Sunshine Mining boosts reserves at Pirquitas

Drilling by Sunshine Mining & Refining (SSC-N) has expanded, by nearly 50%, the size of the Pirquitas silver-tin deposit in northern Argentina.

The company completed 37,000 ft. of a planned 66,000 ft., following up extensions of the mineralization and filling in the drill spacing in the main San Miguel zone.

The program resulted in delineation of a new zone, which is believed to be a splay off the Potosi vein. (Historic production from Potosi included material grading up to 14 oz. silver per ton to a depth of 300 metres.) No reserve estimates are available for this new structure as of yet.

Overall reserves at the former producer are now reported to be 96 million oz. silver and 51,000 tons tin within 16.5 million tons of ore grading 5.8 oz. silver per ton and 0.31% tin.

By comparison, reserves last August stood at 66.9 million oz. silver (12.5 million tons at 5.4 oz. per ton) based on a silver price of US$5 per oz.

When the metal hit US$7 per oz. in February, in response to the purchase of 129 million oz. of silver bullion by American financier Warren Buffet, the company revised the figure to 75 million oz. (15 million tons at 5 oz. per ton). For the latest calculation, Sunshine used a silver price in line with current metal prices (US$5.50 per oz.), together with a tin price of US$2.34 per lb.

The property, which lies in Jujuy province, is undergoing a feasibility study that is due in late October.