Drilling Results and Contract Award

RNS Number : 8333B

Tertiary Minerals PLC

10 March 2014

 

www.tertiaryminerals.com

("the Company")

 10 March 2014

Final Positive Results MB Project Phase 2 Drilling

Contract Awarded for the JORC Mineral Resource Estimate

Tertiary Minerals plc, the AIM traded company building a strategic position in the fluorspar sector, is pleased to release further analytical results from the final six of the 22 holes drilled in Phase 2 of its drilling programme at the MB fluorspar project in Nevada, USA. The results are most encouraging and complement those arising from our earlier drilling results. We are now in a position to complete the maiden JORC compliant Mineral Resource Estimate and have awarded the contract for this work.

Highlights:

v Southern Area:

Results from the two holes in this area show thick intersections of mineralisation including:

·      13TMBRC018:  51.82m grading 10.73% CaF₂ from 27.43m depth, including

21.34m grading 14.66% CaF₂ from 36.58m depth

·      13TMBRC021:  24.38m grading 10.13% CaF₂ from 62.48m depth

Both holes end in mineralisation on the boundary of the drill grid and mineralisation remains open in all lateral directions and at depth.

v Central Area:

Results from all four holes in this area show multiple intersections of mineralisation e.g:

·      13TMBRC023:

o  10.67m grading 13.82% CaF₂ from 91.44m depth

o  4.57m grading 14.81% CaF₂ from 129.54m depth

o  4.57m grading 15.54% CaF₂ from 140.21m depth

Hole 13TMBRC023 encountered a thick section of mineralised garnet skarn at end of the hole with increasing grade at depth similar to the results recently reported in January for Hole 26, 420m to the southwest.

v Maiden JORC Mineral Resource Estimate:

The contract has been awarded to execute the maiden ¹JORC compliant Mineral Resource Estimate to Wardell Armstrong International Limited with completion expected at the end Q1/start of Q2 2014.

Commenting on today's announcement Managing Director Richard Clemmey said: "The final results from the drilling programme continue to be very encouraging and we now look forward to reporting the upcoming results of the maiden JORC complaint Mineral Resource Estimate. This is a significant milestone and an exciting development for the Company."

A map showing the location of the Company drill holes is available on the Company's website at http://www.tertiaryminerals.com/projects/fluorspar-projects/mb-fluorspar-nevada-usa and more detailed information and a complete tabulation of significant drilling results are given below.

ENQUIRIES:

For further information please contact:

Tertiary Minerals plc	Tel: [phone]
Patrick Cheetham, Executive Chairman
Richard Clemmey, Managing Director
Cantor Fitzgerald Europe	Tel: [phone]
Stewart Dickson/Julian Erleigh (Corporate Finance)
Jeremy Stephenson (Corporate Broking)
Beaufort Securities Limited	Tel: [phone]
Christopher Rourke (Corporate Finance)
Guy Wheatley (Corporate Broking)
Yellow Jersey PR Limited	Tel: [phone]
Dominic Barretto/Kelsey Traynor

Detailed Information

The analytical results being released today are for the final six of 22 holes drilled in Phase 2 of the Company's first resource definition drill programme completed in November 2013. Results from the first 16 holes of Phase 2 were contained in news releases made on 18 December 2013 and 13 January 2014 which, together with the release dated 11 September 2013, provide background information on the drill programme and its objectives.

All holes were drilled vertically and reported drill-intersected thicknesses are believed to approximate true thicknesses of mineralisation. Drill samples were prepared by American Assay Laboratories in Nevada (ISO-17025 accredited) and fluorine analysis has been carried out by PANalytical Ltd in the UK (UKAS accredited).

²Significant drill results are shown in the accompanying table. For the purposes of this reporting "significant" is taken to be a minimum three metre drill intersected thickness above a 6% CaF₂ (fluorspar) cut-off. Values above a 10% cut-off within these significant results are also shown in bold. Historical analysis and the Company's previous drill results have been reported on the same basis. All holes were systematically sampled at 5 foot intervals and results are reported in converted metric intervals.

Southern Area

The results being reported today are from drill holes 13TMBRC018 and 13TMBRC021.

Hole 13TMBRC018 is located on the southeast corner of the Southern Area drill grid. The hole ended in mineralisation and encountered thick intersections of fluorspar mineralisation with intervals of higher grade.

Hole 13TMBRC021 is located on the western edge of the Southern Area drill grid and also displays significant thick fluorspar mineralisation.

The results from these final holes when taken together with the results from previously reported holes confirm that the limits of mineralisation in the Southern Area have not as yet been located and remain to be defined. The mineralisation is open in all lateral directions and at depth with fluorspar being encountered between surface and to the maximum depth of 125m tested in this area.

Central Area

The results being reported today are from drill holes 13TMBRC022, 23, 24 and 25.

The final four holes from the Central Area continue to display multiple intersections of fluorspar mineralisation.

Holes 13TMBRC023 and 25, located 420m and 210m north-northwest of previously reported hole, 26 display a similar trend to hole 26 with the grade of fluorspar mineralisation increasing at depth right down to the end of the holes.

