This project is a skarn and epithermal vein hosted silver-copper-zinc district, located 155 kilometres northeast of the City of Durango in the Mesa Central of northcentral Mexico.
Orex’s President, Gary Cope says, “The importance of skarn-style mineralization in Mexico is on the rise, as shown by new discoveries at Pan American’s La Colorada Mine and the ongoing work of Southern Silver’s Cerro de las Minitasproject. Orex’s San Luis del Cordero, like both of these projects as well as the famous San Martin Mine in Zacatecas, are polymetallic skarns in the Mesa Central of the prolific Silver Trend of Mexico.”
Geotech Ltd. will fly a helicopter-borne “VTEMTM Plus” survey, with accompanying horizontal magnetic gradiometer and radiometric surveys. VTEM, a Versatile Time Domain Electromagnetic survey, is used to identify discrete conductive anomalies, as well as mapping lateral and vertical variations in resistivity. The magnetics and first derivative of the magnetic field are useful for identifying contacts and structures. The radiometric survey is particularly well suited for potassic alteration mapping and lithological contrast.
The airborne survey will be conducted over a grid at 100 metres line-spacing for approximately 275 line-kilometres. Normal helicopter speeds of 80 to 100 km/hour are expected, with a data-recording rate of 0.1 point per second. Thus, geophysical measurements are acquired approximately every 2 to 3 metres along the survey lines.
Project Description
The Cordero project has undergone several phases of exploration, with multiple targets yet to be explored. Mineral concessions cover 2,825 hectares. Old mine workings and mineralized showings wrap around a Tertiary quartz-feldspar-porphyry intrusive. Jurassic and Cretaceous country rock formations include limestone and calcareous sandstone and shale units. Diamond drilling of 62 holes from the period 2000 to 2016 total approximately 16,400 metres.
There is a Technical Report on a Mineral Resource Estimate for the project, compliant with NI43-101 and dated 2014, containing an Indicated Resource of 662,600 tonnes grading Ag 121 g/t, Cu 0.78 % and Zn 1.06 %, for a silver-equivalent of 240 g/t and 5.1 million ounces silver-equivalent. In addition, there is an Inferred Resource of 2,785,300 tonnes grading Ag 144.4 g/t, Cu 0.75 % and Zn 1.45 %, for a silver-equivalent of 273 g/t and 24.4 million ounces silver-equivalent.
For the purposes of silver-equivalent in the 2014 report, metal prices of Ag=$19/oz, Cu=$3.00/lb and Zn=$0.90/lb were applied. This resource estimate was performed using a cut-off of 85 g/t silver equivalent. The technical report was written by T.W. Hodson, P.Geo., an independent Qualified Person, and has an effective date of 1 October 2014.
Orex considers the 2014 resource estimate as a “Historical Resource Estimate” performed by previous operators. There has been drilling since that date, and as such this resource estimate should not be relied upon as current. However, it is useful as an exploration guide for future programs.
Geological comparisons have been drawn between the San Luis del Cordero skarn and vein hosted mineralization and the mineralization styles at Cerro de las Minitas of Southern Silver Exploration Corp in Durango State and the San Martin– Sabinas mining district of Industrias Peñoles in Zacatecas State. Both of these mining districts are also on the Mesa Central.
Technical Information and Qualified Person
Ben Whiting, P.Geo., Vice President of Exploration for Orex Minerals Inc., is a Qualified Person as defined in NI 43-101 and takes responsibility for the technical disclosure contained within this news release.
Community Relations
As a part of ongoing community relations, surface access agreements have been signed with the Ejido of San Luis del Cordero, as well as individual ranch owners.
Source: Company Press Release
