Hunter Bay Minerals Announces Further Channel Sample Results From Sela Creek
LONDON, UNITED KINGDOM -- (Marketwire) -- 12/19/11 -- Hunter Bay Minerals plc ('Hunter Bay') (TSX VENTURE: HBY) is pleased to announce that it has received further assay results from the ongoing channel sampling program at Sela Creek, with highlights of 10 metres at 2.63 g/t gold and 16 metres at 1.09 g/t gold from the Jons Pit prospect.
A new prospect named Puma has also been identified 2.5 km southeast from Jons Pit. The identification of the Puma Pit confirms a 7 kilometre long mineralized trend at Sela Creek which remains open along strike. The Puma, Jons Pit, Stranger, Texas and Cambior prospects are all located within this trend and contain numerous artisanal open pits exploiting vein and shear fault hosted mineralization.
In addition the Central Ridge prospect lies between the Cambior and Paaston pits and is coincident with a topographic high, an east-west trending ovoid magnetic low, and an arsenic and gold in soil anomaly. Central Ridge sits at the center of significant north and south draining alluvial fields. The hard rock source of gold for the alluvial workings associated with Central Ridge is unknown and an infill soil grid is planned for this area in Q1 of 2012. Given the geophysical and geochemical signature and lack of artisanal mining of saprolite at Central Ridge, a potential intrusion related mineralized system is inferred.
The Jons Pit prospect comprises a number of artisanal pits over a 1.3 kilometre long, northwest trending shear zone (Figure 2) that is up to 16 m wide. Gold mineralization is associated with lenticular quartz veins and silica altered, limonite stained schist. The latest channel sample results from this area include:
-- 10.0 meters at 2.63 g/t gold (from 3.0 to 13.0 meters, CH014)
-- including 1.0 metre at 12.19 g/t gold (from 7.0 to 8.0 meters)
-- 16.0 meters at 1.09 g/t gold (from 1.0 to 17.0 meters, CH015)
-- including 1.0 meter at 3.50 g/t gold (13.0 to 14.0 meters)
-- 4.0 meters at 2.71 g/t gold (from 0.0 to 4.0 meters, CH021)
-- including 1.0 meter at 8.55 g/t gold (0.0 to 1.0 meters)
-- 3.3 meters at 6.44 g/t gold (from 4.7 to 8.0 meters, CH025)
-- including 1.0 meter at 8.19 g/t gold (4.7 to 5.7 meters)
-- and 1.0 meter at 9.90 g/t gold (6.0 to 7.0 meters)
The Puma prospect is located 2.5 kilometres southeast from Jons Pit and comprises a moderately dipping quartz vein zone hosted in schistose, mica rich, hematitic saprolite. The quartz vein zone is 4 to 6 metres wide and has been exposed in an artisanal pit over a strike length of 30 meters. Further exploration is required to determine the true extent of this zone as the artisanal miners have only recently exposed mineralization at Puma. Channel sampling at Puma has returned:
-- 9.0 meters at 2.66 g/t gold (from 0.0 to 9.0 meters, CH027)
-- including 2.0 meters at 7.19 g/t gold (1.0 to 3.0 meters)
-- 6.0 meters at 3.93 g/t gold (from 4.0 to 10.0 meters, CH036)
A summary table of all significant intercepts from the 2011 channel sampling program is given in Table 1. To date Hunter Bay has collected 45 channel samples totalling 665.8 metres.
Hunter Bay plans to commence a 5000 metre diamond drill program in Q1 2012 depending upon rig availability. Drilling will concentrate on the Jons Pit and Cambior prospects, accounting for approximately 3000 meters of drilling. Scout drilling of the Stranger and Puma prospects will account for the remaining 2000 metres. Drilling will target depth and strike extensions of near surface mineralization.
Hunter Bay will also continue soil sampling programs in Q1 2012 in order to follow up anomalies generated in the 2011 soil sampling program, in particular the Central Ridge prospect, Puma Prospect and along strike from Jons Pit. First pass soil grids will also be completed at the Paaston and Panther prospects.
Assay Procedure
Sample preparation and gold fire assay was carried out by The Assay Office (Suriname), Paramaribo, Suriname. The laboratory is not certified. The Assay Office includes routine Canadian Certified Reference Materials (CCRM), in-house standards and blank samples with each sample submission. Hunter Bay inserts its own routine QAQC samples, including gold certified reference material and blank material which are routinely checked. Hunter Bay ensures that chain-of-custody is maintained at all times from point of collection to delivery to the assay laboratory.
Andrew Tunningley, MAusIMM (CP), a director of Hunter Bay, is a Qualified Person as defined in National instrument 43-101 - Standards of Disclosure for Mineral Projects is responsible for the work program on the Sela Creek Project. Mr. Tunningley has supervised and approved all technical information contained in this news release.
About Hunter Bay
Hunter Bay is engaged in the acquisition, exploration and development of mineral resource properties located in Canada and South America. Hunter Bay currently owns a one-hundred percent (100%) interest in the Great Bear Lake Properties located in the eastern side of Great Bear Lake NWT, has an option to acquire up to an eighty percent (80%) interest in the Sela Creek Project located in Suriname and has an option to acquire a forty five percent (45%) interest in the net profits of the Fortuna Project located in the Nambija Gold District, Ecuador.