Hole 23 also intersected a thick zone at its base logged as garnet skarn as was first reported in hole 26 This type of skarn is often associated with higher temperature alteration closer to the source of the fluorspar mineralisation.

Mineralisation in the Central Area remains open laterally and at depth and, the Company believes, it is broadly continuous with that in the Southern Area.  The Central Area now represents an exciting future target for drilling - both for higher grade mineralisation associated with the garnet skarn at depth and for lateral extension, in particular to the west where it is projected to occur nearer to surface.

Foot Notes

¹JORC is the Australian Code for the reporting of exploration results, Mineral Resources and Ore Reserves prepared by the Joint Ores Reserves Committee (JORC) of the Australasian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy, Australian Institute of Geoscientists and the Minerals Council of Australia.

²Significant, as applied to a cut-off grade for reporting drill results, does not imply an economic cut off. An economic cut-off will depend on many factors and will not be determined until feasibility studies, if warranted, are carried out.

The information in this release has been compiled and reviewed by Mr. Patrick Cheetham (MIMMM, MAusIMM) who is a qualified person for the purposes of the AIM Note for Mining and Oil & Gas Companies dated June 2009. Mr Cheetham is a Member of the Institute of Materials, Minerals & Mining and also a member of the Australasian Institute of Mining & Metallurgy.

Cautionary Note: Traditional analytical methods measure fluorine content and fluorite (CaF_{2 -} fluorspar) contents are calculated on the assumption that all fluorine is present as fluorite. Metallurgical testwork reviewed by the Company suggests this is likely although small amounts of fluorine can occur in mica and other minerals commonly present in skarn mineralised systems.

Notes to Editors

Tertiary Minerals plc (ticker symbol 'TYM') is an AIM-quoted mineral exploration and development company building a significant strategic position in the fluorspar sector. Fluorspar is an essential raw material in the chemical, steel and aluminium industries. Tertiary controls two significant Scandinavian projects (Storuman in Sweden and Lassedalen in Norway) and a large deposit of strategic significance in Nevada USA (MB Project).

Table of further significant drill result from Phase 2 drilling at MB Fluorspar Project

13 Jan. 2014 to 10 March. 2014

Drill Hole Number		Down Hole Thickness (m)	Grade Fluorspar CaF2 (%)	From (m)	To  (m)	Hole Depth (m)	Comment
13TMBRC018		51.82	10.73%	27.43	79.25	124.97	Hole ended in mineralisation
	inc.	21.34	14.66%	36.58	57.91
	inc.	3.05	13.83%	67.06	70.10
13TMBRC021		3.05	8.20%	6.10	9.14	124.97	Hole ended in mineralisation
	and	24.38	10.13%	62.48	86.87
	inc.	4.57	14.67%	73.15	77.72
	and	3.05	9.99%	94.49	97.54
	and	3.05	12.45%	120.40	123.44
13TMBRC022		16.76	9.58%	53.34	70.10	141.73	Hole ended in mineralisation
	inc.	3.05	14.53%	60.96	64.01
	and	6.10	9.76%	74.68	80.77
	and	4.57	14.74%	83.82	88.39
	and	9.14	7.00%	97.54	106.68
13TMBRC023		3.05	9.30%	38.10	41.15	150.88	Hole ended in mineralisation
	and	3.05	7.51%	42.67	45.72
	and	3.05	6.70%	54.86	57.91
	and	3.05	8.11%	59.44	62.48
	and	3.05	7.88%	64.01	67.06
	and	7.62	9.90%	71.63	79.25
	and	10.67	13.82%	91.44	102.11
	and	3.05	11.24%	108.20	111.25
	and	28.96	9.94%	120.40	149.35
	inc.	4.57	14.81%	129.54	134.11
	inc.	4.57	15.54%	140.21	144.78
13TMBRC024		4.57	7.27%	30.48	35.05	150.88	Hole ended in mineralisation
	and	4.57	7.98%	51.82	56.39
	and	4.57	6.21%	60.96	65.53
	and	19.81	8.95%	85.34	105.16
	inc.	7.62	11.48%	86.87	94.49
	and	6.10	7.22%	109.73	115.82
	and	6.10	7.57%	118.87	124.97
13TMBRC025		6.10	9.94%	38.10	44.20	150.88	Significant mineralisation to EOH
	and	3.05	6.56%	57.91	60.96
	and	6.10	8.34%	67.06	73.15
	and	3.05	12.91%	80.77	83.82
	and	4.57	7.66%	88.39	92.96
	and	3.05	10.77%	99.06	102.11
	and	3.05	13.93%	118.87	121.92
	and	18.29	8.98%	132.59	150.88
	inc.	6.10	11.89%	144.78	150.88
All holes drilled vertically.
Significant Mineralisation to EOH:  means reported interval extends to end of hole or hole ended in mineralisation grading in excess of cut-off.
Hole ended in mineralisation: means lower grade mineralisation extends to end of hole.

 

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