VANCOUVER, BC, Sept. 14, 2020 /CNW/ - Southern Empire Resources
Corp. (Southern Empire; TSX-V:
SMP; Frankfurt: 5RE) announces
that it has added to its Oro Cruz Gold Project by acquiring 116
hectares (ha; 287acres) of mineral dispositions, including
privately-owned patented mining claims covering the former gold
producing American Girl Mine.
Highlights of the American Girl Mine Property
Transaction
The acquired American Girl Mine Property:
- comprises 100% ownership of 7 privately-owned, patented lode
mining claims and 10 BLM administered claims
- covers 116 ha including the formerly-producing American Girl
gold mine operations that produced more than 500,000 oz gold from
four underground and four open pit deposits
- has significant exploration potential for underground
high-grade, oxide gold mineralization
- is subject to no royalty interests
- covers mine waste dumps which may, at current gold prices,
present an opportunity to develop a resource in a manner similar to
the conversion of waste dumps to resources by Equinox Gold Corp. at
their nearby Mesquite Gold Mine
Dave Tupper, Southern Empire's VP of Exploration stated:
"The acquisition of the historical American Girl mine property not
only gives Southern Empire a
strategic holding of privately-owned land, but significantly adds
to the exploration potential of the Oro Cruz Gold Project. More
than 500,000 ounces of gold have been produced from historical
American Girl mining operations, with the last production occurring
in 1996. We believe that there may be significant gold still along
extensions both down dip and along strike from the American Boy,
B-Zone and C-Zone underground deposits that were not were mined at
historical gold prices."
A full compilation of the available data is underway, which will
lead to the development of the initial work program this fall.
History of the American Girl Mine Property Operations
Placer gold was mined in the vicinity of the American Girl Mine
Property, in the Padre y Madre
Valley of the Cargo Muchacho Mountains, by Spanish mission
colonists as early as the 1780's.
The American Girl Mine, discovered in 1892, was and mined
intermittently until 1939. During the 1930's, an estimated
80,000 oz of gold were produced by underground room and pillar
mining methods from the from an area that is now encompassed by the
exhausted American Girl open pit mine.
In the early 1980's, Newmont Exploration Ltd. acquired the
rights to claims in the American Girl Canyon area and began an
exploration program that discovered multiple gold-enriched zones
that were both open pit and underground mining targets.
Eastmaque Gold Mines, Ltd. formed the American Girl Mining
Corporation, purchased the American Girl property from Newmont in
1986 and began mine development.
Mining activity began with the open pit, oxide heap leach
operations of the Padre y Madre west deposit, about 1.7 km from the
American Girl deposit. During 1987 and 1988 the first American Girl
underground deposit was accessed via a decline with the use of a
contractor, Morrison Knudsen Corporation.
In 1989, Eastmaque created a joint venture with Morrison Knudsen
who became the operating partner in 1990 when commercial
underground mining started. The underground development of the
American Girl B-Zone mine began in February of 1990 and reached
full production in July of 1991.
Underground production was ultimately achieved from four
distinct mineralized bodies: B-Zone, American Boy, American Girl
Southwest Extension and C-Zone. The C-Zone mine was developed from
the abandoned C-Zone open pit starting in 1993.
Morrison Knudsen's gold mining endeavours were vended into a
publicly traded company known as MK Gold Company in 1993. The
American Boy deposit was exhausted in early 1995 and B-Zone,
Southwest Extension and the C-Zone production ended in early
1996.
The development of the Oro Cruz mine began in early 1995 with
production commencing during the second half of 1995 and ending in
1996 as gold prices declined.
Terms of the Transaction
Pursuant to a Purchase and Sale Agreement and subject to
acceptance by the TSX Venture Exchange, Southern Empire will acquire a 100% interest
in the American Girl mine property by paying a total of USD
$330,000 to Mackenzie Corporation, a
Nevada entity controlled by
Dale Wallster, the CEO and a
director of Southern Empire. As a
result, the transaction is subject to Multilateral Instrument
61-101 - Protection of Minority Holders in Special
Transactions. The transaction was reviewed and unanimously
approved by Southern Empire's
Board of Directors. The acquisition will be exempt from the formal
valuation and minority approval requirements of Multilateral
Instrument 61-101 - Protection of Minority Holders in Special
Transactions as the fair market value of the transaction and
the consideration paid will not exceed 25% of Southern Empire's market capitalization.
The consideration paid to Mackenzie Corporation was equal to its
original acquisition costs of the property.
