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The Company owns 100% of the Rio Tendal Project, a location consisting of 6 mining concessions covering 36,488ha, as well as 4 small mining claims covering 36ha, encircled by the Company's mining concessions. The Project area includes the historic Verdiona, La Estrella and Yegua Pircada mining camps. Teck-Cominco owns 5 small mining claims covering a total of 114ha, also located inside the Company's mining concession.
The Project is located in northwestern Argentina, in the Province of La Rioja, at an elevation of 3,000m. The site is readily accessible by an all season gravel road that runs approximately 50km south to the village of Jague where it connects to a major highway running between Argentina and Chile.
The Tendal District consists of Precambrian schists overlaid by Ordovician shales and intruded by Tertiary porphyries. In 1889, prospectors discovered lead and silver in narrow veins and lenses near the head waters of Rio Tendal. The mineralized veins were exploited by artisan miners at that time using small adits and shafts. The workings exposed stratabound zinc mineralization that remained untouched by the old-timers as zinc was of little value during their time.
The Company has discovered strata bound zinc mineralization at three locations on the property. The most spectacular is the Verdiona-Catitas mineralized horizon, which is exposed on surface, is up to 80m thick and consists of individual stacked lenses of massive sulphides. The lenses strike northerly and dip westerly at 50 degrees, range from 1 to 20m thick (true width), and extend for at least 2 km in NS strike. Diamond saw channel sampling across the massive sulphide lenses at Verdiona returned the following assay results (please see the Maps section of the Rio Tendal webpage for the location of trenches):
|
Verdiona
|
|
Trench
|
Sample Interval (m)
|
Ag (ppm)
|
Cu %
|
Pb%
|
Zn%
|
|
TR-1
|
9
|
48.9
|
0.34
|
1.89
|
2.02
|
|
TR-2
|
9
|
22.7
|
0.25
|
1.27
|
0.79
|
|
TR-3
|
9.5
|
12.4
|
0.02
|
0.9
|
2.5
|
|
TR-4
|
18.5
|
7.45
|
0.7
|
0.75
|
4.28
|
|
TR-5
|
29
|
12.71
|
0.1
|
2.75
|
4.44
|
|
TR-8
|
1
|
0.9
|
0.05
|
0.01
|
0.69
|
|
TR-9
|
1.8
|
139
|
2.5
|
12.62
|
1.49
|
|
TR-10
|
1.5
|
28
|
0.02
|
2.25
|
2.58
|
|
TR-11
|
2.5
|
24
|
0.01
|
3.28
|
2.4
|
|
TR-12
|
1.2
|
11.7
|
0.02
|
0.28
|
0.88
|
|
TR-13
|
1
|
5.6
|
0.01
|
0.05
|
1.11
|
|
TR-15
|
13.21
|
29.01
|
0.64
|
0.51
|
3.65
|
|
TR-17
|
5.3
|
1.51
|
0.23
|
0.02
|
1.94
|
|
TR-18
|
6.2
|
3.57
|
0.01
|
1.71
|
1.19
|
|
TR-19
|
18.5
|
15
|
0.52
|
1.99
|
0.67
|
|
TR-20
|
8
|
6.14
|
0.12
|
2.81
|
1.66
|
|
TR-21
|
7.3
|
10.55
|
0.55
|
0.1
|
1.13
|
|
TR-22
|
25
|
5.76
|
0.33
|
0.18
|
3.91
|
|
TR-23
|
18
|
33.39
|
0.44
|
0.83
|
4.47
|
|
TR-24
|
3.5
|
|
|
|
0.01
|
|
TR-25
|
22.5
|
17.25
|
0.33
|
0.42
|
0.96
|
|
TR-26
|
7.5
|
16.68
|
0.45
|
0.37
|
1.42
|
|
TR-27
|
6
|
2.25
|
0.01
|
0.04
|
0.06
|
|
TR-28
|
9
|
6.96
|
0.16
|
0.06
|
0.11
|
|
TR-29
|
13.5
|
0.78
|
0.01
|
