Vancouver, British Columbia--(Newsfile Corp. - February 9, 2017) - Centurion Minerals Ltd. (TSXV: CTN) ("Centurion", or the "Company") is pleased to announce that it achieved daily design capacity level (200 tonnes/day) in January at the Ana Sofia Property agri-gypsum fertilizer pilot plant located in Santiago Del Estero, Argentina. To date, the plant and operating team have been able to extract, crush and bag approximately 1000 tonnes of material. A large percentage of this material has been sold and delivered to Argentine fertilizer distributors.
Centurion's local joint venture partner is currently negotiating definitive supply contracts and co-ordinating delivery schedules with multiple distributors in Argentina, Paraguay and Uruguay. Agreement terms range between C$85-$100/tonne. The distributors are responsible for transportation logistics from the project site to market. Agricultural gypsum (calcium sulfate) is a valuable plant nutrient and plays a vital role in maintaining soil structure and nutrient balance in South American soils, allowing greater crop yields.
Centurion CEO, Mr. David Tafel comments, "The pilot plant has been subjected to substantial testing and has operated at, and indeed exceeded, daily design capacity levels during the month of January. Our operating team is to be congratulated for achieving these milestones so quickly. The next operational goal is to achieve and maintain continuous production flows from extraction through finished product."
The pilot plant has a process design capacity of 200 tonnes/day. Gypsum is quarried from near-surface, flat-lying beds within the sedimentary formation that extends throughout the Ana Sofia Property. The gypsum rock is fed into a hopper leading to primary and secondary crushers, then screened and sorted into two agri-gypsum fertilizer products. The plant produces both a pellet-sized granular product and a powdered product (each comprised of a minimum 85% gypsum content) that are packaged into one tonne tote bags.
The Ana Sofia Project comprises two mining concessions totaling 50 hectares (ha) in size within a larger (approximately 600 ha) exploration permit area. The Project is well situated within a region where other small producers are currently extracting agricultural gypsum and selling to fertilizer distributors and farmers. An initial inferred gypsum resource for the Project was estimated (news releases - October 31; December 16, 2016), to comprise 1.47 million tonnes averaging 94.1% gypsum, using an 85% cut-off grade that is the minimum required gypsum content for commercial-quality agricultural gypsum products in Argentina. The resource estimate was based on trenching and test-pitting work completed in 2016 that focused on two near-surface gypsum layers located within one of the project's two mining concessions.
Qualified Person
The technical content of this news release has been reviewed and approved by Andrew J. Turner, B.Sc., P.Geol., who is the Company's Geological Consultant and is a Qualified Person as defined by National Instrument 43-101, Standards of Disclosure for Mineral Projects.
ABOUT CENTURION
Centurion Minerals Ltd. is a Canadian-based company with an international focus on the exploration and development of agri-mineral and precious mineral projects. For additional information on the Ana Sofia project and applications of agri-gypsum, visit our website: www.centurionminerals.com
On Behalf of the Board,
"David G. Tafel"
President and CEO
Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.
For Further Information, Contact:David Tafel
President and CEO
604-484-2161
The Ana Sofia project has not been the subject of a feasibility study and as such there is no certainty that a potential mine will be realized or that the processing facility will be able to produce a commercially marketable product. There is a significant risk that any production from the project will not be profitable with these risks elevated by the absence of a compliant NI 43-101 feasibility study. A mine production decision that is not based on a feasibility study demonstrating economic and technical viability does not provide adequate disclosure of the increased uncertainty and specific risks of failure associated with such a production decision. The work carried out to date is of a preliminary nature to assist in the determination as to whether the mineral product is suitable for sale and if there are markets for the mineral product. The Company has undertaken market research and studies to try to mitigate these risks. General risks inherent in the Project include the reliance on available data and assumptions and judgments used in the interpretation of such data, the speculative and uncertain nature of exploration and development costs, capital requirements and the ability to obtain financing, volatility of global and local economic climates, share price volatility, estimated price volatility, changes in equity markets, exchange rate fluctuations and other risks involved in the mineral exploration and development industry. There can be no assurance that a forward-looking statement or information referenced herein will prove to be accurate, as actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated in such statements or information. Accordingly, readers should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements or information. We undertake no obligation to reissue or update any forward-looking statements or information except as required by law.
The Ana Sofia mineral resource estimate is reported in accordance with the Canadian Securities Administrators National Instrument 43-101 and has been estimated using the CIM "Estimation of Mineral Resources and Mineral Reserves Best Practice Guidelines" dated November 23rd, 2003 and CIM "Definition Standards for Mineral Resources and Mineral Reserves" dated May 10th, 2014. Due to the relatively wide spacing of the historical quarries and the 2016 test pits, which varies between 40 m and 300 m, the Ana Sofia 2 resource described herein is categorized entirely as an inferred mineral resource. Inferred Mineral Resources are not Mineral Reserves. Mineral resources which are not mineral reserves do not have demonstrated economic viability. There has been insufficient exploration to define the inferred resources as an indicated or measured mineral resource, however, it is reasonably expected that the majority of the Inferred Mineral Resources could be upgraded to Indicated Mineral Resources with continued exploration. There is no guarantee that any part of the mineral resources will be converted into a mineral reserve in the future. The estimate of mineral resources may be materially affected by geology, environment, permitting, legal, title, taxation, socio-political, marketing or other relevant issues.
This news release contains forward looking statements concerning future operations of Centurion Minerals Ltd. (the "Company"). All forward-looking statements concerning the Company's future plans and operations, including management's assessment of the Company's project expectations or beliefs may be subject to certain assumptions, risks and uncertainties beyond the Company's control. Investors are cautioned that any such statements are not guarantees of future performance and that actual performance and exploration and financial results may differ materially from any estimates or projections. Such statements include, among others: possible variations in mineralization, grade or recovery rates; actual results of current exploration activities; actual results of reclamation activities; conclusions of future economic evaluations; changes in project parameters as plans continue to be refined; failure of equipment or processes to operate as anticipated; accidents and other risks of the mining industry; delays and other risks related to construction activities and operations; timing and receipt of regulatory approvals of operations; the ability of the Company and other relevant parties to satisfy regulatory requirements; the availability of financing for proposed transactions, programs and working capital requirements on reasonable terms; the ability of third-party service providers to deliver services on reasonable terms and in a timely manner; market conditions and general business, economic, competitive, political and social conditions. It is important to note that the information provided in this news release is preliminary in nature. There is no certainty that a potential mine will be realized.
