2013

Canada Zinc Metals Announces Drill Results - North Lead Anomaly, GPS Zone and South Zinc Anomaly

Drill hole A-13-104 cuts extensive mineralized zone at North Lead Anomaly and Nick-Style mineralization intersected in A-13-103 at South Zinc Anomaly

Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada – Thursday, November 7, 2013 – Canada Zinc Metals Corp. (TSX Venture Exchange: CZX) is pleased to announce drill assay results have been received from several drill holes completed earlier in the 2013 field season on select targets on the Akie property.

The 2013 exploration program had two main objectives: 4,000 metres of diamond drilling on the Akie property, and completion of the airborne Versatile Time Domain EM (VTEM) geophysical survey over the entire Kechika Regional claim package, including the Pie, Yuen and Cirque East properties recently optioned to Teck Resources (see press release dated September 9, 2013).

The Akie property is the Company’s flagship exploration project and host to the Cardiac Creek SEDEX Zn-Pb-Ag deposit. The Kechika Regional Project, represented by a series of property blocks including Pie and Mt. Alcock, extends northwest from the Akie property for approximately 140 kilometres covering the highly prospective Gunsteel Formation shale. The southernmost project boundary is located approximately 260 kilometres northwest of the town of Mackenzie, in northeastern British Columbia, Canada.

2013 Exploration Update

Diamond Drilling:

The Company completed 9 HQ/NQ drill holes totaling 4,854 metres on the Akie property this season. The drilling program progressed in a sequential manner with two holes targeting the West Akie GPS Zone; followed by one hole each on the North Lead Anomaly and the South Zinc Anomaly. The program then shifted to the Cardiac Creek deposit for 4 drill holes totaling 2,350 metres. The final hole of the season was completed on the SE Zone located approximately 2.5 kilometres to the southeast and along strike of the Cardiac Creek deposit.

A total of 1,369 core samples, including QA/QC samples, have been cut and sent to Acme Analytical Laboratories in Vancouver, BC, Canada. Samples are collected in accordance with accepted industry standards and procedures.  Routine QA/QC analysis is conducted on all assay results, including the systematic utilization of certified reference materials, blanks and duplicate samples.

Results have now been received for the first four drill holes of the program, including drill hole A-13-104 which tested the down-dip extent of the North Lead Anomaly. The North Lead Anomaly is defined by a large lead anomaly that measures approximately 200 metres by 1,000 metres long, with lesser internal barium, arsenic and iron anomalies. This anomaly is partially attributed to a nodular barite showing along a ridge and a massive sulphide lens enriched in lead that was intersected in drill hole A-96-24; located approximately 2.5 kilometres to the northwest of the Cardiac Creek deposit. Drill hole A-96-24 intersected a 0.8 metre thick interval of massive pyrite, galena and sphalerite mineralization directly overlying the debris flow present at the Gunsteel Formation/Road River Group contact. This interval graded 11.6% Zn and 9.05% Pb (“NI 43-101 Technical Report for the Akie Zinc-Lead-Silver Project, British Columbia, Canada” dated April 27, 2012, with an effective date of March 14, 2012).

Drill results are pending from five additional holes, including four holes on the Cardiac Creek deposit and one drill test of the SE Zone.

North Lead Anomaly:

Drill hole A-13-104, drilled to a depth of 737.00 metres, tested the down-dip extension of mineralization encountered in A-10-68 and A-10-76. These holes each encountered thick (>125 metres) intervals of laminar to bedded pyrite mineralization interbedded with siliceous black shale of the Gunsteel Formation. This mineralization was variably anomalous in zinc with individual values greater than 2%. The results from the current hole and its neighbor holes are tabulated below.

Two large intervals of laminated to thickly bedded pyrite with nodular barite were intersected in hole A-13-104, interbedded with black siliceous Gunsteel shale. The upper interval consists primarily of laminated pyrite with nodular barite extending over 103.46 metres from 233.81 to 337.27 metres. This is underlain by a 13 metre interval of semi-massive laminar to bedded pyrite with barite extending to a depth of 350.23 metres. This upper interval of mineralization was completely unexpected, based on current understanding of the stratigraphy from neighbor holes.

The lower sequence of mineralization, and the primary exploration target, was intersected over 171.17 metres from 474.83 to 646.00 metres. This interval is characterized by laminar bedded pyrite with nodular barite interbedded with the Gunsteel shale. A more developed, proximal facies style of thickly bedded pyrite with lesser amounts of nodular barite was intersected within the larger interval; over 89.44 metres from 515.74 to 605.18 metres. Results are tabulated in the table below and include highly anomalous zinc enriched intervals from both the upper and lower sequences of mineralization. Both of these internal horizons contain higher grade cores as well which are outlined in the table below.

