Three licences covering 15,941 Ha won in ANM
auction process, spanning multiple anomalies
LONDON, Jan. 5, 2022 /CNW/ - Meridian Mining UK S (TSXV:
MNO) (Frankfurt: 2MM) (Tradegate:
2MM) (OTCQB: MRRDF) ("Meridian" or the "Company") is pleased to
provide an update on its landbank for the camp scale Cabaçal
Copper-Gold VMS Project ("Cabaçal") in Mato Grosso, Brazil. Meridian has received
notification that it has placed the winning bids on three new
Cabaçal exploration licences via the land release auction process
of the Agência Nacional de Mineração ("ANM"). This secures a
significant strategic extension to the Company's landbank, covering
both historical BP targets, and newly defined anomalies from a
satellite alteration mapping exercise commissioned by the Company
(WorldView-3). Meridian is now the dominate developer of an
advanced camp scale copper-gold belt.
Highlights of today's
update:
- Meridian expands dominant landbank over the Cabaçal Copper-Gold
Belt;
- Meridian wins 3 new licences covering Cabaçal's northwestern
and southeastern limits;
-
- three licences covering 15,941 Ha of prospective Cu-Au VMS
geology added;
- New licences enhance the established upside of the Cabaçal
Copper-Gold prospect;
-
- Licenses host targets defined in the original BP Minerals
exploration programs:
- Licences include BP's historical conductivity and geochemical
anomalies; and
- New targets coincident to WorldView-3 satellite
alteration-mapping results.
Dr Adrian McArthur, CEO and
President of Meridian, comments, "The Company is pleased to
announce it has placed the winning bid on these three licences,
consolidating Cabaçal's landbank of prospective copper-gold geology
to the limits of the Cabaçal Cu-Au VMS Belt. The new licences
provide continuity with an earlier application, the Southern
extension, where a copper anomaly has been defined by BP Minerals
("BP") stream sediment sampling. The Company is particularly
excited by the presence of multiple and coincident anomalies
defined by the WorldView-3 alteration mapping, being adjacent to
BP's historical geochemical and geophysical anomalies. The licences
will be initially in the application stage, but the Company looks
forward to executing regional programs in the future with formal
approval by the ANM. With these new tenements, Meridian's landbank
package covers almost the complete entirety of the highly
prospective Cabaçal VMS copper-gold Belt, essentially an
undeveloped metallogenic belt, and we are probably the only company
developing such an advanced asset in the Junior market today."
ANM Auction Results.
Winning bids have been successfully placed for three new
licences under the ANM's auction system (Figure 1):
Area 1: The licence area covers the
north-western-most limit of the Cabaçal Belt and formed part of the
BP Minerals portfolio under licences 861921/1980 and 861921/1980.
The southwest margin of the licence spans the "C5" soil geochemical
BP target. The licence is poorly explored but drilling by Avanco in
2015 along strike (~ 460m to the
Southeast of the licence boundary) encountered copper sulphide
mineralization in hole AMCD-15-011 (peak grade of 2.4% Cu, 1.1g/t
Au, 34.1 g/t Ag, 0.2% Zn over 0.5m
from 48.8m, within a broader zone of
hydrothermal alteration and disseminated mineralization). The
northern licence spans an area of 1403.6 Ha.
Area 2: The second area to the south lies ~2.4km
to the south of the Santa Helena Zn-Cu-Ag-Au Mine. The area spans
the earlier BP licences 861937/1980, 861939/1980, 861958/1980 and a
now excised segment of the Santa Helena mining licence 861956/1980.
The eastern branch of the newly won area in the auction round
incorporates BP untested target "C2D", where Cu, Zn and Pb soil
anomalies were defined in association with hydrothermally altered
metasedimentary – metavolcanic sequence. The western margin of the
licence area hosts three conductors defined by BP's regional INPUT
aerial survey, which originally defined the Cabaçal area as a
geophysical target prior to discovery of the Cu-Au-Ag
mineralization. The licence hosts multiple targets defined by the
WorldView-3 satellite alteration mapping exercise, two of which are
along strike from the C2D position, and the others offset to the
east of the INPUT aerial conductivity anomalies. The licence spans
an area of 5070.5 Ha.
