Project highlights include surface samples
with maximum values
of 629 g/t Silver, 18.0% Zinc, 16.6%
Lead, 9.5% Copper and 2.68 g/t Gold
VANCOUVER, Oct. 15, 2015 /CNW/ - Wealth Minerals Ltd. (the
"Company" or "Wealth") - (TSXV: WML, Frankfurt: EJZ, SSE: WMLCL) is pleased to
report it has successfully renegotiated its option to acquire the
Valsequillo Silver project ("Valsequillo" or the "Property")
located in southern Chihuahua state, Mexico (Figure 1). The Property is
located approximately 40 kilometres southeast of the city of
Hidalgo Del Parral within the
pre-eminent Altiplano Polymetallic Belt of north-central
Mexico. Initial reconnaissance work carried out in 2012
identified two significant north-northwest trending structural
corridors outlined by extensive artisanal workings that follow
en-echelon and segmented precious and base-metal bearing
quartz-sulphide (pyrite, galena, sphalerite and chalcopyrite) veins
within a broad hornfels gossan. The mineral-alteration
systems identified to date remain open for expansion in all
directions (Figure 2).
Analysis by the Company indicates that the large, 2,840 hectare
Property covers the uppermost portion of a Tertiary system with
potential for high grade and/or bulk tonnage, polymetallic-precious
metal type mineralization analogous to the setting at the nearby
San Francisco del Oro – Santa
Barbara District ("SFSB District") within the Altiplano
Polymetallic Belt. The Property is unexplored by modern
methods and the Company believes that it can be rapidly and
cost-effectively brought to the drill stage once surface access
rights have been secured. Access and infrastructure are
excellent, topography is moderate, with elevations averaging 1,700
metres, and water is readily available.
Renegotiation of the Valsequillo project option terms solidifies
Wealth's control of an asset which Wealth believes will be a
priority exploration play over the coming two years.
SFSB District
The SFSB District, located 40km northwest of Valsequillo, hosts mid-Tertiary polymetallic
quartz sulphide vein deposits, which are among the largest
Lead-Zinc-Copper-Silver deposits in Mexico. These deposits
are the closest analogy for the mineralization observed at surface
at Valsequillo. Mineralization was first discovered in 1547
by a group of Spanish explorers who discovered gold ore in the
massive Mina del Agua vein, located beside the Rio Santa
Barbara. Mining in the area began as early as 1560 and Mina
del Agua became the largest gold mine in North America for the next four decades.
At the SFSB District, the veins are hosted by Cretaceous Parral
shale and, since 1650, have produced over 440 million ounces of
silver (source: Grant & Ruiz, 1988; Econ. Geol. Vol. 83 pp.
1683-1702). Total silver production from the district as a
whole is estimated at 550 million ounces. Significant
production has come from vein ores (95%) and from several
vein-related massive sulphide replacement bodies (5%).
Valsequillo Property Detail
Past artisanal mining activity concentrated on a number of
epithermal, zinc-lead-copper-silver veins and/or stock-work and
silicified zones. Mineral occurrences are predominantly
concentrated within two northwest-trending corridors along the
eastern and western margins, respectively, of an elongate color
anomaly (gossan) occupying the bulk of the Property (Figure 2).
There is no evidence of modern exploration having occurred on
the Property.
During the course of the Company's previous property examination
in 2012, a total of 176 rock samples were taken. These
samples are best described as characterization samples as they were
generally grab samples from outcrops (65%) and float/dump material
(35%) at some of the many old workings on the Property. Assay
values ranged from below detection to 2.68g/t gold (average 0.15
g/t gold), 629 g/t silver (average 34 g/t silver), 9.47%
copper (average 0.28% copper), 16.55% lead (average 0.52% lead),
and 6.38% zinc (average 0.5% zinc).
Western Corridor
At the western edge of the gossan (Figure 2), a north-northwest
trending corridor up to 200 metres wide can be traced for at least
1,500 metres and is still open in both directions along
strike. To the south, the vein system trends onto a third
party claim. There are two main veins and associated splays
within the corridor. The west vein dips steeply west, and the
east vein dips steeply east; both consist predominantly of vuggy,
epithermal quartz with varying amounts of calcite and barite as
well as scattered clots of base metal sulfides, secondary iron
oxides and minor sulfosalts. Base metals predominate, but
copper and silver values are significantly higher than those
present in the Eastern Corridor. They are most similar to
late-stage veins in the SFSB District.
Eastern Corridor
At the eastern edge of the gossan, a series of en-echelon
north-south quartz veins/shear zones can be traced for
approximately 3,000 metres along strike. This structural zone
or corridor is at least 400 metres wide and contains a number of
mineralized quartz-calcite-barite-sulphide veins which vary from 1
to 5 metres wide. In unoxidized float and dump material,
sulfides approximate 5 to 10% of the vein material and grades
average 5% combined lead-zinc, 0.5% copper, 30 g/t silver and 20 to
100 ppb gold.
Locally, there are shoots of higher grade material which
returned values up to 10% combined lead-zinc, 1% copper and 100 to
150 g/t silver. Gold grades are higher than in the Western
Corridor, with many values in the 0.2 g/t to 1.0 g/t range.
These veins are most similar to early-stage veins in the SFSB
District.
