Mr. Peeyush Varshney reports
ZINCX RESOURCES PROVIDES EXPLORATION UPDATE AT AKIE
The final drill hole on Zincx Resources Corp.'s flagship Akie property has been completed and the 2018 exploration program is now finished. The exploration and drill crews have demobilized from site.
The company previously announced a planned 2,500-metre large-diameter HQ diamond drilling program focused on high-priority targets along strike of the Cardiac Creek deposit and on the eastern Akie Gunsteel panel.
2018 drill program highlights:
First-ever drill test of the massive Sitka barite surface showing where previous channel sampling in 2013 returned high-grade zinc-lead assay results;Drill test of the southeastern strike extent of the Cardiac Creek deposit beyond the current limits of the resource model;Drill test of the downdip extent of the north lead zone target where previous drilling intersected extensive intervals of bedded pyrite mineralisation highly anomalous in zinc and lead;Drill test of the projected Sitka mineralized target approximately 400 metres to the southeast of the Sitka showing;A total of 567 drill core samples, including quality assurance/quality control samples, taken and split by rock saw and submitted for assay.
The company completed five drill holes on various property targets that total 2,013 metres of diamond drilling.
Target DDHLength Number of samples* (m)Sitka A-18-144309.68 81Sitka A-18-145198.12 62SE extensionA-18-147535.54215North lead zone A-18-148721.46163Sitka extension A-18-149248.72 49Totals2,013.53567(*) Includes QA/QC samples.
DDH A-18-149
This final drill hole of the program targeted the Sitka extension area located approximately 400 metres along strike southeast of the Sitka showing. The hole displayed strong surface oxidation weathering down to a depth of 66 metres, followed by a lower zone of strong limonitic alteration and quartz veining which is interpreted to be the Sitka horizon. The lower zone sits at the faulted lower contact between Road River group siltstone and Paul River fossiliferous limestone.
The Sitka horizon is marked by abundant blue-grey quartz veining within a large, highly altered fault structure intersected from 95 metres to 108 metres downhole. The veins appear to host weathered sphalerite and narrow seams of galena although strong alteration has obscured much of the primary fabric. The hole bottomed in soft shale of the Akie formation (Earn group) which is characterized by scattered light grey beds and calcareous, sandy debris flows that are commonly pyritic with bright brassy yellow pyrite in narrow bands.
Geological logging and sampling are complete on all five drill holes and a total of 567 samples, including standard QA/QC samples, have been taken and submitted to Acme Analytical Laboratories (a Bureau Veritas company) in Vancouver, B.C.
Peeyush Varshney, chief executive officer, commented: "We are very pleased to conclude another successful drill campaign with the first-ever drill tests of several high-priority regional targets within the Akie property. We completed drilling on all selected targets and carefully managed resources to keep on schedule and on budget. We look forward to announcing drill results over the coming several weeks."
QA/QC
Zincx Resources has implemented a rigorous quality assurance/quality control program at the Akie property using best industry practices. All drill core is logged for geology, structure, veining, alteration, mineralization and geotechnical parameters. Sections of sulphide mineralisation are marked for sampling by a geologist and a series of standards, duplicates and blanks are inserted into the sample stream for QA/QC purposes. Prior to the cutting of samples, all core boxes are photographed for due diligence and record keeping purposes. The samples are split by a diamond saw, tagged and bagged, and forwarded by bonded carrier to Acme Labs (a Bureau Veritas Group company) of Vancouver, B.C., for analysis. Documentation recording the chain of custody is kept for each shipment.
