Cascabel Exploration Update
OTTAWA, Feb. 14, 2018 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Cornerstone Capital Resources Inc. (“Cornerstone” or “the Company”) (TSXV:CGP) (Frankfurt:GWN) (Berlin:GWN) (OTC:CTNXF) is pleased to announce the following update on the upcoming drill program at the Aguinaga prospect at its Cascabel copper-gold porphyry joint venture exploration project in northern Ecuador, in which the Company has a 15% interest financed through to completion of a feasibility study.
Figures referred to in this news release can be seen in PDF format by accessing the version of this release on the Company’s website (www.cornerstoneresources.com) or by clicking on the link below:
http://www.cornerstoneresources.com/i/pdf/NR18-08Figures.pdf.
HIGHLIGHTS:
- Two diamond drill rigs to mobilize to Aguinaga in early March 2018
- Five high priority drill targets identified
Commenting on the proposed drilling on the Aguinaga prospect, Cornerstone’s President and CEO, Brooke Macdonald said:
“Using surface and geophysical results, mineralization modeling shows that Aguinaga could potentially host close-to-surface, porphyry style copper-gold mineralization, showing similar characteristics to high grade mineralization found at depth at Alpala. At this stage, drilling Aguinaga is as exciting as when we began drilling Alpala in 2013.”
FURTHER INFORMATION:
Cascabel is in northwestern Ecuador in an under-explored northern section of the Andean Copper Belt, 60 km northeast of the undeveloped inferred resource of 982 million tons at 0.89% Cu Llurimaga (formerly Junin) copper project1 (Figure 1).
SolGold has drill tested 5 of 15 copper-gold targets delineated in the 50km2 concession with a focus, to date, on Alpala (Figure 2).
A second drilling program is set to commence at the exciting Aguinaga prospect, with two diamond drill rigs to mobilize to drill sites being prepared at Aguinaga in early March 2018. The Aguinaga prospect lies along a prominent topographic high (1615 masl) about 3km northeast of the Alpala Deposit (Figure 3).
In 2015, along the upper section of Aguinaga Creek, field teams discovered porphyry copper-gold, quartz stockwork veining and telescoping of epithermal-gold style veining within potassic altered porphyritic diorite. Rock-saw channel sampling over the limited exposure, returned an open-ended nine metres grading 1.01% copper and 0.79 g/t gold (Figures 4a and 4b).
The drill targets now developed at Aguinaga reflect several key datasets. Highlights of some important features targeted include:
- Aguinaga occurs at the intersection of a deep seated regional north-west trending structure with major north-east and north-trending lineaments, characterized by a similar structural regime and host rocks that occur at the Alpala deposit. These structural intersections are coincident with predictive 3D geochemical anomalies at depth, based on classic metal formation evident in the Yerington copper porphyry system in Nevada, and applied to surface geochemical data at Cascabel (Figures 5a and 5b).
- A classic 500m x 500m magnetic high at Aguinaga is surrounded by an annular magnetic low. The size and geometry of this magnetic expression is characteristic of a large porphyry centre with a magnetite-destructive halo caused by phyllic and argillic alteration, similar to magnetic signatures at the Bajo de la Alumbrera, Grasberg and Batu Hijau porphyry deposits (Figure 6).
- A very strong annular chargeability high with a central tapering root at Aguinaga which is consistent with sulphide-bearing, disseminated and/or stock-work style mineralization peripheral to and above a porphyry stock (Figure 7).
- A strong and deep-seated Magneto-Telluric (MT) resistivity anomaly that extends to depth is potentially associated with strong porphyry-style alteration and mineralization. Recent test work on altered and mineralized drill core samples from the Alpala deposit showed that altered rocks at Alpala were significantly more conductive than surrounding fresh rocks, hence the MT anomalies at Aguinaga are considered significant (Figure 8).