The Company continues to be encouraged with the strong continuity (along strike and down-dip) and progressive development of mineralization present at the North Lead Zone in terms of style, character and its similarities to the Cardiac Creek deposit. The presence of an unexpected mineralized upper zone within the North Lead stratigraphy is also a positive indicator of the prospectivity of the North Lead Zone. The North Lead Zone continues to be a high priority target for the Company and future drill holes targeting both the down-dip and strike extents of known mineralization in hole A-10-76 and A-13-104 will be planned for upcoming exploration programs.

Drill Hole From (m) To (m) Core Length (m)** Zn (%) Pb (ppm) Ag (g/t)* Zn+Pb (%)
A-13-104 287.60 362.88 75.28 0.22 281 1.70 0.24
including 321.20 333.93 12.73 0.37 443 1.90 0.41
and 474.83 651.30 176.47 0.13 72 2.17 0.13
including 520.30 574.25 53.95 0.19 128 2.43 0.20
Including 587.33 615.09 27.76 0.19 98 1.81 0.19
A-10-68Ɨ 490.04 614.62 124.58 0.17 Zn values up to 2.08%
A-10-76Ɨ 614.78 742.45 127.67 0.11 Zn values up to 0.47%

(*) Ag values below detection were given a value half of the detection limit for the purposes of weighted averaging.
(**) At this time a true width of these intervals are unknown
(Ɨ) Drilled in 2010

GPS Zone:

The GPS barite showing is represented by thickly bedded, massive barite mineralization hosted in black shale interpreted to be a western panel of the highly prospective Gunsteel Formation, the host rock to the Cardiac Creek and Cirque deposits. The showing is located along the western boundary of the Akie property, directly along strike of Teck and Korea Zinc’s Cirque deposit and the West Pie target area on the Pie property.

Two drill holes, A-13-101 and A-13-102 totaling 663 metres, tested the bedded barite mineralization to determine its down-depth extent and whether the barite is associated with SEDEX style mineralization at depth.

A-13-101

Drill hole A-13-101 was designed to test the down-dip extension of the GPS bedded barite showing exposed along the lower slopes of a deeply incised creek.  Despite the difficult ground conditions encountered in hole A-13-100, drilled from the same location in 2011, hole A-13-101 was successful in reaching its targeted depth.

A-13-101 intersected black shale of the Earn Group (Akie Formation) at a depth of 86 metres after drilling through the overlying Road River Group siltstone. Mineralization was intersected towards the base of the Akie Formation shale with minor nodular barite and pyrite at 140 metres and an 80 centimetre interval of bedded pyrite with nodular to laminar barite at 151.40 metres. The bedded pyrite and barite returned 0.83 metres of 856 ppm Zn, 252.1 ppm Pb and was anomalous in Ni and Tl. The upper interval of nodular barite returned 2.90 metres of 1,729 ppm Zn and 62 ppm Pb. Cleavage and bedding angles indicate the stratigraphy is steeply dipping to the NW and the bedded pyrite mineralization encountered at 151 metres may be the subsurface representation of the GPS bedded barite showing. However, strong faulting is present along lithological boundaries and throughout the Earn Group stratigraphy, suggesting significant structural complexity at depth.

A-13-102

Drill Hole A-13-102, drilled to a depth of 392.89 metres, continued to test the down-dip potential of the GPS bedded barite showing and targeted a depth approximately 150 metres down-dip of the bedded pyrite mineralization encountered in drill hole A-13-101. A thick sequence of Earn Group stratigraphy was intersected with lithologies from the Akie, Gunsteel and Paul River Formations all being present, similar to the geology of A-13-101. A small interval of laminated pyrite and minor barite was encountered at a depth of 212 metres which returned nominal results. This interval correlates well with the bedded pyrite intersected in A-13-101. Sampling within the Earn Group lithologies returned several narrow zones of elevated to anomalous zinc between 102.82 metres and 272.44 metres with zinc values up to 2,116 ppm. A wider zone of 14.8 meters of elevated to anomalous zinc mineralization was encountered at a downhole depth of 304.5 metres with values up to 1,292 ppm. The hole was shut down in well bedded and laminated calcareous siltstone of the Road River Group.

The Company is encouraged by the definitive presence of Earn Group lithologies at the GPS zone, which is shown to host laminated to SEDEX style mineralization characterized by bedded pyrite with barite of a style and character that is similar to mineralization associated with the Cardiac Creek deposit. Additional work is required to determine the potential of the GPS zone and the western Akie panel as a whole. The information generated from these two drill holes will also be used in conjunction with the 2012 VTEM data to assess the potential of the Pb-Tl +/-Zn, +/-Ag soil anomaly, defined during the 2013 exploration program, which is located along strike to the southeast of the GPS zone.

