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TORONTO, ONTARIO–(Marketwire – Sept. 27, 2011) – Excellon Resources Inc. (TSX:EXN) is pleased to announce the discovery of anomalous Rare Earth Element (REE) values in four drill holes located six kilometres north-northwest of the Platosa Mine. Values of Total Rare Earth Element Oxides (TREEO), the manner in which REE content is normally reported, range from 1,308 ppm (0.131%) TREEO over a 36.25 m core width in hole EX06-JVN03 to 2,136 ppm (0.214%) TREEO over a 281.25 m core width in hole EX06-JVN04. The TREEO amounts are comprised of Cerium, Dysprosium, Lanthanum, Neodymium, Praseodymium, Samarium and Yttrium oxides. Values of other REE oxides have been encountered but are not included in the reported results. Not enough is known about the occurrence to enable Company geologists to estimate true widths at this time. Assays for the four holes are shown in the table below.
The four holes were drilled into a lightly-sulphidized 400 by 400 m, irregularly-shaped and outcropping rhyolite breccia in the Cañón Colorado area during the course of one of the Company’s carbonate replacement deposit (CRD) exploration programs in 2006 and the analytical package used was understandably designed for silver, lead, zinc, and associated elements, not REE exploration, although the package did include Yttrium (Y). While Y is not an REE, it is commonly found with REEs and typically grouped with them for discussion purposes. During the course of reviewing historic data and field examinations of certain prospective CRD areas earlier in 2011, Company geologists encountered anomalous Y values in surface samples and this led them back to the Cañón Colorado area and to resampling the preserved drill core from the 2006 program. Previously sampled core was quarter split and several hundred metres of previously unsampled core was split and a total of 594 samples were sent to the ALS Chemex sample preparation facility in Chihuahua City. Sample pulps were shipped to the ALS Chemex laboratory in North Vancouver, British Columbia, where they were analyzed for 33 elements, including all the REEs plus Yttrium using an inductively coupled plasma (ICP) method.
The Cañón Colorado area lies on Excellon mining concessions and is part of the 58,000 ha Platosa Property where the high-grade Platosa Ag, Pb, Zn mine has been in production since mid-2005. The Company has recently signed a five-year surface rights access agreement covering a 1,000 ha area centred on Cañón Colorado, with El Ejido Puerto de Jaboncillo (Ejido). The Cañón Colorado area is shown on Map 2 below.
“We are very encouraged by this REE discovery and the surface rights agreement with the Ejido,” said John Sullivan, Excellon’s Vice-President of Exploration. “We intend to begin a mapping and prospecting program by early October and carry out additional diamond drilling before year end. Should these drilling results continue to be promising, we would then be in a position to undertake more advanced work such as metallurgical studies.”
| Table: Cañón Colorado Assay Results (intervals are core widths, not estimated true thicknesses) |
| DDH No. |
Interval From (m) |
Interval To (m) |
Interval width (m) |
Ce2O3 (ppm) |
Dy2O3 (ppm) |
La2O3 (ppm) |
Nd2O3 (ppm) |
Pr2O3 (ppm) |
Sm2O3 (ppm) |
Y2O3 (ppm) |
Total TREEO (ppm, %) |
| 06-JVN03 | 10.75 | 47.00 | 36.25 | 438 | 42 | 204 | 205 | 53 | 46 | 320 | 1,308 / 0.131% |
| 06-JVN04 | 3.05 | 284.3 | 281.25 | 817 | 41 | 482 | 419 | 96 | 72 | 209 | 2,136 / 0.214% |
| 06-JVN04 | 340.65 | 361.25 | 20.60 | 580 | 38 | 279 | 251 | 69 | 47 | 195 | 1,459 / 0.146% |
| 06-JVN05 | 3.8 | 404.00 | 400.20 | 715 | 34 | 330 | 306 | 79 | 58 | 181 | 1,703 / 0.170% |
| 06-JVN06 | 22.3 | 63.00 | 40.70 | 124 | 31 | 80 | 78 | 21 | 17 | 247 | 598 / 0.060% |
To view Map 1: Location Map – Platosa Property, please visit the following link:
http://media3.marketwire.com/docs/map1pp.pdf
To view Map 2: Cañón Colorado Area Location Map, please visit the following link:
http://media3.marketwire.com/docs/map2cc.pdf
Qualified Person
The Company’s exploration programs are supervised by John Sullivan, Excellon’s Vice-President of Exploration.
Mr. Sullivan is an economic geologist with over 35 years of experience in the mineral industry. Prior to joining Excellon in 2007 he was a senior geologist at a Toronto-based international geological and mining engineering consulting firm where he evaluated properties and prepared NI 43-101 reports on gold and base metal projects in Canada and internationally. In addition he has held senior positions with two large Canadian mining companies where he directed major exploration programs, managed field offices, and evaluated projects in Canada, Europe, Africa and Latin America. Mr. Sullivan is not independent of Excellon as he is an officer of the Company.
Additional Information
Mr. Ned Goodman, who was appointed a director of the Company on August 8, 2011, has had to defer his appointment to the Board of Directors at this time for personal reasons. In the interim, Mr. Goodman has agreed to act as strategic advisor to the Company.
In addition the Company’s current cash position is approximately $18 million.
About Excellon
Excellon, a mineral resource company operating in Durango and Zacatecas States, Mexico, is committed to building value through production, expansion and discovery. Excellon is producing silver, lead and zinc from the high-grade manto Mineral Resource on its large, 100% owned Platosa Property, strategically located in the middle of the Mexican silver belt. Excellon’s focus is on expanding its operating capacity and increasing its Mineral Resources at Platosa where an exploration program focused on diamond drilling and advanced geophysical techniques is ongoing. All of these activates are fully funded through existing cash flow. The Platosa Property, not fully explored, has several geological indicators of a large mineralized system.
On behalf of EXCELLON RESOURCES INC.
Jeremy Wyeth, President and Chief Executive Officer
This press release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act and Section 27E of the Exchange Act. Such statements include, without limitation, statements regarding the future results of operations, performance and achievements of the Company, including potential property acquisitions, the timing, content, cost and results of proposed work programs, the discovery and delineation of mineral deposits/resources/reserves, geological interpretations, proposed production rates, potential mineral recovery processes and rates, business and financing plans, business trends and future operating revenues. 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, variations in the nature, quality and quantity of any mineral deposits that may be located, significant downward variations in the market price of any minerals produced [particularly silver], the Company’s inability to obtain any necessary permits, consents or authorizations required for its activities, 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. All of the Company’s 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, and particularly the January 15, 2010 NI 43-101-compliant technical report prepared by Scott Wilson Roscoe Postle Associates Inc. with respect to the Platosa Property. This press release is not, and is not to be construed in any way as, an offer to buy or sell securities in the United States.
The Toronto Stock Exchange has not reviewed and does not accept responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of the content of this Press Release, which has been prepared by management.