Drill core samples are prepared for analysis using the PRP70-250 sample preparation method. Assays for zinc, lead and silver are obtained using AQ270 analytical package with sample digestion using aqua regia solution followed by ICP-ES (inductively coupled plasma emission spectroscopy) and ICP-MS (inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry) analyses. Barium content is determined by LF301-Ba analytical package using LiBO2/LiB4O7 fusion and ACS-grade nitric acid followed by ICP-ES analysis. Overlimit values of lead and zinc are rerun using AQ371 analytical package using a hot aqua regia solution followed by ICP-ES analyses. Specific gravity is measured on each drill core sample from the pulverized pulps using SPG01 analytical package. Check assays on drill pulps are routinely conducted by ALS Minerals of North Vancouver, B.C., with its OG46 analytical package using aqua regia digestion and ICP-ES analysis. All remaining drill core is stored at the Akie exploration camp in fabricated core racks with all-weather metals roofs.
The Akie Zn-Pb-Ag (zinc-lead-silver) project
The 100-per-cent-owned Akie property is situated within the Kechika Trough, the southernmost area of the regionally extensive Paleozoic Selwyn basin and one of the most prolific sedimentary basins in the world for the occurrence of sedex (sedimentary exhalative deposits) zinc-lead-silver and stratiform barite deposits.
Drilling on the Akie property by Zincx Resources (formerly Canada Zinc Metals Corp.) since 2005 has identified a significant body of baritic-zinc-lead sedex mineralization known as the Cardiac Creek deposit. The deposit is hosted by siliceous, carbonaceous, fine-grained clastic rocks of the Middle to Late Devonian Gunsteel formation.
With additional drilling completed in 2017, the company updated the estimate of mineral resources at Cardiac Creek, as displayed in the table.
5% zinc cut-off gradeContained metalCategoryTonnes (million) Zn (%) Pb (%) Ag (g/t) Zn (B lb) Pb (B lb) Ag (M oz)Indicated22.7 8.32 1.61 14.1 4.162 0.80410.3 Inferred7.5 7.04 1.24 12.0 1.169 0.205 2.9
The company announced robust positive results from the 2018 preliminary economic assessment (PEA). The PEA envisages a conventional underground mine and concentrator operation with an average production rate of 4,000 tonnes per day. The mine will have an 18-year life with potential to extend the life of mine (LOM) through resource expansion at depth.
Pretax After taxNPV 7% IRR NPV 7% IRR$649M35%$401M 27%
The base case parameters for the PEA used are $1.21 (U.S.) per pound zinc, $1 (U.S.)/lb lead and $16.50 (U.S.) per ounce silver.
See the company's news releases from June 20, 2018, for important disclosures with respect to the Cardiac Creek PEA.
The PEA is considered preliminary in nature and includes mineral resources, including inferred mineral resources that are considered too speculative geologically to have the economic considerations applied to them that would enable them to be categorized as mineral reserves. Mineral resources that are not mineral reserves have not yet demonstrated economic viability. Due to the uncertainty that may be attached to mineral resources, it cannot be assumed that all or any part of a mineral resource will be upgraded to mineral reserves. Therefore, there is no certainty that the results concluded in the PEA will be realized.
Kechika regional project
In addition to the Akie project, the company owns 100 per cent of eight of 11 large, contiguous property blocks that comprise the Kechika regional project including the advanced Mt. Alcock prospect. The Kechika regional project also includes the Pie, Yuen and Cirque East properties within which the company maintains a significant 49-per-cent interest with partners Teck Resources Ltd. and Korea Zinc Co. Ltd. These properties collectively extend northwest from the Akie property for approximately 140 kilometres covering the highly prospective Gunsteel formation shale; the main host rock for known sedex zinc-lead-silver deposits in the Kechika Trough of northeastern British Columbia. These projects are located approximately 260 kilometres north-northwest of the town of Mackenzie, B.C., Canada.
Ken MacDonald, PGeo, vice-president of exploration for the company, is the designated qualified person as defined by National Instrument 43-101 and is responsible for the technical information contained in this release. Mike Makarenko, PEng, JDS Energy and Mining, is the designated qualified person as defined by National Instrument 43-101 and is responsible for the PEA technical information contained in this release.
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