Fronteer Gold (TSX: FRG)(NYSE Amex: FRG) provides a mid-year
progress report on its key gold projects in Nevada, as well as its
gold and copper-gold projects in northwestern Turkey.
Ten drill rigs are now operating at Fronteer Gold's projects,
with an additional rig expected to be added by month's end. More
than 65,000 metres are planned to be drilled across all projects
this year. Approximately 26,000 metres have been drilled in 2010 to
date, with 70 holes pending release. The total budget for the gold
projects summarized below is approximately $35 million, with
Fronteer Gold responsible for $20 million of expenditures.
TEAM BUILDING
Fronteer Gold has strengthened its development and operations
team with the hiring of four key individuals: Guy Jeske, General
Manager, Long Canyon Project; Dan Anderson, Director, Environment
& Permitting; Jim Gray, Director of Mineral Resources; and,
Pamela Smith, Community Relations Coordinator.
Mr. Jeske, has nearly 30 years experience in mine operations as
general manager, mining manager or mine superintendent at various
mining operations in the U.S. - including two years as Vice
President and General Manager of the Rochester Mine in Lovelock,
Nevada. Mr. Jeske will be responsible for leading the day-to-day
operations of our Long Canyon project. Mr. Anderson, who has
significant experience permitting both open pit and underground
mining operations in Nevada through his time with Placer Dome,
Barrick and Great Basin Gold, will play a key role in advancing our
Nevada gold projects through the regulatory framework in a timely
manner. Mr. Gray, formerly Manager of Resource Evaluations at Teck,
will manage ongoing resource studies on all of our projects and
assist with ongoing evaluations and due diligence efforts. Ms.
Smith, formerly of Sunrise Engineering and Newmont, is responsible
for maintaining and building relationships with communities and
stakeholders in Nevada as we advance our projects.
PROJECT HIGHLIGHTS - NEVADA
Northumberland
-- Drilling of additional high-grade targets underway
-- Construction of decline to commence in Q3
Northumberland is a large Carlin-type gold deposit located on
private lands owned by Fronteer Gold. We have recently commenced a
surface drill program to further define and extend high-grade
domains at Northumberland. The $750,000 drill program will comprise
nine core holes (2,500 metres) and test several high-grade targets.
Fronteer Gold believes these high-grade domains are a key component
of the deposit and need to be more fully understood.
Fronteer Gold is currently soliciting bids from selected
underground mining contractors for the construction of a 280-metre
long decline to access high-grade mineralization within the
deposit. Construction is scheduled to begin in Q3, with completion
targeted for early 2011. The decline will provide the most
cost-effective platform for evaluating controls on high-grade
mineralization, as well as conducting underground
exploration/definition drilling and bulk sampling.
Sandman
-- Drilling underway on newly permitted property
Sandman is a high-grade epithermal gold system under option to
Newmont USA Limited. Newmont has begun drilling up to eight new
high-priority targets identified through geophysical surveys
completed in 2008 and 2009. A second drill rig is planned for the
end of the month at North Hill, one of four deposits on the
property, to drill large diameter core for metallurgical test
purposes. Further step-out drilling at the Southeast Pediment
deposit is also planned.
In total, approximately 95 holes (approx.7,000 metres) are
planned for this year's $3-million work-program. Ongoing drilling
continues to intersect near-surface, high-grade oxide gold
mineralization, demonstrating the strength of this mineralized
system. The Winnemucca Bureau of Land Management recently approved
a new Exploration Plan of Operations for the Sandman property,
significantly increasing the area permitted for exploration and
development work from two square miles to 39 square miles.
Long Canyon
-- Aggressive resource definition and expansion
-- Metallurgical results demonstrate excellent gold recoveries
Long Canyon is a high grade gold deposit located in northeast
Nevada. Six drill rigs are currently operating and at least 45,000
metres of drilling planned, with an emphasis on resource definition
and resource expansion. As part of the $19.8-million
development/exploration program, Fronteer Gold plans to complete
the required metallurgical, engineering, and environmental work
necessary to move Long Canyon to pre-feasibility stage. Fronteer
Gold is majority owner (51%) and operator of Long Canyon in
joint-venture with AuEx Ventures Inc. (49%).
More detailed metallurgical test work confirms that gold
mineralization is amenable to low-cost, conventional, heap-leach
processing. Twenty-one core composites from three cross-sections
drilled in May 2009 were submitted to McClelland Laboratories Inc.
in Sparks, Nevada, for bottle-roll and column leach tests,
permeability, flotation, gravity and comminution testing.
Composites were column-leach tested using crush sizes of: 80%
passing -12.5mm, -25mm and -50mm crush sizes to determine gold
recovery, recovery rate and reagent requirements under simulated
heap leach conditions. Of composite material representing 82% of
the deposit's total ounces, column leach gold recoveries for high-
and medium-grade samples (greater than 1.26 g/t gold) averaged 88%
for -12.5mm, 87% for -25mm and 85% for -50mm crush sizes. A portion
of the low-grade (less than 1.26 g/t gold) rock-types exhibited
sensitivity to crush size and achieved lower recoveries than the
high- and medium-grade composites. However, these rock-types
represent approximately 8% of the deposit's contained ounces based
upon current geologic interpretation. The majority of the gold
leaching (greater than 80% leachable gold) occurred within a 10 to
40 day period with the coarser columns taking a little longer than
the finer crushed columns. For a typical, medium gold grade (3.22
g/t), leach kinetic curve, click here:
http://www.fronteergold.com/sites/files/fronteer_admin/LongCanyonLeachCurve1022.pdf.