Area 3: The third area to the Southeast lies
~9.5km along strike from the Santa Helena Zn-Cu-Ag-Au Mine. The
area spans the earlier BP licences 861958/1980, 861959/1980,
867371/1983. The western margin of the licence hosts a gold in
steam anomaly, and the new area covers a gap between the main
licences of the Cabaçal Belt option area, and a prior satellite
extension applied for by the Company - 866261/2021 –, Cabaçal's
Southeastern-most known geology limit, where a BP copper in stream
anomaly had been defined but not previously followed up. The
licence hosts multiple targets defined by the WorldView-3 satellite
alteration mapping exercise (20 discrete anomalies consistent with
hydrothermal alteration signatures), including the large anomaly
adjacent to the BP's copper-in-stream response on 866261/2021. The
licence spans an area of 9466.5 Ha.
A number of procedural steps remain to ratify these new license
applications, including an appeal process. Payments are due before
15 April 2022 before the results are
formally published in the Diário Oficial da União. The Company's
applications in the adjacent Araputanga and Jauru Belts followed
the same process.
WorldView-3 Satellite Survey
WorldView-3 is a high-resolution commercial satellite sensor
launched in 2014 which provides detailed imagery that can be
utilized in mineral mapping, providing a fast and effective
technique to screen large areas for signatures of hydrothermal
alteration. Data has been interpreted by Dan Taranik (Exploration Mapping Group,
Nevada, United States).
The Company is encouraged by the local Cabaçal results of the
survey, with the known mineralization from over the Cabaçal Mine
and Northwest Extension showing an associated Worldview-3 satellite
alteration anomaly extending over a 2,200m strike length.
Next Steps
Subject to final approval and authorization by the ANM, the
licences will be integrated into the Company's regional exploration
program, with a first phase of reconnaissance prospecting involving
rock chip sampling and soil surveys. The immediate near-term
drilling focus of the Company will continue to be in the near-mine
areas hosting the Cabaçal and Santa Helena deposits, as
targets are developed more regionally.
Qualified Person
Dr Adrian McArthur, B.Sc. Hons, PhD.
FAusIMM., CEO and President of Meridian as well as a Qualified
Person as defined by National Instrument 43-101, has supervised the
preparation of the technical information in this news release.
On behalf of the Board of Directors of Meridian Mining UK S
Dr. Adrian McArthur
CEO, President and Director
Meridian Mining UK S
Email: info@meridianmining.net.br
Ph: +1 (778) 715-6410 (PST)
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ABOUT MERIDIAN
Meridian Mining UK S is focused on the acquisition, exploration,
and development activities in Brazil. The Company is currently focused on
resource development of the Cabaçal VMS Copper-Gold project,
exploration in the Jaurú & Araputanga Greenstone Belts located
in the state of Mato Grosso;
exploring the Espigão polymetallic project and the Mirante da Serra
manganese project in the State of Rondônia Brazil.
FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS
Some statements in this news release contain forward-looking
information or forward-looking statements for the purposes of
applicable securities laws. These statements include, among others,
statements with respect to the Company's plans for exploration,
development and exploitation of its properties and potential
mineralization. These statements address future events and
conditions and, as such, involve known and unknown risks,
uncertainties, and other factors, which may cause the actual
results, performance, or achievements to be materially different
from any future results, performance or achievements expressed or
implied by the statements. Such risk factors include, among others,
failure to obtain regulatory approvals, failure to complete
anticipated transactions, the timing and success of future
exploration and development activities, exploration and development
risks, title matters, inability to obtain any required third party
consents, operating risks and hazards, metal prices, political and
economic factors, competitive factors, general economic conditions,
relationships with strategic partners, governmental regulation and
supervision, seasonality, technological change, industry practices
and one-time events. In making the forward-looking statements, the
Company has applied several material assumptions including, but not
limited to, the assumptions that: (1) the proposed exploration,
development and exploitation of mineral projects will proceed as
planned; (2) market fundamentals will result in sustained metals
and minerals prices and (3) any additional financing needed will be
available on reasonable terms. The Company expressly disclaims any
intention or obligation to update or revise any forward-looking
statements whether as a result of new information, future events or
otherwise except as otherwise required by applicable securities
legislation.
The Company cautions that it has not completed any feasibility
studies on any of its mineral properties, and no mineral reserve
estimate or mineral resource estimate has been established.
Geophysical exploration targets are preliminary in nature and not
conclusive evidence of the likelihood of a mineral deposit.
The TSX Venture Exchange has neither approved nor disapproved
the contents of this news release. 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.
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OR FOR DISSEMINATION IN THE U.S.
SOURCE Meridian Mining UK Societas