Crystallex Updates Shareholders on Venezuelan Exploration and Drilling Programs
April 19 2004 - 9:00AM
PR Newswire (US)
Crystallex Updates Shareholders on Venezuelan Exploration and
Drilling Programs TORONTO, April 19 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ --
Crystallex International Corporation (Amex: KRY; TSX:) announced
today that exploration programs which include 13,500 meters of
diamond drilling are currently under way at its Las Cristinas and
La Victoria properties, both located in Bolivar State, Venezuela.
The Las Cristinas program includes a first phase of infill drilling
(4000 meters in 10 holes) aimed at converting inferred resources to
indicated resources within the outline of the pit designed for a
gold price of US$325 per ounce. A second phase of drilling (1800
meters in 6 holes) will evaluate large panels of inferred resources
below the existing US$325 pit outline. Any changes to reserves
resulting from the infill drilling programs are expected to be
published by the end of the third quarter of 2004. Las Cristinas is
one of the industry's largest undeveloped gold deposits with proven
and probable reserves of 10.2 million ounces of gold (246 million
tonnes @ 1.3 g/t Au at 0.5-0.7g/t Au cutoffs and a gold price of
US$325) which are included in total measured and indicated
resources of 15.3 million ounces of gold (439 million tonnes @ 1.1
g/t Au at 0.5 g/t Au cutoff). Inferred resources amount to a
further 6.1 million ounces (208 million tonnes at 0.91 g/t). All
reserve and resource estimates have been completed by Mine
Development Associates of Reno, Nevada. The Las Cristinas deposit
is a tabular, moderately dipping mineralized shear zone traceable
for over 3 kilometers along strike. Anomalous gold values within
the shear zone occur over widths up to 600 meters. The mineralized
system is open at depth. The Company has recently awarded the EPCM
contract for the Las Cristinas project to SNC-Lavalin Engineers
& Constructors of Toronto, Canada and has submitted the final
Las Cristinas Environmental Impact Statement for review and
approval by the Ministry of Environment and Natural Resources
("MARN"). At the La Victoria deposit located in the El Callao gold
district, Crystallex has initiated a 24 hole 7,500 meter infill
drill program to evaluate the southern half of the deposit with the
aim of upgrading previously identified inferred resources to
indicated resources. Revised reserve estimates for La Victoria are
expected to be completed by the end of the third quarter of 2004.
Previous drilling in this sector of the deposit intersected high
grade mineralization (e.g. 14.1 g/t Au over 20.5 m) pointing to the
existence of a high-grade ore shoot with significant widths which
is a principle target of the current infill drilling program. The
La Victoria deposit is a moderately dipping auriferous shear zone
which was mined by Crystallex between 2001 and 2003. The unoxidized
portion of the deposit has a refractory component which does not
yield satisfactory recoveries by conventional cyanide processing.
Based on positive results from BIOX bench scale test work which
indicates improvement in recoveries from approximately 60% to over
85%, Crystallex will conduct a pilot plant BIOX program during the
second quarter at BIOMIN Technologies in South Africa. Crystallex
expects to conclude the feasibility assessment of the BIOX process
at La Victoria by the end of October, 2004. Drilling at Las
Cristinas and La Victoria is being carried out by Major Drilling of
Moncton, New Brunswick. Core samples, as well as standards, blanks
and coarse rejects for quality control are delivered to SGS's
preparation lab in Venezuela and subsequently analyzed by SGS' lab
in Lakefield, Ontario. Dr. Luca Riccio, P.Geo, Crystallex's VP of
Exploration, is the qualified person in charge of supervising the
drilling programs. In addition to the aforementioned drilling
programs, the Company will commence, in the second half of 2004,
systematic exploration at its El Callao and Las Cristinas
properties. About Crystallex Crystallex International Corporation
is a Canadian based gold producer with significant operations and
exploration properties in Venezuela. The Company's principal asset
is the Las Cristinas property in Bolivar State which is currently
under development. Other key assets include the Tomi Mine, the La
Victoria Mine and the Revemin Mill. Crystallex shares trade on the
TSX and AMEX Exchanges. For Further Information: Investor Relations
Contact: A. Richard Marshall, VP at (800) 738-1577 Visit us on the
Internet: http://www.crystallex.com/ Email us at: NOTE: This may
include certain "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of
the United States Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended. All
statements, other than statements of historical fact, included in
this presentation, including, without limitation, statements
regarding potential mineralization and reserves, exploration
results, and future plans and objectives of Crystallex, are
forward-looking statements that involve various risks and
uncertainties. There can be no assurance that such statements will
prove to be accurate, and actual results and future events could
differ materially from those anticipated in such statements.
Important factors that could cause actual results to differ
materially from the Company's expectations are disclosed under the
heading "Risk Factors" and elsewhere in documents, including but
not limited to its annual information form ("AIF") and its annual
report on Form 20-F, filed from time to time with the Canadian
provincial securities regulators, the United States Securities and
Exchange Commission ("SEC"), and other regulatory authorities.
Cautionary Note to Investors - We use certain terms in this
release, such as "resource," "measured resource", "indicated
resource" and "inferred resource," that the SEC guidelines strictly
prohibit us from including in our filings with the SEC.
Furthermore, reserves have been calculated in accordance with NI
43-101, as required by Canadian securities regulatory authorities.
For United States reporting purposes, however, a full feasibility
study is required in order to classify mineral deposits as
reserves, since the SEC permits mining companies, in their filings
with the SEC, to disclose only those mineral deposits that a
company can economically and legally extract or produce. Therefore,
the amount of reserves may differ for Canadian and US reporting
purposes. The Toronto Stock Exchange has not reviewed this release
and does not accept responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of
this news release. DATASOURCE: Crystallex International Corporation
CONTACT: Investors, A. Richard Marshall, VP of Crystallex
International Corporation, 1-800-738-1577, or Web site:
http://www.crystallex.com/ Company News On-Call:
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