Hydraulic conductivity measurements were two orders of magnitude
higher than typical heap percolation rates indicating that no
solution flow problems are anticipated for any of the composites
tested. The composites did not respond well to flotation or gravity
concentration likely owing to its totally oxidized nature and lack
of any significant elemental gold. Comminution tests showed that
the composites have low hardness and abrasion index numbers,
compared to the majority of gold milling operations processing
whole rock material around the world. Low energy input and low
materials wear rates are expected if a mill is needed for
processing all or a portion of the Long Canyon resource.
PROJECT HIGHLIGHTS - Turkey
Halilaga
-- Drilling of Central Zone and new targets underway
Halilaga, operated by our 60% joint venture partner Teck
Madencilik Sanayi Ticaret A.S. (Teck), is a significant copper-gold
porphyry system with excellent upside potential. Two rigs are
currently turning on site. The 10,000 metre, $2.7-million drill
program includes 8,500 metres of drilling at the main Central Zone,
with the remainder testing for porphyry targets outside this zone.
Drilling has currently identified copper-gold mineralization over a
strike length of 1, 200 metres and a width of 400 metres, with
thicknesses of up to 400 metres.
TV Tower
-- Seven targets to be drill-tested
TV Tower, also a 60/40% joint venture with Teck, is a new
exploration project that shows similarities to existing
high-sulphidation gold deposits in the Biga District. TV Tower is
located adjacent to Fronteer Gold and Teck's previously owned
Kirazli gold project. Seven targets have been identified featuring
classical high-sulphidation alteration signatures and the potential
for a large mineralized system. Additional rock and soil
geochemistry and 30-line kilometres of IP geophysical surveys are
underway. Targets are planned to be tested with an initial
2,000-metre drill program this July-August.
OTHER PROJECTS
Fronteer Gold has five other joint ventures with companies in
Nevada and Utah, including Stateline with Newmont; Easter with La
Quinta; Gold Springs 2 with High Desert Gold LLC, and Loomis with
International Enexco. Fronteer Gold has 15 properties leased to
third parties including Rosebud, Golden Arrow and Monte Cristo in
Nevada.
Gary Simmons, a Qualified Professional with the Mining and
Metallurgical Society of America and Fronteer Gold consultant, is
the Qualified Person who has overseen the collection and
verification of the metallurgical data for this release and has
reviewed and validated the metallurgical content in this release is
accurate.
Christopher Lee, P. Geo., Chief Geoscientist for Fronteer Gold,
is the company's designated Qualified Person for this news release
and has reviewed and validated that all other information contained
in the release is accurate.
ABOUT FRONTEER GOLD
We intend to become a significant gold producer. Our solid
financial position and strong operational team give us the ability
to advance our key gold projects through to production. Our future
potential production platform includes our Long Canyon, Sandman and
Northumberland projects - all located in Nevada, one of the
friendliest gold-mining jurisdictions in the world. Fronteer Gold
aims to build regional production by advancing these projects
sequentially over the near-term using existing cash resources -
funding the company's growth with low-risk of dilution. For further
information on Fronteer Gold visit www.fronteergold.com.
Except for the statements of historical fact contained herein,
certain information presented constitutes "forward-looking
statements" within the meaning of the United States Private
Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Such forward-looking
statements, including but not limited to, those with respect to
potential expansion of mineralization, potential size of
mineralized zone, and size of exploration program involve known and
unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors which may cause the
actual results, performance or achievement of Fronteer Gold to be
materially different from any future results, performance or
achievements expressed or implied by such forward-looking
statements. Such factors include, among others, risks related to
international operations and joint ventures , the actual results of
current exploration activities, conclusions of economic
evaluations, uncertainty in the estimation of ore reserves and
mineral resources, changes in project parameters as plans continue
to be refined, future prices of gold and silver, environmental
risks and hazards, increased infrastructure and/or operating costs,
labor and employment matters, and government regulation and
permitting requirements as well as those factors discussed in the
section entitled "Risk Factors" in Fronteer Gold's Annual
Information form and Fronteer Gold's latest Form 40-F on file with
the United States Securities and Exchange Commission in Washington,
D.C. Although Fronteer Gold has attempted to identify important
factors that could cause actual results to differ materially, there
may be other factors that cause results not to be as anticipated,
estimated or intended. There can be no assurance that such
statements will prove to be accurate as actual results and future
events could differ materially from those anticipated in such
statements. Fronteer Gold disclaims any intention or obligation to
update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a
result of new information, future events or otherwise. Accordingly,
readers should not place undue reliance on forward-looking
statements.
NEWS RELEASE 10-22
Contacts: Fronteer Gold Inc. Mark O'Dea President & CEO
604-632-4677 or Toll Free 1-877-632-4677 Fronteer Gold Inc. Troy
Fierro COO 604-632-4677 or Toll Free 1-877-632-4677 Fronteer Gold
Inc. Sean Tetzlaff CFO 604-632-4677 or Toll Free 1-877-632-4677
Fronteer Gold Inc. John Dorward VP, Business Development
604-632-4677 or Toll Free 1-877-632-4677 Fronteer Gold Inc. Glen
Edwards Director, Communications 604-632-4677 or Toll Free
1-877-632-4677 info@fronteergold.com www.fronteergold.com
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