VANCOUVER, BRITISH COLUMBIA--(Marketwire - April 3, 2009) - Fronteer Development Group Inc. (TSX:FRG)(NYSE Alternext US:FRG)(NYSE Amex:FRG.A) is pleased to announce the results of the first 12 holes completed by Newmont USA Limited ("Newmont"), a subsidiary of Newmont Mining Corporation, as part of the ongoing 2009 US$5M work-program at the Sandman gold project in Nevada.
All 12 holes intersected the near-surface, oxide gold mineralization at Sandman's Southeast Pediment deposit as part of a broader resource delineation program. Results are very encouraging as they confirm not only the high-grade nature of the gold mineralization, but the potential for a large tonnage of lower-grade material.
Highlights include:
- 14.30 g/t (0.417 oz/ton) over 12.77 metres, including 72.36 g/t (2.111 oz/ton) over 1.86 metres in NSM-55; and,
- 139.03 grams per tonne gold (4.055 ounces per ton) over 2.35 metres, in NSM-57.
The holes lie within the main resource area at Southeast Pediment. Silver is also a consistent component of the mineralized system at Sandman, with assays up to 121.03 g/t (3.53 oz/ton) over 1.52 metres. Two core drills and one reverse-circulation drill are currently active on the property with approximately 30 holes completed to date in 2009.
Sandman is located along the King River Rift structure, a regional feature that hosts multiple high-grade vein-related gold systems, including the Sleeper gold mine and the Goldbanks deposit. At Sandman, high-grade, gold mineralization occurs in multiple locations along a 16-kilometre trend, suggesting the potential for an underlying structural linkage that could expand the size and continuity of the mineralization at this project.
Sandman's deposits are near-surface and potentially amenable to open-pit mining. Infrastructure surrounding Fronteer's Sandman project is considered excellent. The property is within trucking distance to Newmont's Twin Creeks mine, potentially eliminating the need for a stand-alone milling facility and other significant capital expenditures if the project were to proceed to production.
Under the terms of the Sandman option and joint-venture agreement, Newmont can earn an initial 51% interest in the project by making a positive production decision by June 2011, spending a minimum of US$14 million on exploration and development, making a commitment to fund and construct a mine, and completing a feasibility study.
Sandman is to be assessed through Newmont's formal Stage Gate process, a disciplined, step-by-step, project evaluation system to move projects through the development pipeline.
SANDMAN DRILL RESULTS
From To Interval Ag Au Au
Hole ID (m) (m) (m) (g/t) (g/t) (oz/ton)
NSM-52 35.91 47.98 12.07 10.21 1.92 0.056
including 38.71 42.12 3.41 15.12 3.90 0.114
NSM-54 30.72 40.29 9.57 20.69 1.18 0.034
including 33.44 34.47 1.04 27.60 3.70 0.108
and 41.97 43.92 1.95 13.66 0.53 0.015
and 47.27 48.46 1.19 13.71 0.76 0.022
NSM-55 26.06 28.96 2.90 35.27 0.92 0.027
and 29.60 42.37 12.77 21.61 14.30 0.417
including 29.60 31.46 1.86 48.16 72.36 2.111
and including 31.46 39.62 8.17 15.01 1.06 0.031
and including 39.62 42.37 2.74 23.26 14.36 0.419
and 42.37 50.90 8.53 11.89 0.65 0.019
NSM-57 17.37 22.43 5.06 25.30 0.79 0.023
and 24.78 27.13 2.35 47.58 139.03 4.055
and 33.86 35.39 1.52 16.18 1.86 0.054
including 33.86 34.56 0.70 20.61 3.68 0.107
NSM-60 29.47 33.31 3.84 7.05 0.51 0.015
and 34.44 35.66 1.22 9.19 0.85 0.025
and 38.80 52.88 14.08 16.96 1.18 0.035
including 44.23 45.45 1.22 28.90 5.93 0.173
NSM-61 0.00 1.40 1.40 0.10 0.98 0.029
and 28.99 29.87 0.88 5.11 0.83 0.024
and 32.86 33.71 0.85 7.82 0.55 0.016
and 41.73 55.78 14.05 26.95 0.89 0.026
and 64.31 65.87 1.55 2.91 2.96 0.086
NSM-62 35.36 36.45 1.10 18.99 0.66 0.019
and 42.18 56.63 14.45 27.82 1.93 0.056
including 50.60 52.73 2.13 80.91 8.41 0.245
NSM-63 20.12 24.44 4.33 19.05 0.65 0.019
and 24.99 26.03 1.04 20.19 3.06 0.089
NSM-64 4.33 5.46 1.13 55.99 3.39 0.099
and 8.56 9.48 0.91 15.60 0.94 0.027
and 38.56 39.93 1.37 1.41 0.58 0.017
and 46.60 47.91 1.31 1.61 0.93 0.027
NSM-65 3.29 4.33 1.04 8.40 0.84 0.025
and 7.77 8.56 0.79 7.99 0.67 0.020
NSM-70 9.24 10.06 0.82 3.39 0.67 0.019
and 15.24 18.29 3.05 4.95 0.89 0.026
and 29.63 31.27 1.65 10.58 0.69 0.020
and 35.27 42.98 7.71 10.64 0.86 0.025
and 46.63 49.90 3.26 12.90 1.82 0.053
NSM-75 7.50 15.24 7.74 20.20 1.88 0.055
including 7.50 8.69 1.19 46.29 8.87 0.259
and 22.68 23.53 0.85 1.51 0.55 0.016
and 28.50 30.02 1.52 121.03 3.57 0.104
and 40.39 44.20 3.81 2.78 0.85 0.025
Note: The true width of the mineralized zones is estimated to be
approximately 90% of those stated. Primary composite intervals were
calculated using a cut-off of 0.5 g/t Au, and 1.0 g/t Au and 2.0 g/t Au
for the higher grade internal intervals.
Drill samples and analytical data for the Sandman project are being collected under the supervision of Newmont, Fronteer's joint venture partner and project operator, using industry standard QAQC protocols. Fronteer's James Ashton P.E., 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 the operator has given him no reason to doubt their authenticity. For further details on Sandman, please view the technical report prepared by Mine Development Associates ("MDA"), as of May 31, 2007, on SEDAR at http://www.sedar.com.
Sandman, Long Canyon and Northumberland are currently Fronteer's leading properties among its large portfolio of gold projects in Nevada.
CORRECTION TO LONG CANYON MENTION IN YEAR-END RESULTS RELEASE
There is an error in the March 30, 2009, press release ("Fronteer reports 2008 fiscal results"). In the first bulleted paragraph, the Long Canyon resource's 363,000 indicated ounces are mistakenly identified as "measured." The resource is correctly stated in the MD&A and previous Company disclosures.
For more information on Sandman and Fronteer's other Nevada projects, visit: http://www.fronteergroup.com/?q=cont...
ABOUT FRONTEER
Fronteer is an exploration and development company with a track record of making big discoveries. Fronteer has an extensive portfolio of advanced stage gold projects in Nevada, a 40% interest in three gold and copper-gold projects in western Turkey, and a 92.1% interest in Aurora Energy Resources (TSX:AXU), a leading Canadian uranium company. |
