Measured and indicated resources have grown roughly 30% from the initial estimate in 2006 to 78.6 million tonnes grading 1.22 grams gold per tonne for almost 3.1 million contained ounces, using a 0.5-gram gold cutoff grade. Snowfield also hosts 14.4 million inferred tonnes grading 1 gram gold (about 466,000 contained ounces).
Silver Standard's estimate is based on 56 core holes drilled from 2006-07, a pair of re-sampled historic holes, plus 13 trench samples.
Gold mineralization (along with minor copper) at Snowfield occurs in a suite of pyritic quartz-sericite-chlorite schists thought to represent Jurassic-aged intermediate volcanics. The flat-lying, zoned deposit is within an elongate east-west bowl, or keel-shaped, structure that remains open in all directions and at depth. The company has targeted a high-grade surface zone that averages over 2.5 grams gold and ranges in thickness from 30-90 metres.
Silver Standard says the entire mineralized package averages 150-170 metres in thickness, but can range up to 225 metres thick.
Snowfield adjoins the company's Sulphurets property, located to the south, and just east of SEABRIDGE GOLD'S Kerr-Sulphurets-Mitchell project, which hosts resources of more than 34 million contained ounces gold and about 8 billion contained pounds copper.
The project is also situated roughly 15 km southeast of BARRICK GOLD'S Eskay Creek gold-silver mine.
Silver Standard plans a four-drill, 20,000-metre program at Snowfield for 2008.
The company, which has one of the world's largest silver resources, holds projects in Argentina, Mexico, Chile, Peru, Canada, the United States and Australia. It is developing its first silver mine, Pirquitas, in northern Argentina, anticipated to come on-stream late this year.
-- By The Northern Miner staff
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