Southern Silver Exploration Corp. (the “Company” or “Southern Silver”) (TSX.V:SSV) reports that Freeport-McMoRan Exploration Corporation (“Freeport”) has completed its due diligence under an Earn-In Agreement relating to the Cerro Las Minitas project in Durango, Mexico.
The Earn-In Agreement
In October the Company entered into an Earn-in agreement which granted Freeport the right to earn an indirect 70% interest in the Cerro Las Minitas property in Durango, Mexico by making staged purchase payments and funding exploration and development expenditures of $25 million on the Cerro Las Minitas property over a maximum ten year period. The agreement was subject to due diligence review, which has been satisfied and the agreement is now operative. Freeport has paid the Company an initial USD$ 928,000 which has been utilized to pay an option payment to the Optionor of the property. To keep the Agreement operative, Freeport must pay to the Company $600,000 by January 2, 2013.
Exploration planning is underway and the Company expects that the program will begin in early January, 2013 and will consist of a geophysical program followed by diamond drilling.
Cerro Las Minitas
The Cerro Las Minitas project is located about 70 kilometres to the northeast of the city of Durango in Durango State, Mexico, and is accessed easily by road. Southern Silver has explored the property since late 2010 and to date has completed airborne and ground geophysics over the project and 15,540 metres of core drilling in 62 drill holes.
Near surface mineralization occurs as massive-sulphide pipes, veins and replacement deposits distributed in the skarn-altered margins of a large intrusive body. To date, Southern Silver has identified two high-grade silver-polymetallic deposits, the Blind zone and El Sol zone, which have been partially delineated and several other high priority targets throughout the property.
In addition to the higher level silver-polymetallic targets at the Blind and El Sol zones, there exists excellent exploration potential to develop deeper porphyry or skarn targets nearer the contact with the central monzonite intrusion.
Initial testing of the central intrusion in the area of historic mining by Southern Silver identified widespread zones of argillically altered intrusive and thinner intervals of elevated gold and copper mineralization. The company anticipates testing targets on the margins and beneath this broad alteration halo which is interpreted as the upper parts of a large and widespread polymetallic porphyry system.
About Southern Silver Exploration Corp.
Southern Silver Exploration Corp. is a precious and base metal exploration company and a member of the Manex Resource Group; a private company comprised of an exceptional multi-disciplinary team of professionals with specific expertise in all areas of exploration, development, corporate finance and public company administration.
The company’s growth strategy is to acquire, explore and develop high-quality properties in progressive jurisdictions within North America. Its current projects include the silver-lead-zinc Cerro Las Minitas project and the copper-gold-silver Minas de Ameca in Mexico, the porphyry copper-molybdenum Dragoon project in Arizona and the gold-silver-copper Oro project in New Mexico.
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Robert Macdonald (P.Geo) is a Qualified Person as defined by National Instrument 43-101 and has reviewed and approved the technical contents of this release.
On behalf of the Board of Directors
“Lawrence Page”
Lawrence Page Q. C. , President, Southern Silver Exploration Corp.
For further information, please visit the Company’s website at southernsilverexploration.com or contact Liana Shahinian at 1.888.456.1112 or by email at liana@mnxltd.com.
Neither 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 release.
This news release may contain forward-looking statements including but not limited to comments regarding the timing and content of upcoming work programs, geological interpretations, receipt of property titles, potential mineral recovery processes, etc. Forward-looking statements address future events and conditions and therefore involve inherent risks and uncertainties. Actual results may differ materially from those currently anticipated in such statements. These statements are based on a number of assumptions, including, but not limited to, assumptions regarding general economic conditions, interest rates, commodity markets, regulatory and governmental approvals for the company’s projects, and the availability of financing for the company’s development projects on reasonable terms. Factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those in forward looking statements include market prices, exploitation and exploration successes, the timing and receipt of government and regulatory approvals, and continued availability of capital and financing and general economic, market or business conditions. Southern Silver Exploration Corp. does not assume any obligation to update or revise its forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except to the extent required by applicable law.