Hunter Bay also has the right to operate the alluvial tailings within the Mazaruni and Puruni Permits (the 'Mazaruni and Puruni Operating Rights'). The operation of the alluvial tailings will be done under a 70/30 joint venture with the vendor of the Mazaruni and Puruni Operating Rights and will be subject to a 15% royalty payable to the owner of the Mazaruni and Puruni Permits.
Forward-Looking Statements
Information set forth in this news release contains forward-looking statements that are based on assumptions as of the date of this news release. These statements reflect management's current estimates, beliefs, intentions and expectations. They are not guarantees of future performance. Hunter Bay cautions that all forward looking statements are inherently uncertain and that actual performance may be affected by a number of material factors, many of which are beyond Hunter Bay's control. Such factors include, among other things: risks and uncertainties relating to Hunter Bay's ability to complete the proposed soil sampling program on the Sela Creek Project, Hunter Bay's limited operating history; the need to comply with environmental and governmental regulations; potential defects in title to Hunter Bay's properties; and Hunter Bay's ability to obtain additional financing in order to commence the proposed drilling program on the Sela Creek Project. Accordingly, actual and future events, conditions and results may differ materially form the estimates, beliefs, intentions and expectations expressed or implied in the forward looking information. Except as required under applicable securities legislation, Hunter Bay undertakes no obligation to publicly update or revise forward-looking information.
To view Figure 1 and 2 associated with this news release, please click the following link: http://media3.marketwire.com/docs/1219HBY_Figs1and2.pdf.
Table 1: Significant intercepts from channel sampling at Sela Creek. Intercepts are reported as weighted average gold grade over apparent width. A lower cut off of 0.2 g/t gold was used with an internal dilution of no more than one meter below the cut off grade.
From To Interval Au
Prospect Channel ID (m) (m) (m) (g/t)
--------------------------------------------------------------------
Jons Pit SKC0001 0.00 7.40 7.40 1.66
including 0.80 2.80 2.00 4.68
-----------------------------------------------------
SKC0003 1.00 2.00 1.00 0.98
-----------------------------------------------------
SKC0005 0.00 2.10 2.10 0.78
-----------------------------------------------------
SKC0006 0.00 2.60 2.60 2.82
-----------------------------------------------------
SKC0007 0.00 1.00 1.00 3.99
-----------------------------------------------------
SKC0008 4.00 6.00 2.00 3.60
-----------------------------------------------------
CH003 17.00 18.00 1.00 0.71
CH003 20.00 30.00 10.00 0.55
CH003 38.00 41.00 3.00 0.74
-----------------------------------------------------
CH005 22.00 34.00 12.00 1.63
including 26.00 28.00 2.00 2.25
and 32.00 33.00 1.00 7.11
-----------------------------------------------------
CH006 11.00 14.00 3.00 4.32
including 13.00 14.00 1.00 12.22
-----------------------------------------------------
CH007 22.00 28.00 6.00 1.10
including 22.00 24.00 2.00 1.66
and 25.00 26.00 1.00 2.06
-----------------------------------------------------
CH014 3.00 13.00 10.00 2.63
including 7.00 8.00 1.00 12.19
CH015 1.00 17.00 16.00 1.09
including 8.00 9.00 1.00 2.29
and 10.00 11.00 1.00 2.15
and 13.00 14.00 1.00 3.50
-----------------------------------------------------
CH017 1.00 3.00 2.00 2.41
-----------------------------------------------------
CH018 10.00 11.00 1.00 4.83
12.00 14.00 2.00 1.21
-----------------------------------------------------
CH019 0.00 1.00 1.00 1.01
CH019 9.00 10.00 1.00 1.85
CH019 12.00 14.50 2.50 0.76
including 14.00 14.50 0.50 1.74
-----------------------------------------------------
CH021 0.00 4.00 4.00 2.71
including 0.00 1.00 1.00 8.55
-----------------------------------------------------
CH024 0.00 2.00 2.00 1.25
-----------------------------------------------------
CH025 4.70 8.00 3.30 6.44
including 4.70 5.70 1.00 8.19
and 6.00 7.00 1.00 9.9
-----------------------------------------------------
CH026 4.00 8.00 4.00 0.57
--------------------------------------------------------------------
Cambior Pit SKC0010 0.00 1.00 1.00 0.75
-----------------------------------------------------
CH001 10.00 13.00 3.00 2.14
including 12.00 13.00 1.00 3.85
-----------------------------------------------------
CH002 7.00 8.00 1.00 1.86
CH002 14.00 15.00 1.00 0.68
-----------------------------------------------------
CH008 9.00 13.00 4.00 1.64
including 12.00 13.00 1.00 4.09
-----------------------------------------------------
CH011 0.00 1.00 1.00 2.21
CH011 2.00 11.00 9.00 13.60
including 3.00 4.00 1.00 36.92
and 5.00 7.00 2.00 39.43
--------------------------------------------------------------------
Stranger Pit CH004 0.00 7.00 7.00 1.36
including 0.00 2.00 2.00 2.71
--------------------------------------------------------------------
Puma CH027 0.00 9.00 9.00 2.66
including 1.00 3.00 2.00 7.19
CH036 4.00 10.00 6.00 3.93
--------------------------------------------------------------------
Paaston Pit CH032 0.00 1.00 1.00 2.69
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.
Contacts:
Hunter Bay Minerals plc
Bridge House, London Bridge
Christopher Wilson, CEO and President
(+44) 207-127-9125