- The classically, diagnostic coincidence of soil geochemical anomalies over the prospect is tremendously convincing. Coincident highs in copper, gold, molybdenum and the Cu-Zn ratio in soil and auger results are supported by a surrounding zone of low manganese-in-soil, which is likely to be related to intense late-stage hydrothermal alteration above the centre of the Aguinaga porphyry system. These soil geochemical relationships are characteristic of the metal zonation around porphyry copper-gold deposits (Figure 9).
First pass drilling will commence with five high-priority drill holes, initially up to 1200m depth (Figures 10, 11, 12), using two man-portable drill rigs. Both drill rigs are planned to be moved into Aguinaga after completing their current holes at Alpala.
About the Cascabel Joint Venture with SolGold:
Exploraciones Novomining S.A. (“ENSA”), an Ecuadorean company owned by SolGold Plc and Cornerstone, holds 100% of the Cascabel concession. Subject to the satisfaction of certain conditions, including SolGold’s fully funding the project through to feasibility, SolGold Plc will own 85% of the equity of ENSA and Cornerstone will own the remaining 15% of ENSA. SolGold is funding 100% of the exploration at Cascabel and is the operator of the project. SolGold shall receive 90% of Cornerstone’s distribution of earnings or dividends from ENSA to which Cornerstone would otherwise be entitled until such time as the amounts so received equal the aggregate amount of expenditures incurred by SolGold that would have otherwise been payable by Cornerstone, plus interest thereon from the dates such expenditures were incurred at a rate per annum equal to LIBOR plus 2 per cent until such time as SolGold is fully reimbursed.
Qualified Person:
Yvan Crepeau, MBA, P.Geo., Cornerstone’s Vice President, Exploration and a qualified person in accordance with National Instrument 43-101, is responsible for supervising the exploration program at the Cascabel project for Cornerstone and has reviewed and approved the information contained in this news release.
About Cornerstone:
Cornerstone Capital Resources Inc. is a mineral exploration company with a diversified portfolio of projects in Ecuador and Chile, and a proven ability to identify, acquire and advance properties of merit.
Further information is available on Cornerstone’s website: www.cornerstoneresources.com and on Twitter. For investor, corporate or media inquiries, please contact:
Investor Relations:
Mario Drolet; Email: Mario@mi3.ca; Tel. (514) 904-1333
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Cautionary Notice:
This news release may contain ‘Forward-Looking Statements’ that involve risks and uncertainties, such as statements of Cornerstone’s plans, objectives, strategies, intentions and expectations. The words “potential,” “anticipate,” “forecast,” “believe,” “estimate,” “expect,” “may,” “project,” “plan,” and similar expressions are intended to be among the statements that identify ‘Forward-Looking Statements.’ Although Cornerstone believes that its expectations reflected in these ‘Forward-Looking Statements’ are reasonable, such statements may involve unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors disclosed in our regulatory filings, viewed on the SEDAR website at www.sedar.com. For us, uncertainties arise from the behaviour of financial and metals markets, predicting natural geological phenomena and from numerous other matters of national, regional, and global scale, including those of an environmental, climatic, natural, political, economic, business, competitive, or regulatory nature. These uncertainties may cause our actual future results to be materially different than those expressed in our Forward-Looking Statements. Although Cornerstone believes the facts and information contained in this news release to be as correct and current as possible, Cornerstone does not warrant or make any representation as to the accuracy, validity or completeness of any facts or information contained herein and these statements should not be relied upon as representing its views after the date of this news release. While Cornerstone anticipates that subsequent events may cause its views to change, it expressly disclaims any obligation to update the Forward-Looking Statements contained herein except where outcomes have varied materially from the original statements.
On Behalf of the Board,
Brooke Macdonald
President and CEO
Neither TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.
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1 0.4% Cu cut-off grade; Micon International Co. Ltd. Technical Report for Ascendant Exploration SA, August 20, 2004, pages 28 & 29. Mineralization identified at the Llurimaga copper project is not necessarily indicative of the mineralization on the Cascabel Property.