VANCOUVER, BRITISH COLUMBIA--(Marketwire - Dec. 23, 2008) - Fronteer Development Group Inc. ("Fronteer" or the "Company") (TSX:FRG)(NYSE Alternext US:FRG) is pleased to announce that widely spaced regional drilling at its Halilaga Project in northwestern Turkey has intersected encouraging new copper-gold mineralization, reinforcing the prospectivity of this emerging mineral belt.
Teck Cominco Limited's Turkish subsidiary ("TCAM"), Fronteer's 60% joint venture partner, is currently testing a series of geochemical and geophysical anomalies within an eight-square-kilometre area believed to have the potential to host porphyry and skarn-style mineralization. These new targets are located up to four kilometres southeast of the Central Zone (also known as the "Kestane Zone"), a porphyry copper-gold deposit recently discovered by Fronteer and TCAM.
The recent drill highlights include:
- 1.64% copper, 0.93 g/t gold and 23.97 g/t silver over 17.4 metres, including 2.34% copper, 1.29 g/t gold and 34.87 g/t silver over 11.9 metres, in hole HD-25.
- 2.63% copper, 0.47 g/t gold and 12.38 g/t silver over 3.9 metres, including 16.85% copper, 2.80 g/t gold and 85.80 g/t silver over 0.5 metres, along with 0.55% copper and 0.13 g/t gold over 11.4 metres, in HD-21.
Based on the results from 13 holes (2,842 metres) drilled in Q2-Q3 of 2008, TCAM has recently resumed drilling on the property with two core rigs in an effort to further test the potential of this area.
DRILL RESULTS
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From To Interval Au Cu Ag
Hole No. (m) (m) (m) (g/t) % (g/t)
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HD-20A 37.50 50.40 12.90 0.06 0.03 -
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and 83.60 108.50 24.90 0.01 0.08 -
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HD-21 234.90 236.40 1.50 0.62 0.60 3.52
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and 273.50 277.40 3.90 0.47 2.63 12.38
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including 274.90 275.40 0.50 2.80 16.85 85.80
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and 292.10 303.50 11.40 0.13 0.55 1.74
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including 296.50 300.50 4.00 0.32 1.38 3.85
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HD-24 106.00 121.50 15.50 0.06 0.24 -
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HD-25 50.90 53.60 2.70 0.25 1.23 8.29
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and 205.60 223.00 17.40 0.93 1.64 23.97
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including 205.60 217.50 11.90 1.29 2.34 34.87
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HD-28 103.50 114.00 10.50 0.08 0.24 1.65
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Note: Drill results reported as provided by TCAM to Fronteer. The true
width of the mineralized zones is estimated to be approximately 90%
of those stated. HD-20 and HD-27 were abandoned due to poor ground
conditions. HD-17, 18, 19, 22, 23, and 26 had no significant
intersections.
While still at a relatively early stage with 12 drill holes defining the Central Zone, Halilaga has many of the hallmarks of a world-class, copper-gold deposit in terms of its size potential and current grade. It also represents the first discovery of a porphyry copper-gold system in Turkey's Biga region, which has important implications for the overall prospectivity of this new mineral belt. Given the nature of porphyry systems and their tendency to occur in clusters, the Company believes there is excellent potential for additional discoveries within Halilaga and the greater region. To date, only 34 holes (8,500 metres) have been drilled over a 20-square-kilometre area, testing both the Central Zone and six regional targets.
TCAM and Fronteer have 60%-40% joint ventures on a number of projects in this region, including Halilaga and two gold deposits (Agi Dagi and Kirazli). The companies have first-mover status in the region, having collectively consolidated a prominent land position over several years. The region is geopolitically stable and supported by excellent project infrastructure, including access to roads, power and water.
Drill samples and analytical data for Halilaga are collected under the supervision of TCAM, Fronteer's joint venture partner and project operator, using industry standard QA-QC protocols. Ian Cunningham-Dunlop P. Eng, Vice President Exploration for Fronteer, who is the QP responsible for compiling the data contained in this release, has not verified the data; however, the grades and widths reported here agree well with the Company's past results on the project and correspondence with TCAM has given him no reason to doubt their authenticity. For further details on Halilaga, please view the NI 43-101 technical report prepared by Geology and Resource Solutions Limited, as of March 30, 2007, on SEDAR at http://www.sedar.com.
LIQUIDITY
Fronteer is not invested in any short-term commercial paper or asset-backed securities. Fronteer has approximately C$81 million in cash that is fully liquid and held with a large Canadian commercial bank. |
