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Exploration: Magistral

Sinaloa State, Mexico

Property

Magistral is a former open pit, heap leach gold mine located in northwestern Mexico that produced approximately 70,000 ounces of gold between 2002-2005. Recent exploration has discovered high-grade gold mineralization such as 0.274 gold opt over 113 feet (9.4 gpt gold over 34.4 meters) that included 0.46 opt gold over 62.2 feet (15.76 grams gold over 19.0 meters).

Location

The immediate land surrounding the mine totals approximately 37 square miles with additional  475 square miles of exploration property in the region. There are four exploration areas at Magistral that currently contain gold mineralization (Please see image below). Gold mineralization is found along a series of structural zones that cut the volcanic sequence. Individual zones consist of sheared and faulted volcanic rock that host variable stockwork, breccia, and local quartz veins. Gold and silver minerals are present in microscopic sized particles of native gold and electrum associated with quartz. There also appears to be a relationship between gold mineralization and a series of rhyolite domes. The mineralized structures that were previously mined at the Magistral Mine have historically been the focus of most of the regions exploration

magistral

Map of Magistral Mine Gold Mineralized Areas

Near-Mine Exploration Potential

Surface mapping and sampling has demonstrated the potential to increase the mineralization adjacent to existing mining operations and to discover and develop new gold mineralization throughout the Magistral land position. Additional exploration work conducted in the second half of 2004 resulted in the discovery of a gold/silver/copper porphyry within 1.25 miles of the mine site. This new discovery is located in close proximity of the intersection of three structural trends. The area contains a package of intensely altered intrusive and volcanic rocks that host mineralized structures containing both silicified vein and stockwork zones. Along the contact of the two units are found irregular quartz breccias anomalous in gold, silver, copper and bismuth.

Gold Pour

The principal exploration targets in the immediate area of the Mine are as follows:

  • La Prieta High Grade Zone: The La Prieta zone is the highest priority exploration target. High-grade gold mineralization is present in a flat lying zone. Drilling that was designed to test the zone intersected 0.274 gold opt over 113 feet (9.4 gpt gold over 34.4 meters) including 0.46 opt gold over 62.2 feet (15.76 gpt gold over 19.0 meters). This zone is open to the west, to the south and to the northwest.
  • Samaniego Open Pit: Mineralization is open along strike to the northwest where it has been traced by mapping and sampling on surface for some 1,000 meters.
  • West San Rafael Zone: In addition to the potential for extending mineralization along strike, there are mineralized structures running parallel to those that host the known mineralization. Potential structures outcropping approximately 1,650 feet to the west of the San Rafael Pit are known to have favorable alteration and anomalous gold values along a strike length of 3,280 feet.
  • San Rafael Open Pit: Follow up drilling is planned to test mineralized zones that remain open to the south and southeast.
  • Lupita: Near surface mineralization at Lupita includes a drill intercept grading 0.079 opt gold over 180.4 feet (2.7 gpt gold over 55 meters)  including 0.398 opt gold over 23.95 feet (13.6 gpt gold over 7.3 meters). Mineralization is open down dip, along strike to the northwest and to the southeast.
  • Lucy Zone: This zone has been outlined by a series of trenches and consists of a north-south mineralized zone with a approximate 2,000 feet of strike length and widths of 65 - 130 feet grading in the order of 0.015 opt gold. Numerous higher-grade gold zones occur within the lower grade envelope.
  • Cerritos Porphyry System. The host rock has been traced northwest and southeast over an approximate 1,650 feet strike length. Trench samples over 200 feet returned values of 0.02 opt gold, 0.722 opt silver, and 0.19% copper including 131.2 feet grading 0.033 opt gold.

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