Renegotiated Valsequillo Option Agreement
Wealth has successfully renegotiated the original 2012 option
agreements under which it held the option to acquire a 100%
interest in the Valsequillo
property from two private Mexican individuals. The
renegotiated agreements provide for lower overall option payments
spread over a longer period, and are primarily tied to the Company
obtaining the necessary surface access. Under the
renegotiated agreements, the Company can acquire a 100% interest
for a total consideration of US $6.0
million over a 90-month (7.5 years) period. The option
payments are now tied to both the signing of the agreements
("Signing Date") and the date the Company secures the required
surface access rights* ("Access Date"). Details of the
renegotiated option agreements (collectively) are as follows (all
amounts are US Dollars):
1. Initial Payments Related to Signing Date
On Signing
|
$50,000
(paid)
|
One Year
Anniversary*
|
$50,000
|
Two Year
Anniversary
|
$50,000
|
|
$150,000
|
2. Payments Related to Access Date**
12 months
|
$50,000
|
|
18 months
|
$100,000
|
|
24 months
|
$100,000
|
|
30 months
|
$150,000
|
|
36 months
|
$150,000
|
|
42 months
|
$200,000
|
|
48 months
|
$200,000
|
|
54 months
|
$300,000
|
|
60 months
|
$300,000
|
|
66 months
|
$400,000
|
|
72 months
|
$400,000
|
|
78 months
|
$500,000
|
|
84 months
|
$500,000
|
|
90 months
|
$2,500,000
|
|
|
$5,850,000
|
|
* Wealth will negotiate surface access for a period up to 6
months and if unsuccessful, the matter will be referred to the
Director General of Mines to enforce an easement as allowed for
within the Mexican Mining Law. The payment of US $50,000, due on the one year anniversary of
signing, will be accelerated or delayed in line with the granting
of the easement. The timing of the payment due on the
two-year anniversary will not be changed.
** Once surface access rights have been granted, the second set
of option payments will begin, tied to the Access Date. This
provision was negotiated to protect the Company against any delay
in securing surface access rights.
Qualified Person
John Drobe, P.Geo., a qualified
person as defined by National Instrument 43-101, has reviewed the
scientific and technical information that forms the basis for
portions of this news release, and has approved the disclosure
herein. Mr. Drobe is not independent of the Company, as he is
a shareholder.
About Wealth Minerals Ltd.
Wealth's strategy is to acquire precious metal projects which it
believes are undervalued, have low exploration risk, attractive
grades and potentially low capital requirements and are located in
stable geopolitical jurisdictions. While Wealth is not a
development company, management insist that any acquisitions have a
reasonable potential for near-term production. The Company's
flagship asset is the Yanamina Gold Project in Peru. The
Company intends to negotiate strategic partnerships that it
believes will open up potential project development routes.
For further details on the Company readers are referred to the
Company's web site (www.wealthminerals.com) and its Canadian
regulatory filings on SEDAR at www.sedar.com.
On Behalf of the Board of Directors of
WEALTH MINERALS LTD.
"Hendrik Van Alphen"
Hendrik Van Alphen, President &
Chief Executive Officer
Neither TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services
Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX
Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or
accuracy of this press release, which has been prepared by
management.
Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking
Statements
This press release contains forward-looking statements and
forward-looking information (collectively, "forward-looking
statements") within the meaning of applicable Canadian and US
securities legislation. All statements, other than statements of
historical fact, included herein including, without limitation,
statements regarding the anticipated content, commencement, timing
and cost of exploration programs, anticipated exploration program
results, the discovery and delineation of mineral
deposits/resources/reserves, the Company's belief that the
Valsequillo property can be
rapidly and cost-effectively brought to the drill stage once
surface access rights have been secured, the Company's belief that
the deposits in the SFSB District are the closest analogy for the
mineralization observed at surface at Valsequillo, and the anticipated business
plans and timing of future activities of the Company, are
forward-looking statements. Although the Company believes that such
statements are reasonable, it can give no assurance that such
expectations will prove to be correct. Forward-looking statements
are typically identified by words such as: believe, expect,
anticipate, intend, estimate, postulate and similar expressions, or
are those, which, by their nature, refer to future events.
The Company cautions investors that any forward-looking statements
by the Company are not guarantees of future results or performance,
and that actual results may differ materially from those in forward
looking statements as a result of various factors, including, but
not limited to, the state of the financial markets for the
Company's equity securities, the state of the commodity markets
generally, variations in the nature, quality and quantity of any
mineral deposits that may be located, variations in the market
price of any mineral products the Company may produce or plan to
produce, the inability of the Company to obtain any necessary
permits, consents or authorizations required, including TSXV
acceptance, for its activities, the inability of the Company to
produce minerals from its properties successfully or profitably, to
continue its projected growth, to raise the necessary capital or to
be fully able to implement its business strategies, and other risks
and uncertainties disclosed in the Company's latest interim
Management Discussion and Analysis and filed with certain
securities commissions in Canada.
All of the Company's Canadian public disclosure filings may be
accessed via www.sedar.com and readers are urged to
review these materials, including the technical reports filed with
respect to the Company's mineral properties.
Caution Regarding Adjacent or Similar Mineral
Properties
This news release contains information with respect to
adjacent or similar mineral properties in respect of which the
Company has no interest or rights to explore or mine. Readers
are cautioned that the Company has no interest in or right to
acquire any interest in any such properties, and that mineral
deposits, and the results of any mining thereof, on adjacent or
similar properties are not indicative of mineral deposits on the
Company's properties or any potential exploitation thereof.
SOURCE Wealth Minerals Limited