Toronto, Ontario--(Newsfile Corp. - March 4, 2014) - Shield Gold Inc., operating as
Great Lakes Graphite (TSXV: SHG) ("Shield" or the "Company") is pleased to
announce that it has signed a definitive purchase agreement with Rock Tech
Lithium Inc. (TSXV: RCK) ("Rock Tech") to acquire the Lochaber graphite
deposit (the "Lochaber Graphite Property"), located in the prolific
Buckingham Graphite region in Outaouais/ Gatineau, Québec.
The Lochaber Graphite Property is comprised of 151 mineral
claims, in four contiguous blocks, covering 9,062 hectares in Buckingham and
Lochaber Townships. Two of the Rock Tech claim blocks are contiguous with the
Company's existing claims in the area, namely those in the Diamond and the Bell
claim blocks.
The purchase agreement between the companies provides for the
Company to pay Rock Tech a total of $300,000 in cash and issue a total of 15
million common shares of the Company to Rock Tech or to whom it may direct. The
acquisition is subject to and conditional upon TSXV and other regulatory
approvals and satisfactory due diligence, including satisfaction with the
results of metallurgical testing on samples that will be supplied by Rock Tech.
On completion of the acquisition Rock Tech will have the right to appoint one
nominee to the Board of Directors of the Company.
The Lochaber Graphite Property, considered highly prospective
for large flake, crystalline graphite, has an historic record of exploration and
production. Numerous flake graphite occurrences on the property are some of the
oldest graphite showings in Canada, having been discovered in the late 1800s and
early 1900s. There are four historical graphite occurrences (the "MacLaren",
"Kelly North", "Kelly South" and "Burke" showings) and two past producing
graphite mines (the "Mayo" and "Plumbago" mines) located in an area of 16
km2 on the "main" claim block.
Rock Tech completed eight trenches and carried out channel
sampling, ground geophysical surveys and over 7,000 m of drilling in late 2012
in the Plumbago mine area. The exploration work delineated two areas of graphite
mineralization: Conductor "A" is 700 m long, and 27 m to 100 m wide; and
Conductor "C" is 600 m long and 29 m to 82 m wide. Both conductors were
drill-tested down to at least 150 m below surface. A majority of the drill holes
intersected graphite mineralization. Previous exploration work included over
4,000 m of diamond drilling by previous operators during the 1980s.
Rock Tech also shipped samples for metallurgical testing to
determine the quality of graphite, flake size, and recoverability. This
test-work is in progress at Process Research Ortech Inc. in Mississauga, ON.
Preliminary metallurgical results carried out by Global Mineral Research Inc. in
Burnaby, BC indicated the following flake size distribution:
- 48.1% of the graphite concentrate being greater than 80 (Tyler) mesh (180
μm) in size;
- 30.5% of the graphite concentrate being between 80 and 200 mesh (180 μm
and 75 μm) in size; and
- 21.4% of the graphite concentrate passing 200 mesh (75 μm).
The Company plans to complete a National Instrument
43-101-compliant resource estimate based on the available exploration data.
Based on the results of completed resource estimates, the Company will plan
preliminary economic assessment ("PEA") and environmental baseline studies on
the property. Most of the surface rights in the area are held by private owners,
therefore community consultation and access rights are an important and ongoing
aspect of the project.
The technical content of this press release has been reviewed
and approved by Mr. John Siriunas, P.Eng., a Qualified Person as defined by NI
43-101.
About Great Lakes Graphite: Shield Gold Inc., operating
as Great Lakes Graphite, is an industrial minerals company with the mandate to
bring graphite projects to production through the acquisition and development of
high quality graphite flake properties. Graphite has moved to the forefront of
the Industrial Mineral World as a Critical Mineral required for industrial use
and as a major component in the development of new technologies. With the
advancement of battery storage, mobile battery systems and alternative energy
infrastructure, it is estimated that 20 new graphite flake mines will be
required to keep up with demand by the year 2020.
As there are currently no graphite mines producing in North
America, Great Lakes Graphite has the ability to become one of the first
producers to supply a growing regional customer base that requires high quality
flake graphite, where pricing and demand continue to rise.
The Company, through strategic acquisitions and capable
management intends to become a leader in the industrial minerals marketplace.
The Company's graphite properties are located in the Buckingham and Lochaber
Townships of southwestern Québec. The Company has also entered into option and
joint venture agreements with Eloro Resources Inc. on the Summit-Gaber property
located in the La Grande Greenstone Belt in the James Bay region of Québec.
Further information regarding Great Lakes can be found on the Company's website
at: www.GreatLakesGraphite.com.
Shield trades with symbol SHG on the TSX
Venture Exchange and currently has 42,504,819 shares outstanding (61,638,982
fully diluted).
For more information, please contact:
Neither TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services
Provider (as that term is defined in policies of the TSX Venture Exchange)
accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.
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