Silver Standard hits bonanza grade gold-silver

Vancouver — Silver Standard Resources (SSO-V) has again tabled impressive results from its infill and exploration drilling at its Manantial Espejo silver-gold project in Argentina.

So far, the junior has completed 537.9 metres (22 holes) of a planned 5,000-metre program. Current activities are focused on the Veta Maria area, where the objective are: near-surface infill drilling; extension drilling of the Union, Karina and Melissa veins; and exploration drilling of three newly discovered veins.

A series of shallow holes is being drilling a 3,000-metre phase. The holes, collared on 25-metre centres, are distributed over the 700-metre strike length of the vein system.

Recently, the company pulled bonanza grades with visible gold over narrow widths. Highlights include:

• hole 215, which cut 8.6 metres grading 2.3 grams gold and 415.9 grams silver starting from a down-hole depth of 1.5 metres, including a 3.4-metre section of 4.5 grams gold and 874.8 grams silver;
• hole 216, which intersected 13.7 metres grading 11.3 grams gold and 319.9 grams silver starting at 1.5 metres down-hole, including 1 metre of 105.2 grams gold and 796.3 grams silver;
• hole 200, which hit 2.6 metres grading 1.01 grams gold and 419.3 grams silver starting at 10.4 metres down-hole;
• hole 201, which intersected 11.8 metres grading 3.5 grams gold and 69.3 grams silver starting at 13.2 metres down-hole;
• hole 205, which returned 3 metres of 23.8 grams gold and 159.1 grams silver starting at 15.9 metres down-hole, including 1 metre grading 53.3 grams gold and 237 grams silver; and
• hole 207, which cut 5.1 metres grading 0.3 gram gold and 127.7 grams silver starting at 2.4 metres down-hole. This was followed by a 0.6-metre interval that averaged 52.9 grams gold and 213.5 grams silver starting at 14 metres down-hole.

At last report, measured and indicated resources at the Manantial Espejo deposit totalled 4.4 million tonnes grading 263.8 grams silver and 4.51 grams gold per tonne. The inferred resource stands at 1.6 million tonnes grading 258.2 grams silver and 3.65 grams gold. Measured and indicated resources represent 73% of the total resource.

Discovered in 1989 in Santa Cruz province, the project consists of eight concessions covering 225 sq. km. It is accessible via a good public all-weather gravel road. The property is 160 km west of the tidewater port of Puerto San Julian. Geologically, the property is underlain by Jurassic-aged andesitic flows and agglomerates covered by felsic tuffs and ignimbrites. Silver and gold mineralization is associated with northwest-trending fault zones. Silver and gold mineralization is generally confined to continuous shoots in quartz veins.

Silver Standard holds a 10% direct interest in Manantial Espejo and has an option to earn a further 40% from Black Hawk Mining (BHK-T), which currently holds a 90% interest