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Grenville Gold Gears Up for Near-Term Production

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02 June 2008 @ 05:15 pm ET
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When the Millotingo mine was closed down due to political unrest, its operators had delineated a further untapped resource base, estimated at 661,000 tonnes grading an impressive average of 398 g/t (12.8 oz/t) of silver. However, these figures are for reference purposes only as they pre-dated the implementation of the NI 43-101 resource measurement protocol and due to continuous artisanal mining in the area, they cannot be relied upon.

Of particular note, the style and overall grade of mineralization at the Millotingo mine is believed to be analogous to the neighbouring polymetallic Coricancha mine that was recently reopened by Gold Hawk Resources. This high-grade mine, which is only four kilometres to the northwest of Millotingo, is expected to eventually yield up to 1.7 million ounces in gold equivalent.

Not a great deal is known about the histories of the two smaller Germania and Silveria mines but both were high-grade silver producers.

There is even a largely intact 350 tonne-per-day floatation mill on-site that was also initially mothballed at the time of the closure of the four proximal mines in the area in 1992 and re-started for a short time in 2001. It can be easily recommissioned at moderate cost. The mill is still owned by a local artisanal mining union that is expected to either sell or lease it to Grenville.

Alternatively, the Company may opt to build its own modernized mill at an estimated cost of only around $4 million. In the interim, there are several under-utilized mills in the surrounding area, meaning that the near-term processing of the tailings and other waste rock can be outsourced.

Near-Term Cash Flow at a Very Low Cost

Grenville's business model initially involves a commitment to generating a steady stream of cash flow, while concurrently expanding upon the Company's mineral inventory. The latter entails the systematic development of the four past-producing mines, particularly at depth, while also expanding their mineralized footprints along a lateral plane. More on this later.

In the near term, Grenville aims to take an inventory of 30 years worth of well-mineralized waste rock that has accumulated in large quantities on the property. (Previous operators focused mostly on just extracting the high grade silver content).

Much of this resource can be found at several tailings dams and numerous rock dumps. Then there's the ongoing process of removing rock debris from the various tunnel networks in order to conduct detailed sampling of the high-grade vein systems, to be followed by drilling at depth.

All told, approximately 86,000 tonnes of polymetallic material extracted to expand one adit has been targeted as an initial stockpile of valuable feed for any of the several other operating mills in the area as a bulk sample.

The Company's cash flow projections will be supported by a NI 43-101 resource estimate of the amassed waste rock. This should determine the extent of the economic viability of this pilot project by assessing the average metal grades, as well as the overall tonnage. In the early going, Grenville plans to process around 1,000 tonnes of mineralized rock per month, eventually ramping up to as much as 5,000 tonnes per month.

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