Work Programs During the COVID-19 Pandemic
Although many BLM, state and county offices are currently
closed, their staff have established measures to provide services
remotely. Timing of Southern
Empire's exploration programs will be contingent on
governmental regulations regarding the COVID-19 pandemic and also
the availability of exploration-related personnel, drill
contractors, equipment, lodging, et cetera. Southern Empire will adhere to COVID-19
directives regarding safe working practices putting worker,
community and national safety first and will proceed with
exploration and development work programs only if potential
COVID-19 risks can be effectively managed.
About Southern Empire Resources Corp.
Southern Empire is focused on
the acquisition, exploration and development of gold deposits in
North America.
In the Cargo Muchacho mountains of Imperial County, southeast California, Southern
Empire owns the American Girl Mine Property and holds
options to acquire a 100% interest in the 2,160 hectares (5,338
acre) Oro Cruz Property located approximately 22.5 kilometres (km;
14 miles) southeast of the operating Mesquite gold mine of Equinox
Gold Corp.
With a history that includes extensive drilling and large-scale
open pit and underground mining by the American Girl Mining
Joint Venture (53 per cent owned by MK Gold Co., a subsidiary of
Morrison Knudsen Corporation, and 47 per cent owned by Hecla Mining
Company), which was suspended during the gold market downturn in
1996, the Oro Cruz Gold Project hosts many exploration targets in
addition to a high-grade oxide gold zone that, based on the
historical mine operation records, is amenable to conventional heap
leach extractive methods.
Southern Empire is in the
process of acquiring MAS Gold Corp. (TSX-V: MAS), a Canadian
mineral exploration company having road-accessible projects located
in the La Ronge Gold Belt of Saskatchewan approximately 60 km west of the
SSR Mining Inc.'s producing Seabee and Santoy gold mines. Please
refer to Southern Empire's news
releases dated July 13 and
August 19, 2020 available on SEDAR.
Southern Empire expects this
acquisition to close in the fall of 2020.
MAS Gold's Greywacke North gold deposit, one of several known
stratabound, high-grade gold-bearing zones on the Greywacke Lake
Property, has an estimated Indicated Mineral Resource of 255,500
tonnes (t) at a grade of 9.92 grams gold per tonne (g Au/t), plus
an Inferred Mineral Resource of 59,130 t at 7.42 g Au/t, at a
cut-off grade of 5 g Au/t (see MAS Gold's NI 43-101 Technical
Report of June 1, 2016 available on
SEDAR).
The North Lake gold deposit,
located on the Preview-North property, 33 kilometres southwest of
Greywacke North, has an Inferred Mineral Resource estimated at
417,000 ounces of gold contained in 14,110,000 t grading 0.92 g
Au/t (see MAS Gold's News Release dated March 25, 2020 and their NI 43-101 Technical
Report dated April 10, 2020 available
on SEDAR).
Qualified Person (QP)
The scientific and technical information contained in this news
release has been prepared, reviewed, verified and approved by
David Tupper, P.Geo. (British Columbia), Southern Empire's VP Exploration and a
Qualified Person within the context of Canadian Securities
Administrators' National Instrument 43-101; Standards of
Disclosure for Mineral Projects.
On behalf of the Board of Directors of Southern Empire,
Dale Wallster, CEO and Director
Cautionary Notice on Forward-Looking
Information
Information set forth in this news release contains
forward-looking statements that are based on assumptions as of the
date of this news release. These statements reflect management's
current estimates, beliefs, intentions and expectations. They are
not guarantees of future performance. Each of Southern Empire and MAS Gold cautions that all
forward-looking statements are inherently uncertain and that actual
performance may be affected by a number of material factors, many
of which are beyond their respective control. Such factors include,
among other things: risks and uncertainties relating to each of
Southern Empire and MAS Gold's
limited operating history, ability to complete the proposed
Transaction (including obtaining all necessary shareholder and
regulatory approvals), the need to comply with environmental and
governmental regulations, results of exploration programs on their
projects and those risks and uncertainties identified in each of
their annual and interim financial statements and management
discussion and analysis. Accordingly, actual and future
events, conditions and results may differ materially from the
estimates, beliefs, intentions and expectations expressed or
implied in the forward-looking information. Except as required
under applicable securities legislation, neither Southern Empire nor MAS Gold undertakes no
obligation to publicly update or revise forward-looking
information.
Neither TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services
Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the Exchange)
accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this
release.
SOURCE Southern Empire Resources Corp.