0.01
|
0.03
|
Catitas is the southern extension of the Verdiona-Catitas mineralized horizon. Diamond saw channel sampling at Catitas returned the following assays:
|
Catitas
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|
Trench
|
Sample Interval (m)
|
Ag (ppm)
|
Cu %
|
Pb%
|
Zn%
|
|
TR-38
|
9.5
|
8.1
|
0.83
|
0.46
|
0.93
|
|
TR-39
|
27.5
|
4.95
|
0.24
|
0.7
|
0.66
|
|
TR-40
|
36
|
3.83
|
0.22
|
0.24
|
0.59
|
The Yegua Pircada zone is 400m long and 50m wide. The mineralization occurs in narrow lenses interbedded in schist and limestone. Diamond saw sampling of the exposed lenses returned:
|
Yegua Pircada
|
|
Trench
|
Sample Interval (m)
|
Ag (ppm)
|
Cu %
|
Pb%
|
Zn%
|
|
TR-43
|
18
|
6.57
|
0.01
|
0.66
|
1.17
|
|
TR-46
|
75
|
|
0.01
|
0.03
|
0.08
|
|
TR-47
|
47.15
|
2.01
|
0.01
|
0.17
|
0.17
|
|
TR-41
|
4
|
8.72
|
0.01
|
1.40
|
6.17
|
|
TR-42
|
8
|
91.02
|
0.03
|
9.38
|
3.09
|
|
TR-45
|
8
|
45.16
|
0.01
|
5.51
|
1.90
|
The mineralization is oxidized on the surface, but locally artisanal workings have exposed the primary sulphide minerals to be sphalerite (zinc), chalcopyrite (copper), and galena (lead with silver) - minerals normally associated with pyrrhotite and specularite.
Recently, the Company drilled 17 holes totaling 2,000m as Phase I of a 5,000m diamond drill program. At Yegua Pircada three holes were drilled, two of the holes intersected massive sulphides and the results summarized below:
|
HOLE
|
FROM
|
TO
|
Width
|
Ag (ppm)
|
Cu%
|
Pb %
|
Zn %
|
|
DDH-15
|
0
|
0.4
|
0.4
|
92
|
|
18.98
|
9.68
|
|
DDH-16
|
55.15
|
105.2
|
50.05
|
5
|
0.01
|
0.62
|
0.95
|
|
Includes
|
58.15
|
62.15
|
4
|
32
|
0.02
|
2.92
|
4.61
|
|
Includes
|
85.15
|
103.9
|
18.7
|
7
|
0.01
|
1.01
|
1.49
|
|
Includes
|
94
|
98
|
4
|
19
|
0.01
|
3.15
|
5.18
|
|
Includes
|
96.3
|
98
|
1.7
|
25
|
0.03
|
3.57
|
9.18
|
At the Verdiona target a total of 11 holes were drilled. Ten holes intercepted massive sulfides and the 11th one did not reached the target due to poor ground conditions. Summary results are as follows:
|
HOLE
|
FROM
|
TO
|
Width
|
Ag (ppm)
|
Cu%
|
Pb %
|
Zn %
|
|
DDH - 02
|
55
|
71.55
|
16.55
|
|
|
|
1.28
|
|
Includes
|
59.3
|
66.21
|
6.91
|
2
|
0.67
|
|
2.50
|
|
Includes
|
62.3
|
63.3
|
1
|
18
|
3.60
|
|
6.70
|
|
DDH-06
|
19.45
|
45
|
25.55
|
|
|
|
1.02
|
|
Includes
|
20.49
|
24.9
|
4.41
|
14
|
0.04
|
0.36
|
4.99
|
|
Includes
|
22.8
|
24.2
|
1.4
|
28
|
0.08
|
0.59
|
10.09
|
|
DDH-7
|
22.84
|
44.5
|
21.66
|
|
|
|
1.22
|
|
Includes
|
22.84
|
30.13
|
7.29
|
14
|
0.40
|
0.50
|
3.18
|
|
Includes
|
23.85
|
25.6
|
1.75
|
33
|
|
1.46
|
6.53
|
|
DDH-8
|
22.05
|
32.8
|
10.75
|
9
|
0.40
|
0.27
|
2.05
|
|
Includes
|
23.05
|
25.15
|
2.1
|
22
|
0.02
|
1.17
|
5.07
|
|
Includes
|
28.8
|
30.6
|
1.8
|
25
|
2.39
|
0.16
|
5.56
|
At Catitas three holes were drilled . Two holes missed their target, intersecting andesite dykes. The third hole returned the following:
|
HOLE
|
FROM
|
TO
|
Width (m)
|
Ag (ppm)
|
Cu%
|
Pb %
|
Zn %
|
|
DDH-11
|
111.9
|
113.1< | | 
