Anfield is Granted A New Exploration License and an Extension, and Provides Update on Development of the Mayaniquel Nickel Project, Guatemala
VANCOUVER, BRITISH COLUMBIA -- (Marketwire) -- 06/06/12 -- Anfield Nickel Corp. (TSX VENTURE: ANF) ("Anfield" or the "Company") is pleased to announce that the Guatemalan government has granted Anfield a new exploration license ("Sechol III") and a second extension to an existing license ("San Lucas I") at its 100% owned Mayaniquel nickel laterite project in eastern Guatemala. Both license areas are highly prospective for the discovery of additional nickel laterite resources (see attached map).
To view map, please visit the following link: http://media3.marketwire.com/docs/ANF606I.pdf.
In addition to the issuance of the new exploration license and extension, the Company is pleased to provide a corporate update on its activities at Mayaniquel. On July 7 2011, the Company announced the results of a National Instrument 43-101 ("NI 43-101") Preliminary Economic Assessment (the "PEA") on the merits of constructing a ferronickel operation at Mayaniquel (see July 7, 2011 news release). The study determined that the operation would produce an estimated 19,900 tonnes of nickel per year over the 29.5 year mine life at an estimated average annual operating cost of US$3.14 per pound of nickel produced (net of iron credits). The mine and plant would cost an estimated US$1.23 billion to construct and, at an $8.25 per pound nickel price and an 8% discount rate, would have an estimated net present value of $606 million and internal rate of return of 14.1%. Subsequent to the completion of the PEA, the Company has focused its activities at Mayaniquel on completing a NI 43-101 Prefeasibility Study (the "Prefeasibility Study"). Work towards completing the study has progressed extremely well and the Prefeasibility Study is expected to be completed by the end of the third quarter of 2012.
(Note: Mineral resources that are not mineral reserves have no demonstrated economic viability. The PEA is preliminary in nature and includes the use of 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. Thus, there is no certainty that the PEA will be realized. Actual results may vary, perhaps materially.)
As part of its Prefeasibility Study work program, Anfield recently completed a 15,056 meter, 746 hole drill program. The primary aim of the drilling campaign was to convert existing NI 43-101 mineralization classified in the Inferred category to the Measured and Indicated categories; and evaluate lateritic nickel mineralization on a twenty five square kilometer exploration licence area granted by the Guatemalan government to the Company, in June 2011, as an extension to the existing Chatala exploration license where several of the known Mayaniquel nickel laterite deposits are located.
Anfield drilled 650 holes totaling 12,532 meters to evaluate the mineral potential of the license extension area and identified nickel mineralization in four separate zones over an area of six square kilometers. The new discoveries, known as the Chatala Western Extensions, are located immediately to the west of Tres Juanes Norte and the grades encountered are similar to those intercepted at Tres Juanes Norte and Tres Juanes Sur, the two highest grade deposits defined to date at Mayaniquel. Of the 650 holes drilled, only 82 holes (13%) did not intercept any significant mineralization (greater than 0.8% nickel). Future drilling may be conducted to determine whether the four zones merge into one larger deposit (see attached map).
The mineralization discovered at the Chatala Western Extensions, along with the results of Anfield's recently completed infill drilling program, will be included in a mineral resource estimate that will form the basis upon which the Prefeasibility Study will be evaluated.
Other engineering, metallurgical and project design studies to be incorporated into the Prefeasibility Study are progressing on time and on budget. The primary focus of these studies include: development of a comprehensive project mine plan, engineering of a process flowsheet for the Rotary Kiln Electric Furnace and infrastructure design. In addition, an ore upgrading pilot plant test program has been completed and a bulk sample smelting pilot plant test program is in progress.
The Company is also in the process of applying for the exploitation licenses required to develop a mining operation at Mayaniquel. In April 2011, Anfield applied for the Sechol exploitation license and received approval of its Environmental Impact Study on the license area, by the Ministry of Environment, in December 2011. The Company now awaits final approval and issuance of that license by the Ministry of Energy and Mines. Additional work plans and environmental studies to support other future exploitation license applications are being completed and will be submitted to the Guatemalan government later in 2012.
The Mayaniquel project comprises mineral exploration licenses totaling approximately 39,602 hectares in the nickel laterite belt surrounding Lake Izabal, 120 kilometers northeast of Guatemala City. The current NI 43-101 mineral resource estimate for the project (See June 9, 2011 news release) is shown in the table below: (1% nickel cut-off grade)
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Contained
Size Grade Nickel
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Pounds
Dry Metric Tonnes (millions) (% Ni) (millions)
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Transition and Saprolite Indicated Resources
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26.5 1.51 885.5
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Transition and Saprolite Inferred Resources
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45.7 1.40 1,413.3
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Limonite Indicated Resources
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12.9 1.17 331.4
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Limonite Inferred Resources
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12.2 1.15 308.9
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The mineral resource estimates contained in this news release do not have
demonstrated economic viability.
