VANCOUVER, March 16 /CNW/ - The Board of Directors of Finlay Minerals
Ltd. ("The Company") is pleased to announce the acquisition of the Silver Hope
Property located in central British Columbia.
The Silver Hope Property is contiguous with the southern boundary of the
past producing Equity Silver Mines Property and covers prospective
stratigraphy for discovery of stratabound copper-silver-gold mineralization.
Prior workers conducted several drilling programs along a 2 kilometer strike
length of favourable geology that partially outlined three near-surface bulk
tonnage copper-silver zones with deeper higher grade copper-silver zones. The
zones, named Hope, Superstition and Gaul by prior workers, occur along
favourable structural horizons in pyroclastic volcanic rock notable by
fracturing and discrete breccias that have been tested by approximately
40 holes. No resources were calculated although deeper drill holes intersected
reported grades in the Hope Zone of 4.1% copper and 637g/t silver over
2.4 meters (DDH 04SH-06), and 0.91% copper and 1030g/t silver over 3.0 meters
(DDH X86CH-262).
A re-interpretation of this style of mineralization along a 4 kilometer
length that includes two deposits that saw production by Equity Silver Mines
(33,800,000 tonnes (at) 0.4% copper, 64.7g/t silver, and 0.46g/t gold from
open pit and underground mining) and three zones on the Silver Hope Property
suggests opportunity for re-classification of the deposits as volcanogenic
with a hydrothermal overprint.
The Company acquired the Silver Hope Property with the objective of
testing for volcanogenic style high-grade feeder mineralization and is
initially planning a deep penetrating geophysical survey in the spring of
2006.
Subject to regulatory approval, the Company will earn a 100% interest in
the 37 mineral claim (2,775 hectares) Silver Hope Property by paying Sci-Tek
Resources Ltd. ("Sci-Tek"), a private company, 2,000,000 Finlay shares, at a
deemed value of $160,000. Sci-Tek will hold a royalty equal to one and
one-half percent (1.5%) of Net Smelter Returns (the "Royalty"). Prior to a
production decision being made in respect of the Silver Hope Property, the
Company may, at its sole discretion, purchase half of the Royalty (i.e. 0.75%)
from the Vendor by paying one million dollars ($1,000,000) to the Vendor. The
purchase is subject to regulatory acceptance. The purchase is a related party
transaction as two directors of the Company are part of the selling group.
Finlay Minerals Ltd. trades under the symbol "FYL" on the TSX Venture
Exchange. The Silver Hope property is part of a strategic move to expand the
Company's presence in B.C., and to complement the Company's Toodoggone
projects. Documentation about the Company and properties can be viewed on the
company's website at www.finlayminerals.com.
On behalf of the Board of Directors,
Robert Brown, P. Eng., President
The TSX Venture Exchange has not reviewed and does not accept
responsibility for the adequacy or the accuracy of this release.
