News Releases
| March 27, 2008 MetalCORP Discovers More Platinum & Palladium on the NORTH ROCK Project | |
| Deep hole intersects 4.0 g/t Pd, 0.3 g/t Pt, 1.0% Cu and 0.4% Ni over 3.8 metres THUNDER BAY---27 March 2008 -- MetalCORP Limited (TSX-V:MTC) is pleased to announce the discovery of additional Platinum Group Metal (PGM) and base metal mineralization on the North Rock Property, located 25km east of Fort Frances, Ontario. This Phase 3 drill program was designed to test several airborne EM conductors over a 20km strike length on the entire North Rock property. Only one hole tested the Beaver Pond Zone and intersected 4.0 g/t Pd, 0.3 g/t Pt, 1.0% Cu, 0.4% Ni over 3.8 metres (m) at a vertical depth of 430 metres. These results represent the deepest intersection to date at this Platinum-Palladium zone. Platinum Group Metal (PGM) mineralization was first discovered at the Beaver Pond Zone during the phase 1 drill program in 2005 (see News Release 25 August 2005). The newly discovered PGM zone was traced by drilling for approximately 500m along strike and to a vertical depth of 270m where it remained open. Every drill hole targeting the Beaver Pond Zone during that program consistently intersected the PGM zone on the west side of the copper-nickel sulphide mineralization with the following significant values: Hole #2 -6.6 g/t Pt and 0.7 g/t Pd over 0.4m; Hole #4 -2.3 g/t Pt and trace Pd over 3.5m, within in a broad interval of 0.3 g/t Pt and 0.2 g/t Pd over 46.1m; Hole #5 - 3.7 g/t Pt and 7.1 g/t Pd over 0.8m; Hole #6 - 0.2 g/t Pt and 0.7 g/t Pd over 1.3m; Hole #7 - 1.2 g/t Pt and 1.2 g/t Pd over 4.0m. "Drilling has shown remarkable consistency of Platinum Group Metal mineralization over an extensive area on the North Rock property" commented Aubrey Eveleigh, COO & VP Exploration. "The Platinum-Palladium mineralization remains open in all directions and given the strong market demand for these commodities, the property is a key asset in MetalCORP's portfolio of properties." The best Platinum mineralization intersected to date on the North Rock property was located 1.5km along strike, northeast of the Beaver Pond Zone (see News Release 06 March 2006). This Platinum mineralization is called the East Zone where drill hole 20 intersected 12.2 g/t Pt and 0.1 g/t Pd over 3.7m. No holes were drilled during this Phase 3 program to test the East Zone, but are planned for a Phase 4 drill program in 2008. It is also worth noting that no previous drilling has been carried out between the Beaver Pond Zone and the East Zone. Drilling in the Belacoma area, approximately 4.0km northeast of the Beaver Pond Zone, intersected Platinum and Palladium mineralization as well with the following values: 3.5 g/t Pd over 2.8m, 1.2 g/t Pt and 1.0 g/t Pd over 1.0m, 2.9 g/t Pd over 0.9m and 1.6 g/t Pd over 0.9m. In the last 2 years MetalCORP has now discovered Platinum Group Metal mineralization over a 4-5km strike length extending from the Beaver Pond Zone to the Belacoma area. Also, drilling under this program at the Belacoma area intersected a massive sulphide vein of cobaltite which assayed a high grade of 0.5% Co, 0.1% Cu and 0.1% Ni over 1.1m. This was the first discovery of cobalt mineralization on the North Rock property and represents a new important target that will be explored in future drill programs. Due to very strong demand and a low supply, Cobalt prices have recently reached ~US$50/lb. A number of other drill holes were designed to test airborne EM conductors in the Belacoma and Nickle Lake areas. The majority were explained by pyrrhotite veins and/or sulphide iron formation. The sulphide iron formation in the Nickle Lake area was found to be zinc rich with the best assay from hole #57 of 0.5% Zn over 19.6m. Other intersections include 1.3% Zn over 1.7m, 1.2% Zn over 1.6m, 1.2% Zn over 1.4m, 0.5% Zn over 12.6m and 0.5% Zn over 9.0m. MetalCORP will evaluate this area in the summer for potential VMS copper-zinc style mineralization. The North Rock Property is underlain by the 20km long Grassy Portage layered mafic intrusion, which is known to contain several magmatic copper-nickel sulphide deposits. The largest and economically most significant of these deposits, the Beaver Pond Zone, has a historical resource estimate, based on shallow diamond drilling and limited amounts of underground development work of 1,020,458 tons grading 1.2% copper over a strike length of 400m and to a vertical depth of just 90 metres (The historical tonnage estimates were calculated in 1973 and are not current. A company qualified person has not done the necessary work to classify the Zone as a resource. They should not be relied upon and do not comply with NI 43-101). The North Rock property displays some of the classic Archean type mafic intrusion hosted Cu-Ni-PGM characteristics, but with a later hydrothermal overprint. The Grassy Portage Intrusion is a cumulate layered complex with the base metal deposits situated in paleo-depressions at the basal portion of the body with Platinum mineralization apparently concentrated at the contact with mafic and ultramafic volcanics and a fine grained gabbro. The Platinum Group Metal mineralization at North Rock is unusual for Archean age Cu-Ni-PGM systems in that in most cases it has a relatively high ratio of platinum to palladium. MetalCORP also recently announced a new diamond discovery on the North Rock property (see News Release 05 February 2008). The Company is presently in discussions with several potential joint venture partners to further advance the exploration for diamonds on the Property. The North Rock drilling program is being carried out under the supervision of Michel Dumoulin, P.Geo (QP -- NI43-101). Core is split and sent to ALS Chemex Labs for analysis by ICP-AES. MetalCORP routinely introduces standards and blanks into the sample stream. MetalCORP is a mineral exploration company based in Thunder Bay, Ontario with base metal and gold projects in the Canadian Shield of Northern Ontario, Canada, one of the most prolific mineral districts in the world. The projects, with an area of more than 65,000 acres, include the Big Lake copper-zinc-silver¬gold property, the North Rock copper-nickel-platinum property, the new Python nickel-copper-zinc property and the new Fearless gold property, all of which are under active exploration. MetalCORP's four gold projects, with a claim area of more than 20,000 acres, include the Dorset, Pickle Lake, Black Bear and Keezhik Lake properties. By identifying early stage properties that may be enhanced by exploration, MetalCORP's experienced management team has assembled a great portfolio of projects. MetalCORP has 44,271,636 common shares outstanding and approximately $5,500,000 in cash and no debt. For further information contact: Mr. Aubrey Eveleigh, P.Geo, COO & VP Exploration, Tel (807) 346-2760. To find out more about MetalCORP Limited (TSX-V: MTC), visit our website at www.meatalcorp.ca. The statements used in this Press Release may contain forward-looking statements that may involve a number of risks and uncertainties. Actual events or results could differ materially from the Company's forward-looking statements and expectations. The TSX Venture Exchange does not accept responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release. | |