Ares Strategic Mining Accelerates Exploration Work at the Bell Hill Site
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Multiple fluorspar showings located at surface, Ares advances to trenching.
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Trenching work will inform the drill program and mine planning on the Bell Hill site.
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The work will seek to determine upper pipe dimensions and grade for the fluorspar showings.
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Recent mapping work at Bell Hill confirms fluorspar at anomaly sites identified by geophysics.
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Permitting and approval for trenching and drilling work obtained.
Vancouver, B.C. June 25th, 2021 — Ares Strategic Mining Inc. (“Ares” or the “Company”) (TSXV: ARS) (OTC:ARSMF) (FRA: N8I1), is pleased to announce advancement to the next phase of exploration at the Company’s second anticipated mining site.
While continuing its development on its industrial site, rail spurs, mining site, and while waiting on plant deliveries, Ares has continued its exploration work at Bell Hill, a second potential mine site. Ares has expanded its geological team to undertake detailed mapping and sampling of the entire Spor Mountain range and refine target definitions in advance of drilling efforts intended to delineate additional mineral resources. This exploration work was accelerated on the Bell Hill claims so a mine plan for the area can be established sooner. Figure 1 demonstrates the anticipated trenching designed by the geology team.
The Company has also received permits and permission from the Utah Department of Natural Resources to start trenching and drilling work on the Bell Hill area, the Company’s anticipated secondary future mine site and high-priority target. Bell Hill is host of the recently identified large geophysical anomalies (See company’s Press Release May 10th, 2021), which indicates the geophysical anomalies correlate at depth with fluorspar breccia pipes observed at surface.
In 2018 the U.S. government classified fluorspar as a Critical Mineral, “deemed critical to U.S. national security and the economy”. Fluorspar remains the only non-metallic Critical Mineral which is 100% imported in the entire country. Fluorspar’s classification as a Critical Mineral in the United States translates to a faster permitting period, enabling mining operations to initiate more quickly than operations for conventional minerals.
James Walker, President and CEO of the Company said, “The recent geological work done on the Bell Hill has been hugely encouraging, advancing quickly from mapping, to successfully identifying multiple fluorspar showings at surface, to identifying large geophysical anomalies at these sites using geophysics, and quickly advancing to trenching. Being a Critical Mineral, and the only permitted fluorspar mine in the country, has meant faster approval and permitting permission for work at new sites, which is incredibly advantageous for the Company, and for our future operations on the Spor Mountain. We intend to continue to accelerate development of the Bell Hill area, especially after all the positive results so far obtained.”
Raul Sanabria, P.Geo., is a qualified person as defined by NI 43-101 and has reviewed and approved the technical contents of this news release. Mr. Sanabria is not independent to the Company as he is a Director and shareholder.
Disclosure: Companies typically rely on comprehensive feasibility reports on mineral reserve estimates to reduce the risks and uncertainties associated with a production decision. Some industrial mineral ventures are relatively simple operations with low levels of investment and risk, where the operating entity has determined that a formal prefeasibility or feasibility study in conformance with NI 43-101 and 43-101 CP is not required for a production decision. The Company has not completed a feasibility study on, nor has the Company completed a mineral reserve or resource estimate at the Lost Sheep Mine and as such the financial and technical viability of the project is at higher risk than if this work had been completed. Based on historical engineering work, geological reports, historical production data and current engineering work completed or in the process by Ares, the Company intends to move forward with the development of this asset. The Company further cautions that it is not basing any production decision on a feasibility study of mineral reserves demonstrating economic and technical viability, and therefore there is a much greater risk of failure associated with its production decision. In addition, readers are cautioned that inferred mineral resources are considered too speculative geologically to have economic considerations applied to them that would enable them to be categorized as mineral reserves. The development of a mining operation typically involves large capital expenditures and a high degree of risk and uncertainty. To reduce this risk and uncertainty, the issuer typically makes its production decision based on a comprehensive feasibility study of established mineral reserves. The Company has decided to proceed without established mineral reserves, basing decision on past production and internal projections.
Lost Sheep Fluorspar Project – Delta, Utah
• 100% owned – 2,100 acres – 118 Claims
• Located in the Spor Mountain area, Juab County, Utah, approximately 214 km south-west of Salt Lake City.
• Fully Permitted – including mining permits.
• NI 43-101 Technical Report identified extensive high-grade fluorspar with low levels of impurities.
• Mining plan approved by BLM[1]
[1] First approved by Rex Rowley – Area Manager, Bureau of Land Management – 24th August 1992.
ON BEHALF OF THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS OF
ARES STRATEGIC MINING INC.
James Walker Chief
Executive Officer and President
For further information, please contact James Walker by email at jwalker@aresmining.com
Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Service Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release. No stock exchange, securities commission or other regulatory authority has approved or disapproved the information contained herein.