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| | Mon Jun 8, 2009
Atna Expands Mineralization at Briggs Mine
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| | Golden, CO -- Atna Resources Ltd. ("Atna") -- (TSX:ATN) is pleased to announce the encouraging results of its second phase of drilling into the newly discovered Briggs Main Deep ("BMD") area at its Briggs Mine, Inyo County, California. The results of the second phase of drilling, targeting the Briggs Main Deep (BMD), continues to indicate a significant zone of gold mineralization located directly beneath the current mineable reserves at its 100 percent owned Briggs Mine.
James Hesketh, President and CEO of Atna, states, "We are delighted with the results of the follow-up work at Briggs Main Deep. The drilling continues to demonstrate promise for development of additional gold resource and reserve at Briggs. Our initial engineering analysis indicates that some portion of this material may be mined by deepening existing pit designs which would extend mine life and/or increase production rates."
The eight new reverse circulation rotary drill holes (7,450 feet) have extended the BMD mineralization to the north, south, and east of the previous drilling results. Mineralization has now been intersected in drill holes over a north-south distance of 1,000 feet and an east-west distance of 750 feet. Thickness of the sub-horizontal mineralized zone varies significantly within the drilled area ranging from 25 feet in the southern most intercepts to over 250 feet in the northern portion of the zone. The BMD mineralization remains open to the east and north.
Atna is currently modeling the BMD zone to estimate the tonnage and grade of the new mineralization. Briggs currently has a mineable reserve of 12.5 million tons grading 0.021 ounce per ton gold containing 267,000 ounces gold (see SEDAR filed Technical Report dated March 30, 2009). Atna began mining gold ore at Briggs in January 2009 and announced its first gold pour in May 2009. Approximately 974 ounces of gold in doré was shipped to the refinery by Briggs in the month of May, the first full month of leach pad production. Production at Briggs is expected to ramp up to a 40,000 ounce per year production rate by year end.
BRIGGS MAIN DEEP - DRILL HOLE RESULTS
DRILL HOLE |
FROM (ft) |
TO (ft) |
LENGTH (ft)* |
OZ/TON GOLD |
BMD09-021 |
505 |
530 |
25 |
0.014 |
And |
575 |
700 |
125 |
0.032 |
And |
740 |
820 |
80 |
0.028 |
BMD09-022 |
290 |
310 |
20 |
0.043 |
And |
550 |
640 |
90 |
0.032 |
And |
660 |
680 |
20 |
0.013 |
And |
735 |
775 |
40 |
0.027 |
And |
915 |
945 |
25 |
0.024 |
BMD09-023 |
545 |
560 |
15 |
0.035 |
And |
575 |
585 |
10 |
0.012 |
And |
630 |
640 |
10 |
0.021 |
And |
665 |
690 |
25 |
0.022 |
And |
705 |
715 |
10 |
0.029 |
And |
775 |
785 |
10 |
0.010 |
And |
845 |
850 |
5 |
0.061 |
BMD09-024 |
445 |
470 |
25 |
0.033 |
And |
495 |
560 |
65 |
0.023 |
And |
600 |
625 |
25 |
0.016 |
And |
730 |
775 |
45 |
0.020 |
BMD09-025 |
290 |
305 |
15 |
0.015 |
And |
560 |
585 |
25 |
0.019 |
And |
605 |
635 |
30 |
0.057 |
And |
695 |
745 |
50 |
0.021 |
And |
770 |
900 |
130 |
0.020 |
BMD09-026 |
175 |
205 |
30 |
0.026 |
And |
490 |
540 |
50 |
0.036 |
And |
740 |
760 |
20 |
0.011 |
And |
790 |
885 |
95 |
0.013 |
BMD09-027 |
165 |
330 |
165 |
0.024 |
Including |
205 |
235 |
30 |
0.039 |
And |
355 |
395 |
40 |
0.014 |
And |
525 |
565 |
40 |
0.031 |
And |
580 |
605 |
25 |
0.017 |
And |
750 |
760 |
10 |
0.041 |
BMD09-028 |
250 |
290 |
35 |
0.018 |
And |
320 |
335 |
20 |
0.062 |
And |
355 |
380 |
25 |
0.015 |
And |
420 |
445 |
25 |
0.012 |
And |
535 |
545 |
10 |
0.055 |
And |
800 |
810 |
10 |
0.013 |
And |
885 |
900 |
15 |
0.033 |
*Length of intercepts may not represent true widths of the mineralized zones.
Analytical results contained within this press release were completed by standard fire assay methods with an atomic absorption or gravimetric finish by Inspectorate America Corporation, an independent, ISO certified, analytical laboratory located in Sparks, Nevada. Atna maintains a rigorous Quality Assurance - Quality Control program utilizing both certified gold standards and blanks to augment Inspectorate's internal QA/QC program. This press release was prepared under the supervision and review of William Stanley, V.P. Exploration of Atna, a Licensed Geologist, and Qualified Person with the ability and authority to verify the authenticity and validity of information contained within this news release.
For additional information on Atna Resources and the Briggs Mine, please visit our website at www.atna.com.
This press release contains certain "forward-looking statements," as defined in the United States Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, and within the meaning of Canadian securities legislation, relating to increasing gold production and drilling results at the Briggs Mine. Forward-looking statements are statements that are not historical fact. They are based on the beliefs, estimates and opinions of the Company's management on the date the statements are made and they involve a number of risks and uncertainties. Consequently, there can be no assurances that such statements will prove to be accurate and actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated in such statements. The Company undertakes no obligation to update these forward-looking statements if management's beliefs, estimates or opinions, or other factors, should change. Factors that could cause future results to differ materially from those anticipated in these forward-looking statements include: the Company might encounter problems such as the significant depreciation of metals prices; accidents and other risks associated with mining exploration and development operations; the risk that the Company will encounter unanticipated geological factors, the Company's need for and ability to obtain additional financing; and the other risk factors discussed in greater detail in the Company's various filings on SEDAR (www.sedar.com) with Canadian securities regulators and its filings with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, including the Company's 2008 Form 20-F dated March 31, 2009.
Cautionary Note to U.S. Investors --- The United States Securities and Exchange Commission permits U.S. mining companies, in their filings with the SEC, to disclose only those mineral deposits that a company can economically and legally extract or produce. We use certain terms in this report, such as "measured," "indicated," "inferred," and "resources," that the SEC guidelines strictly prohibit U.S. registered companies from including in their filings with the SEC.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION, CONTACT:
James Hesketh, President and CEO - (303) 278-8464
Valerie Kimball, Investor Relations - toll free (877) 692-8182
www.atna.com |
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