News Release
August 8, 2003
CONSOLIDATED NORSEMONT OPTIONS ROBERTO SILVER PROSPECT IN PERU
FROM BALLAD GOLD & SILVER LTD
Consolidated Norsemont and Ballad Gold & Silver Ltd are pleased to announce that they have reached an agreement for Norsemont to acquire by option a 60% interest in the 1,000 hectare Roberto Silver-Zinc-Lead prospect from Ballad Gold & Silver Ltd.. The Roberto property is located in the Huancavelica Department of Central Peru, a historic silver and lead mining district and an area with good infrastructure.
Norsemont believes that the property has superior potential for a medium sized, but high grade, silver deposit in massive sulphides associated with the large skarn zones delineated on the property and similar to the nearby historic Marta Mine. Marta Mine is one km south of the property, a former producer (at a rate of 150 t/day) of silver, zinc and lead from 1950 to 1990. Present resources at Mina Martha, as tabled in the Atlas Mineria en Peru by the Ministerio de Energia y Minas, total: 546,000 tonnes @ 8% Pb, 6% Zn, 10 oz/t Ag.
The property has been explored in recent years by Ballad and by Teck Cominco Ltd under an option agreement from Ballad. During Teck Cominco’s 2 seasons of exploration on the Roberto property detailed geological mapping, detailed rock and soil sampling, airborne and very limited ground geophysics were completed prior to drilling five percussion holes. The main result was the delineation of large areas of skarn-style alteration with 11 showings of zinc, silver, copper and lead. The best channel sample values reported by Teck Cominco were: 9.5% zinc, 141 g/t silver and 7.9% lead over 3 m at the Ponciano showing. In the same Ponciano area several geophysical conductors, potentially caused by massive sulphide mineralization, were located. The five holes drilled intercepted 3 to 60 m long intervals with low grade zinc (0.1 to 0.38% Zn) and/or copper mineralization (0.15 to 0.25%). The best silver grades found were in hole COO1: 31.4 g/t over 12 m from 29.5m to 41.5m. Two of the holes in particular were aimed at conductive zones, considered to be potentially massive sulphide zones. Only o ne of those holes intercepted a potential conductive zone: short and un-mineralized interval with 25% sulphides.
Norsemont notes that only a small part of the mineralized skarn areas identified initially by Teck Cominco has been tested with electromagnetic surveys for potential massive sulphide mineralization and also that long lengths of conductors already identified by Teck Cominco have not been drill tested to date.
Norsemont can earn a 60% interest in the property from Ballad by completing C$1,300,000 worth of work, issuing 900,000 shares in three tranches and paying C$445,000 in cash, all staged over 4 years. The first stage requirements are C $ 50,000 worth of work, C $ 15,000 cash and issuance of 200,000 shares to Ballad.
The Option Agreement is subject to acceptance for filing by the TSX Venture Exchange.
CONSOLIDATED NORSEMONT VENTURES LTD.
Per: “Paul Pang”
Paul Pang, President
BALLAD GOLD & SILVER LTD.
Per: “Andre M. Pauwels”
Andre M. Pauwels, P. Geo., Vice President Exploration
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