Summary
The Monterde property is located in the heart of the prolific Sierra Madre Gold- Silver Belt of Northern Mexico and encompasses more than 29,000 hectares (290 sq km). The belt is one of the most active areas for precious metals exploration and development in the world. To date, three deposits have resource calculations: Carmen, Veta Minitas and Carotare. The majority of the resource ounces are within the Carmen deposit.
Geology
The host rocks to the Carmen deposit include thickly bedded lithic tuff breccias and welded tuffs of the Upper Volcanic Formation of the Sierra Madre Volcanic Complex. The area surrounding Carmen is characterized by thinly bedded ash fall sheets and pumice-bearing ignimbrites as well as obsidian dikes and flows.
Access and Infrastructure
Access to the Monterde project is via paved and gravel roads, approximately 260 km from Chihuahua City, Chihuahua State, Mexico. Travel from Chihuahua City is via state Route 16 to La Junta, turn south at La Junta to San Pedro, south from San Pedro to Creel. From Creel, take the paved Divisadero Highway to San Rafael. Through the town of San, Rafael, population 1,200, travel 11 km on a good gravel road to the Temoris Junction. At the junction, turn right or northwest; continue on this gravel road for approximately 20 km to an old wooden sign, turn left at the sign off the main road. Travel 6 km to the site. There is excellent road access within the property, particularly in the area of defined mineral resource and its projected extensions.
The Chihuahua el Pacífico Railway, completed in 1962 and linking Los Mochis on the Pacific coast with Chihuahua, passes through San Rafael 35 km from the project. Creel, with a population of 3,200, is the closest main city having a full service infrastructure base. Creel is approximately a 2½-hour automobile drive east-northeast from the Monterde project. Power lines are within 45kms and there is currently a fully functioning camp operating year round
Exploration
Historic
During the time that Kimber has held the Monterde Property, and particularly in the last five years, considerable work has been carried out on the Monterde Property and in particular on the three principal areas of the Monterde Property detailed below being Carmen, Veta Minitas and Carotare. Kimber has conducted, among other geologic and engineering procedures, surface sampling, mapping, and an exploratory drill program. The surface sampling and mapping show geologic formations that would indicate the presence of gold and silver mineralization. Kimber’s exploratory drilling program has provided good results for gold and silver mineralization in potentially large areas. Based on these procedures, Kimber believes that there is sufficient gold and silver contained at Carmen, Veta Minitas and Carotare to justify further exploration. For further details on each deposit please see each of the summaries.
Future
Kimber has completed the detailed modelling of geology and mineralization at the Carmen Deposit, Monterde Project, Mexico.
These estimates defines a high grade gold-silver mineral resource with improved metallurgical recoveries, which lies within an overall significantly larger, lower grade mineral resource. This new mineral resource estimate is based on 587 drill holes and 329 metallurgical tests completed to date, and has been created after a thorough geological and metallurgical review. As a result of this extensive test work, at a cut off of 3 g/t recoverable gold equivalent, average modelled gold recoveries were 96% for indicated mineral resources and inferred mineral resources while the average modelled silver recovery was 72% for indicated mineral resources and 75% for inferred mineral resources.
The mineral resource estimates for the Veta Minitas Deposit has also been completed and defines a high grade gold-silver mineral resource which lies within an overall larger, lower grade mineral resource. Carotare, the third gold-silver deposits that, with Carmen and Veta Minitas comprise the Monterde Project, are expected to be released in the near future.