SPOKANE, Wash., June 3, 2004 (PRIMEZONE) -- Minera Andes Inc. (TSX Venture Exchange:MAI) (OTCBB:MNEAF) ("the Corporation") is pleased to report the discovery of epithermal gold-silver vein mineralization at its newly acquired Cerro Mojon property in Santa Cruz province, Argentina.
The Cerro Mojon property (5,850 hectares) is located 40 km west-northwest of AngloGold's producing Cerro Vanguardia mine with an excess of 3.2 million ounces of gold reserves.
Allen Ambrose, President of Minera Andes, said "We are very pleased with the preliminary rock chip sample assay results at Cerro Mojon. This discovery again affirms our belief in the untapped precious metal potential of Argentina being realized using our expertise. The high values of these sample assays leave Minera Andes eager to expand exploration in this new discovery area."
The 100 percent owned Cerro Mojon was acquired on the basis of fixed wing aircraft reconnaissance over areas on which mineralized structures and associated color anomalies had been previously identified on satellite images. Structures of interest were defined based on studies of the structural setting of the epithermal vein mineralization at the Cerro Vanguardia gold mine and Minera Andes' Huevos Verdes gold-silver discovery.
During an initial field visit forty-one rock chip grab samples were taken from approximately ten vein structures showing alteration and mineralization typical of the high-level portions of an epithermal vein system. Mineralization seen at the surface includes sparse amounts of fine-grained gray crystalline quartz with pyrite grading to light brown quartz with primary hematite-limonite. This quartz is cut by abundant late barite, or jarosite and barren white quartz. Strong kaolinite-illite alteration is associated with the mineralization. Several additional structures remain to be sampled.
Analysis of the rock chip samples show strongly anomalous gold (4 samples with greater than 0.5 g/t, including one sample with 1.94 g/t), silver (16 samples with greater than 10 g/t, including 4 samples with greater than 100 g/t (3 oz/t)), arsenic (10 samples with greater than 1000 ppm including one sample with 5,878 ppm), barium (13 samples with greater than 2,000 ppm), and mercury (29 samples with greater than 1 ppm, including one sample with greater than 100 ppm).
Additional work on this prospect including mapping, sampling, gradient array and pole-dipole IP, and drilling is planned for this project.
All results have been reviewed by Brian Gavin, Minera Andes' vice president of exploration and an appropriately qualified person as defined by National Instrument 43-101.
Elsewhere in Argentina, the Corporation's joint venture project continues to advance at the Huevos Verdes gold/silver discovery at the San Jose project in Santa Cruz, where underground development is currently in progress. The mine development decision should be finalized this year.
Minera Andes is well funded with working capital of approximately US$6 million to carry out its exploration and development programs. Minera Andes holds 10 ongoing projects on about 200,000 hectares (500,000 acres) of mineral exploration land in Argentina. The properties primarily contain gold, silver and copper targets. The Corporation presently has 70,274,240 issued and outstanding shares.
For further information, please contact: Art Johnson at the Spokane office, or Krister A. Kottmeier, investor relations - Canada, at the Vancouver office. Visit our Web site: www.minandes.com.
Spokane Office Vancouver Office 111 East Magnesium Rd., Suite A 1000-355 Burrard Street Spokane, WA 99208 USA Vancouver, B.C. V6C 2G8 Phone: (509) 921-7322 Phone: (604) 689-7017; 877-689-7018 E-mail: mineraandes@minandes.com E-mail: ircanada@minandes.com
FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENT -- Although Minera Andes believes many of its properties have promising potential, its properties are in the early stages of exploration. None have yet been shown to contain proven or probable mineral reserves. There can be no assurance that such reserves will be identified on any property, or that, if identified, mineralization may be economically extracted.
CAUTIONARY NOTE TO U.S. INVESTORS CONCERNING ESTIMATES OF INFERRED RESOURCES:
This news release uses the term "Inferred Resources." We advise U.S. investors that while this term is recognized and required by Canadian regulations, the SEC does not recognize it. "Inferred Resources" have a great amount of uncertainty as to their existence, and great uncertainty as to their economic and legal feasibility. It cannot be assumed that all or any part of an "Inferred Resource" will ever be upgraded to a higher category. Under Canadian rules estimates of "Inferred Resources" may not form the basis of feasibility or other economic studies. U.S. INVESTORS ARE CAUTIONED NOT TO ASSUME THAT PART OR ALL OF AN "INFERRED RESOURCE" EXISTS, OR IS ECONOMICALLY OR LEGALLY MINABLE.
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