km Copper Project, located to the east of Snow Lake, is covered with a 25 to 40 metre thick dolomite rock layer. With no outcropping of the prospective volcanic rock, the team is effectively blind to the property's geology. To rectify this, the team has analyzed and integrated data from over 200 drill holes' historical records into the Copper Project database over the summer. These historical drill records provide a description of the underlying geology at this large, prospective property.
Other sources of information assisting the team in drill targeting include the VTEM airborne conductivity and magnetic geophysical surveys and soil geochemical sample surveys.
VMS plans to drill at the Copper Project in winter 2011.
Changes to Land Package
Several land packages have been reduced in a rationalization process to focus exploration and reduce land carrying costs for the Company. The Company is also selectively adding new properties as opportunities arise.