Brazilian Metals Group is progressing the company goal of developing a substantial mining enterprise in northern Minas Gerais, Brazil, and has now delivered a milestone in a maiden iron JORC Resource.
The significance of the 459 million tonne resource is the confidence categories, with 50% Measured and 36% Indicated.
Providing a further boost to the resource is the expected low strip ratio for the project as mineralization outcrops at surface and has a gentle dip to the east.
The mineralized resource estimated at the Company's Gema Verde Iron Ore Project includes:
230.0 million tonnes at 19.0% Fe in the Measured Category
166.5 million tonnes at 16.7% Fe in the Indicated Category
62.0 million tonnes at 17.5% Fe in the Inferred Category
The estimate is in accordance with the JORC Code (2004), and is based on 41 diamond drill holes for 6,828 meters and 22 reverse circulation drill holes for 2,487 meters. Metallurgical test work is underway on the diamond core and the beneficiation characteristics have been demonstrated at Hong Kong listed Honbridge Holding Limited's SAM iron Ore Project (Block 8 deposit which is contiguous to the north of the Gema Verde Iron Ore Project).
The Gema Verde Iron Ore Project covers four granted Exploration Licenses covering 75.6 square kilometers. Agreement with the vendor permits BMG to continue its evaluation of the deposit until the third quarter calendar 2012.
Exploration in Brazil historically is not reported in accordance with the JORC Code and BMG undertook infill drilling, re logging and re sampling of the 2008 drill core and supplementary analysis to enable an estimate of the mineral resource on the Gema Verde deposit to be completed.
BMG has also commenced pre feasibility work at Gema Verde and Rio Pardo (Josilene Scorpion prospect) and expects to complete the pre feasibility on both projects in 2012. In fill drilling for resource definition at Rio Pardo (Josilene Scorpion prospect) is anticipated to deliver a resource estimate by mid 2012. The Exploration Target at the Josilene Scorpion prospect is 2 to 3 billion tonnes at 16.2% Fe to 18.5% Fe based on surface mapping and current drilling over 13km strike length with 28 RC holes to date.
Mr Bruce McCracken CEO of BMG said that "The Gema Verde resource marks the achievement of a key milestone for the Company, and provides the foundation to progress our strategy of developing an iron ore export enterprise in the medium term. When combined with our resource target of 2 to 3 billion tonnes at our Rio Pardo (Josilene Scorpion prospect) during 2012, we believe we have the basis for a long term export operation of scale. Our next priority is to continue to progress our infrastructure options for our projects, particularly given that the State Government is already progressing plans to provide open access rail spur links to the new Federal east west railway (EF334) in order to expedite the development of the emerging iron ore projects in the Rio Pardo area."