The mineral resource estimate includes inferred mineral resources totaling 8.2 million tonnes grading 1.32% nickel at a 1% nickel cut-off grade from two deposits, Poza Azul and Chulac-Seococ, that are located on an exploration license that expired in November 2010. The Company has filed a new license application encompassing these deposits with the Guatemalan government and is awaiting its approval.
For more information on the current mineral resource estimate, the results of the PEA and the Mayaniquel Project in general, see the technical report entitled "Preliminary Economic Assessment, Mayaniquel Project, Guatemala" dated July 22, 2011 with an effective date of April 12, 2011.
Andrew Carstensen, CPG, Vice President, Exploration for Anfield, is the Qualified Person as defined by NI 43-101 for the Mayaniquel Project and has verified the foregoing data and reviewed and approved the contents of this news release. The quality assurance/quality control program is monitored by independent consultant Dr. Bruce M. Davis, FAusIMM. Logging and sampling are completed at Anfield's secure facility located at the project. Drill core is mechanically split on site with sample preparation completed at a facility at Anfield's exploration compound. Samples are prepared in accordance with ALS Chemex's standards with pulps subsequently shipped to their laboratory in Vancouver, Canada for X-Ray Fluorescence Spectroscopy analysis, the common analytical technique used in nickel laterite exploration. Quality from the on-site sample preparation lab is monitored by an independent, rigorous QA/QC program including pulp and coarse-reject duplicates and analyzing cleaning materials from the crusher and pulverizer units to assure contamination-free sample processing. Anfield also inserts blanks and standards selected on a random basis into the sample stream and sends 5% of the sample pulps to a check laboratory in Vancouver, Canada.
David Strang
CAUTION REGARDING FORWARD LOOKING INFORMATION: Information and statements in this news release that are not historical facts are "forward-looking information" within the meaning of the applicable Canadian securities legislation. This news release contains forward-looking information such as estimates and statements that describe Anfield's future plans, objectives or goals, including words to the effect that Anfield or management expects a stated condition or result to occur. Generally, this forward-looking information can be identified by the use of forward-looking terminology such as "plans", "expects" or "does not expect", "is expected", "budget", "scheduled", "estimates", "forecasts", "intends", "anticipates" or "does not anticipate", or "believes", or variations of such words and phrases or state that certain actions, events or results "may", "can", "could", "would", "might" or "will be taken", "occur" or "be achieved". Examples of forward-looking information in this news release include, but are not limited to statements with respect to Anfield's estimates of mineral resources, future exploration drilling, and possible related discoveries or extensions of new mineralization or increases or upgrades to reported mineral resource estimate at its Mayaniquel project, the results of the PEA, including estimates of capital costs, operating costs, net present value, internal rate of return, production and life-of mine, timing of completion of an updated mineral resource estimate and a preliminary feasibility study, the potential to merge the four zones comprising the Chatala Western Extensions and the issuance of exploitation licenses.
Forward-looking information is subject to known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause the actual results, level of activity, performance or achievements of Anfield Nickel Corp. to be materially different from those expressed or implied by such forward-looking information, including but not limited to: risks inherent in mineral resource estimation and the material assumptions in respect thereof including selection of the appropriate cut-off grade, risks related to international operations, risks related to the exploration and potential development of Anfield's Mayaniquel project, the speculative nature of mineral exploration and development, uncertainty regarding the results of the PEA based on inferred mineral resources, changes in project parameters as plans continue to be refined, risks related to whether the Guatemalan government will deny extensions and reapplications of exploration licences or an application for an exploitation licence, risks related to the loss of licences, mineral resources and/or exploration licences with resource targets on them, uncertainty regarding the timing of events including the completion of an updated mineral resource estimate and prefeasibility study, future prices of commodities, currency fluctuations, and uncertainties as well as those factors discussed in the sections relating to risk factors of our business filed in Anfield Nickel Corp.'s required securities filings on SEDAR. Although Anfield Nickel Corp. has attempted to identify important factors and risks that could cause actual results to differ materially from those contained in forward-looking information, there may be other factors that cause results to be materially different from those anticipated, described, estimated, assessed or intended.
There can be no assurance that any forward-looking information will prove to be accurate, as actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated in such information. Accordingly, readers should not place undue reliance on forward-looking information. Anfield Nickel Corp. does not undertake to update any forward-looking information that are incorporated by reference herein, except in accordance with applicable securities laws.
Neither the 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 news release.
Contacts:
Anfield Nickel Corp.
David Strang
+ 604 646-1899
