VANCOUVER, BRITISH COLUMBIA--(Marketwired - July 15, 2016) -
NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION TO U.S. NEWSWIRE SERVICES OR FOR RELEASE OR DISSEMINATION DIRECTLY, OR INDIRECTLY, IN WHOLE OR IN PART, IN OR INTO THE UNITED STATES
Marlin Gold Mining Ltd. (TSX VENTURE:MLN) ("Marlin" or the "Company") is pleased to announce that it has entered into a series of agreements with various landowners to acquire the surface and mineral rights of approximately 3,400 acres surrounding the patented mining claims of Pearce Hill at the Commonwealth silver and gold project in Cochise County, Arizona ("Commonwealth"). Pearce Hill currently contains a Measured & Indicated resource of 984,900 gold equivalent ounces, not including historical production reported by the Arizona Department of Mineral Resources of approximately 138,000 ounces of gold and 12 million ounces of silver from approximately 1,216,000 tonnes of material mined between 1895 and 1942 (Keith, 1973).
Note: In pit Measured & Indicated Resources and historical production are sourced from the National Instrument 43101 Technical Report - Preliminary Economic Assessment dated April 30, 2014.
The land acquisitions consolidate the majority of the surface and mineral ownership of the historic Pearce mining district, including the entirety of the surface rights around the San Ignacio and Blue Jeep targets. While the details of the final acquisition terms of each individual property are under confidentiality agreements until closing over the next few months, the overall cost to acquire these 3,400 acres will be approximately US$3.6 million.
Use this link Commonwealth Land Status to access a map summarizing the existing land holdings and recent acquisitions.
Akiba Leisman, Chairman and CEO of Marlin states, "After over a year of negotiation, we are now able to consolidate what is truly a unique project - a nearly 1 million ounce gold equivalent resource, with targets that can significantly add to this inventory, in the United States, and almost exclusively on private land. These land acquisitions and the rally in silver and gold prices will allow us to re-evaluate the project on a much larger scale, where the only limiting factor is the potential of the district."
San Ignacio, Blue Jeep and Six Mile Hill
For the past four months, Marlin has been conducting a rock chip sampling and geological mapping program under the oversight of Dr. Matthew Gray of Resource Geosciences Inc. ("Resource Geosciences"), which has led to a proposed drill program at the San Ignacio, Blue Jeep and Six Mile Hill targets. Now that the surface rights and additional mineral rights are under Marlin's control, we can begin to aggressively drill these targets.
Based on Resource Geoscience's analysis, Pearce Hill, San Ignacio, Blue Jeep and Six Mile Hill are interpreted to be part of the same large hydrothermal system, comprised of multiple hydrothermal cells and altered/mineralized areas. Tectonics and erosion have exposed different portions of the system at each target, and covered ground conceals even more of the system.
The history of Pearce Hill has demonstrated that deposits of over 1 million ounces of gold equivalents are possible in this region. While the potential size and grade of yet-to-be discovered deposits in the region is unknowable at this point, there is no geologic reason to infer that the largest or highest grade epithermal systems have been exposed by tectonics and erosion to date.
Drill Program
Marlin has now begun an approximately 7,000 meter drill program which will be testing the following targets and concepts:
- Broad zones of mineralized rhyolite in the hanging-wall of narrow auriferous veins that define structural corridors traceable for hundreds of meters along strike at San Ignacio, and in particular, disseminated mineralization in the sandstone and conglomerate strata (which are porous and permeable, and thus may be particularly receptive to hydrothermal mineralizing fluids) where the strata are cut by the high angle auriferous structural zones.
- Vertical zoning of metal content in veins at San Ignacio, Blue Jeep, and Six Mile Hill, whereby deeper portions of the epithermal veins contain higher gold and silver contents than the exposed levels.
- At Blue Jeep, a structural corridor with overprinted secondary porosity and permeability in rhyolite that hosts rock chip Au and Ag anomalies and numerous historic artisanal mine workings.
- At Blue Jeep, a deeper gold rich zone underlying a shallow silver rich zone in the north breccia area, which is partly defined by historical drilling.
Dr. Matthew D. Gray. C.P.G., of Resource Geosciences Incorporated, a Qualified Person under the definitions of CSA NI 43-101 has reviewed the portion of this press release related to the exploration targets and drill program.