Stock Symbol: SGF: TSX
SASKATOON, March 27, 2015 /CNW/ - George H. Read, P. Geo., Senior Vice President
Exploration and Development of Shore Gold Inc. ("Shore" or the
"Company") is pleased to announce that Shore has commenced an NQ
core drilling program, consisting of up to seven holes and some
1,500 metres of drilling, on the Orion South Kimberlite. This core
drilling is required to accurately document the internal
stratigraphy of the Orion South Kimberlite prior to the proposed
large diameter drilling ("LDD") program, scheduled to commence in
late April 2015. The core drilling
program is being conducted by Newmac Industries Ltd. of
Prince Albert, Saskatchewan. Shore
geologists are responsible for the supervision of the drilling
program and subsequent detailed core logging.
Senior Vice President Exploration and Development, George Read, states: "This core drilling program
is an important precursor to the LDD program, contracted to Foraco
Canada Limited and scheduled to commence in late April. The
selected locations of these core holes augment the 100 metre grid
drilling program already completed on the Orion South Kimberlite.
The Company intends to re-estimate the Orion South Mineral
Resource, including the new LDD holes and then re-optimise the open
pit on Orion South using the updated
Mineral Resource estimate and updated diamond prices. Thereafter we
aim to optimise the existing Feasibility Study with a revised mine
plan, where Orion South is mined
first. Preliminary calculations suggest that such an optimised
Feasibility Study, with a new mine plan, can positively change the
economic model for the Project by increasing the Mineral Resource
Estimate and decreasing the pre-production capital costs and the
time to achieve diamond production."
The Star-Orion South Diamond Project is located in central
Saskatchewan some 60 kilometres
east of the city of Prince Albert. The Project is in close
proximity to established infrastructure, including paved highways
and the electrical power grid, which provide significant advantages
for future mine development. The NI 43-101 compliant Technical
Report on the Feasibility Study and Updated Mineral Reserve for the
Star-Orion South Diamond Project dated July
14, 2011 provided an updated Mineral Reserve Estimate for
the Star and Orion South kimberlite deposits: Probable Mineral
Reserves of 279 million tonnes containing 34.4 million carats of
diamonds at a weighted average price of US$242 per carat, that can be profitably mined
over 20 years. In addition to the Mineral Reserve Estimate, the
Star and Orion South Kimberlites have been estimated to include
Inferred Resources containing 15.7 million carats.
The Project includes a four-year construction period followed by
the excavation of two open-pit mines and processing of
approximately 45,000 tonnes of kimberlite rock per day over a
projected 20-year period. Shore's plans for decommissioning include
progressive reclamation activities beginning within five years from
the start of construction and will continue beyond the operations
phase of the Project.
In March 2014 an estimate was made
of the Target for Further Exploration ("TFFE", formerly known as
"Potential Mineral Deposit") for five partially evaluated
kimberlites and the portions of the Star and Orion South
Kimberlites, which fall outside the Indicated and Inferred
Resources previously estimated (see SGF News Release July 14, 2011). The TFFE for these seven Fort à
la Corne Kimberlites is estimated to include between 983 million
and 1.17 billion tonnes of kimberlite containing between 52 and 90
million carats of diamonds. The TFFE is conceptual in nature and is
not a Mineral Resource and it is uncertain whether further
exploration work will result in the TFFE being delineated as a
Mineral Resource.
Shore is a Canadian based corporation engaged in the
acquisition, exploration and development of mineral properties.
Shares of the Company trade on the TSX Exchange under the trading
symbol "SGF".
Caution Regarding Forward-Looking Statements
This news release contains forward-looking statements as defined
by certain securities laws, including the "safe harbour" provisions
of Canadian securities legislation and the United States Private
Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Forward-looking
information is often, but not always, identified by the use of
words such as "anticipate", "believe", "expect", "plan", "intend",
"forecast", "target", "project", "guidance", "may", "will",
"should", "could", "estimate", "predict" or similar words
suggesting future outcomes or language suggesting an outlook. In
particular, statements regarding Shore's future operations, future
exploration and development activities or other development plans
constitute forward-looking statements. By their nature, statements
referring to mineral reserves, mineral resources or TFFE constitute
forward-looking statements.
Forward-looking statements in this press release include, but
are not limited to statements with respect to the proposed LDD
program (including the number of holes to be drilled, the metres to
be drilled, the timing of the drilling and the duration of the
program) and Shore's objectives for the ensuing year including the
the anticipated improvement in the Mineral Resource Estimate, the
re-optimization of the open pit, the re-estimation of the Mineral
Resources, the optimization of the feasibility study and the
anticipated positive change in the economic model for the Project;
TFFE; the range of quantity, range of grade and range of carats for
the TFFE; mineral resource estimate for the Star and Orion South
kimberlite deposits; inferred resources for the Star and Orion
South kimberlite deposits; range of tons of kimberlites not
included in the TFFE; the aim of Shore to undertake additional
studies and the potential upgrading of the Feasibility Study
and inferred to indicated resources.
These forward-looking statements are based on Shore's current
beliefs as well as assumptions made by and information currently
available to it and involve inherent risks and uncertainties, both
general and specific.
Risks exist that forward-looking statements will not be achieved
due to a number of factors including, but not limited to,
developments in world diamond markets, changes in diamond prices,
risks relating to fluctuations in the Canadian dollar and other
currencies relative to the US dollar, changes in exploration,
development or mining plans due to exploration results and changing
budget priorities of Shore or its joint venture partners, the
effects of competition in the markets in which Shore operates, the
impact of changes in the laws and regulations regulating mining
exploration, development, closure, judicial or regulatory judgments
and legal proceedings, operational and infrastructure risks and the
additional risks described in Shore's most recently filed Annual
Information Form, annual and interim MD&A. Shore's anticipation
of and success in managing the foregoing risks could cause actual
results to differ materially from what is anticipated in such
forward-looking statements.
Although management considers the assumptions contained in
forward-looking statements to be reasonable based on information
currently available to it, those assumptions may prove to be
incorrect. When making decisions with respect to Shore, investors
and others should not place undue reliance on these statements and
should carefully consider the foregoing factors and other
uncertainties and potential events. Unless required by applicable
securities law, Shore does not undertake to update any
forward-looking statement that is made herein.
SOURCE Shore Gold Inc.