LONDON--(BUSINESS WIRE)--
ECR MINERALS plc
(“ECR Minerals”, “ECR” or the “Company”)
Three Exploration licences granted in the Lolworth Region, North Queensland
ECR Minerals plc (LON: ECR), the gold exploration and development company focussed on gold exploration in Australia, is pleased to announce that exploration licences EPM27901, EPM27902 and EPM27903 have been granted to its subsidiary LUX Exploration Limited (“LUX”), in the Lolworth Region, North Queensland.
LUX is a wholly owned subsidiary of ECR with a specific focus on exploration projects in the North Queensland region in Australia.
ECR Chairman David Tang commented: “I am delighted to announce that the Lolworth Range license applications have been granted. Once again, along with our Head Geologist Adam Jones, our former CEO Craig Brown was instrumental in bringing LUX and the Lolworth Range tenements into the ECR Minerals asset portfolio, and all the indications are that Adam and the team could unlock significant additional value from these three new license areas.”
“I look forward to deploying our team for a reconnaissance survey in the Lolworth Range region this year, and reporting progress back to our shareholders.”
SUMMARY:
- LUX Exploration has been granted three exploration licenses covering a total of 964 km2
- Historic stream sediment sampling indicates that the Lolworth Range is prospective for gold, tungsten and tin.
Exploration licenses for tenements EPM27901, EPM27902 and EPM27903 were applied for in May 2021, and we are pleased to report that these were granted to LUX on 1 February 2022. The tenements will expire in 5 years (on 31 January 2027) and, while they will be available for renewal after the initial 5-year term, the area available for renewal will be reduced by 50%, which is a standard term of exploration licences to encourage companies to focus their exploration activities. LUX has a commitment expenditure of AUD$650,000 for the first three years across the three licence areas, which is expected to be funded from ECR’s existing cash resources.
The exploration licences are located approximately 120km west of the historic Charters Towers Gold Mine in North Queensland, Australia and cover an area of 964 km2.
PROSPECTIVITY OF THE AREA
The directors of ECR believe the Lolworth Range is under explored. The area has been closely monitored by ECR’s Head Geologist Adam Jones for at least eight years.
Historical documentation of exploration undertaken within the area, which has not been verified by ECR, reveals that a (pan concentrate) stream sediment campaign was undertaken in 1987-1988 within the granted tenements under the old tenement permit number AP4855M. This work revealed seven gold anomalous drainage sites within the mountain range, including visible gold in pan concentrates. Research has found these anomalies have not been followed up as they were interpreted as sourced from possible terrace alluvial deposits upon the sides of the drainage sites. It is the Directors current belief that even if this was the case, the terrace deposits must still have their source within the Lolworth Range. Tin and tungsten anomalies were also recorded in streams within license area EPM27901. The metamorphic rocks of the range are still not well understood, however rhyolitic rock chips from historic exploration reports within the range were noted to be elevated in gold. These factors have led the Directors to conclude that the Lolworth licence areas have the potential to develop into a valuable asset for ECR Minerals plc. An initial reconnaissance survey of the area is planned for this coming year, and we look forward to updating on progress in due course..
(Figure 1) The location of the tenements in a regional context can be viewed within the link below:
https://www.ecrminerals.com/images/2022/fig1_Lux_Granted.png
(Figure 2) A summary of the anomalous drainage areas and the granted tenements can be viewed with the following link:
https://www.ecrminerals.com/images/2022/fig2_Lux_Granted.png
REVIEW OF ANNOUNCEMENT BY QUALIFIED PERSON
This announcement has been reviewed by Adam Jones, a director of ECR Minerals plc. Adam Jones is a professional geologist and is a Member of the Australian Institute of Geoscientists (MAIG). He is a qualified person as that term is defined by the AIM Note for Mining, Oil and Gas Companies.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION, PLEASE CONTACT:
ECR Minerals plc |
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Tel: +44 (0) 20 7929 1010 |
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David Tang, Non-Executive Chairman |
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Email: |
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Website: www.ecrminerals.com |
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WH Ireland Ltd |
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Tel: +44 (0) 207 220 1666 |
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Nominated Adviser Katy Mitchell / Andrew de Andrade |
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SI Capital Ltd |
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Tel: +44 (0) 1483 413500 |
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Broker |
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Nick Emerson |
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Novum Securities Limited |
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Tel: +44 (0) 20 7399 9425 |
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Broker Jon Belliss |
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Blytheweigh |
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Tel: +44 (0) 207 138 3204 |
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Public Relations |
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Tim Blythe
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ABOUT ECR MINERALS PLC
ECR Minerals is a mineral exploration and development company. ECR’s wholly owned Australian subsidiary Mercator Gold Australia Pty Ltd (“MGA”) has 100% ownership of the Bailieston and Creswick gold projects in central Victoria, Australia, has eight licence applications outstanding including two licence applications lodged in eastern Victoria. (Tambo gold project). MGA is currently drilling at both the Bailieston (EL5433) and Creswick (EL6148) projects and has an experienced exploration team with significant local knowledge in the Victoria Goldfields and wider region.
ECR also owns 100% of an Australian subsidiary LUX Exploration Pty Ltd (“LUX”) which has two granted exploration licences of approximately 964 km2 and one licence application of 300km2 covering a relatively unexplored area in the Lolworth region of Queensland, Australia.
Following the sale of the Avoca, Moormbool and Timor gold projects in Victoria, Australia to Fosterville South Exploration Ltd (TSX-V: FSX) and the subsequent spin-out of the Avoca and Timor projects to Leviathan Gold Ltd (TSX-V: LVX), Mercator Gold Australia Pty Limited has the right to receive up to A$2 million in payments subject to future resource estimation or production from projects sold to Fosterville South Exploration Limited.
ECR holds a 25% interest in the Danglay gold project; an advanced exploration project located in a prolific gold and copper mining district in the north of the Philippines, which has a 43-101 compliant resource. ECR also holds a royalty on the SLM gold project in La Rioja Province, Argentina and can potentially receive up to US$2.7 million in aggregate across all licences.