South Zinc Anomaly:

Drill hole A-13-103 drilled to the a depth of 232.05 metres to test the northwest end of the prominent South Zinc Anomaly, a large zinc-in-soil anomaly situated to the southeast of the Cardiac Creek deposit along the west facing slope of Hamburger Hill. This anomaly, originally defined during the mid-1990’s and expanded during the 2013 exploration program, covers a large 2,250 metre by 600 metre area that is highly anomalous in Zn and Cd with localized areas of Pb, Mn, and Fe anomalism. The approximate centre of the anomaly was tested by a single drill hole in 2007. The South Zinc Anomaly coincides with two of the geophysical targets defined by Condor Consulting Ltd. in their interpretation of the 2012 airborne VTEM geophysical survey conducted by Geotech Ltd.

Drill hole A-13-103 intersected a relatively thick interval of Gunsteel shale interbedded with shale considered to be the Paul River Formation. These shale units were underlain by bioclastic limestone of the Kwadacha Reef. The hole was shut down in well-bedded siltstone of the Road River Group. No significant mineralization was observed within the Gunsteel Formation and nothing was identified in core to conclusively identify the source of the South Zinc Anomaly. However, a narrow interval of pyritic mineralization at 252.50 metres was observed along the unconformable contact between the bioclastic limestone of the Kwadacha Reef and the underlying Road River Group siltstone. Assay results from this mineralization returned 0.50 metres of 0.4% Zn, 393.1 ppm Pb, 0.90% Ni and highly anomalous values of Mo, As, U, V, P, La, Cr, Hg, and Se.

While the setting and host rocks are different, the style and character of the mineralization is similar to that of the Nick Horizon observed in the 2010 drill hole A-10-72 and the elemental signature is identical. A thin lens of sulphide mineralization intersected in A-10-72 within the Paul River Formation ran 2.69% Zn, 0.60% Ni and 4.36 g/t Ag and contained highly anomalous values across a diverse suite of elements, including: molybdenum, copper, lead, cobalt, arsenic, uranium, cadmium, antimony, bismuth, vanadium, phosphorus, mercury, thallium, selenium, rhenium, gold and palladium. This mineralization is of similar character to the Nick Deposit in the Yukon.

The samples associated with the mineralized interval in A-13-103 are being re-run with a 54 element ICP analytical package to assess its Au and PGE potential. An identical occurrence of mineralization was intersected in hole A-13-106, for which results are pending. The occurrence of Nick-style mineralization at the Paul River/Road River Group contact presents the Company with another prospective stratigraphic horizon to asses and explore on the Akie property and the Kechika Trough as a whole.

To-date two drill holes have tested the large South Zinc Anomaly with inconclusive results. The presence of highly prospective Gunsteel Formation shale is encouraging but drill results to date have not fully explained the overlying soil anomaly. It is possible the source of zinc anomalism may be further up-slope on Hamburger Hill.

The Akie Zn-Pb-Ag Project

The Akie property is situated within the Kechika Trough, the southernmost area of the regionally extensive Paleozoic Selwyn Basin and one of the most prolific sedimentary basins in the world for the occurrence of SEDEX zinc-lead-silver and stratiform barite deposits.

Drilling on the Akie property by Canada Zinc Metals since 2005 has identified a significant body of baritic-zinc-lead SEDEX mineralization known as the Cardiac Creek deposit. The deposit is hosted by siliceous, carbonaceous, fine grained clastic rocks of the Middle to Late Devonian Gunsteel Formation.

The Company has outlined a NI 43-101 compliant mineral resource at Cardiac Creek, including an indicated resource of 12.7 million tonnes grading 8.4% zinc, 1.7% lead and 13.7 g/t silver (at a 5% zinc cut-off grade) and an inferred resource of 16.3 million tonnes grading 7.4% zinc, 1.3% lead and 11.6 g/t silver (at a 5% zinc cut-off grade). 

Ken MacDonald P.Geo., Vice President of Exploration, is the designated Qualified Person as defined by National Instrument 43-101 and is responsible for the technical information contained in this release.
 
The TSX Venture Exchange has neither approved nor disapproved the contents of this press release.
ON BEHALF OF THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS

CANADA ZINC METALS CORP.

“PEEYUSH VARSHNEY”
                                                           
PEEYUSH VARSHNEY, LL.B
CEO & CHAIRMAN

 

©2008 Canada Zinc Metals Corp.
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