News Release: February 10th, 2005
Gold Values Returned from
Surface Sampling at the Caballo Blanco Project
The Caballo Blanco project
is optioned to Comaplex Minerals Ltd. (Comaplex) who can earn
a 60% interest in the project by spending US$2 Million over four
years. The property is located roughly 60 kilometers north of
Veracruz City, Mexico. Infrastructure is excellent as the prospective
areas of the property are all located within 10 kilometers of
a paved highway and Mexico's only nuclear power plant. In 2003,
Comaplex completed a large field program over both the Highway
and Northern zones of the property, the centres of which are
located roughly 7 kilometers apart. Geologic and alteration mapping
in these areas has identified extensive zones of acid-sulphate
alteration including quartz alunite and residual or vuggy silica
alteration zones. These zones of alteration, developed in flat
lying volcanic rocks, are interpreted to represent a large high
sulphidation gold-silver system.
The work by Comaplex has defined
several prominent drill targets. A drill program that was to
have commenced in earlier in the year has been delayed due to
additional permitting requirements, shortage of drilling equipment,
difficulties in road building and the summer rainy season. Drilling
on a portion of the southern Highway zone commenced in November,
2004 and shut down for the Christmas season. The core has been
logged and sampled by Comaplex staff and results will be reported
by Almaden when they have been received from Comaplex. To date
the drilling on the Highway zone has not tested the principle
targets of interest. These will likely be drilled at the same
time that the first drilling will be undertaken at the Northern
Zone. This program is currently planned for March/April, 2005
and will utilise a man-portable diamond drill rig. Utilising
this equipment is anticipated to greatly reduce the difficulties
in access and road building encountered in the past due to very
hard and rocky ground conditions.
The road building to date
has allowed for greater access to the Northern zone, where in
January, 2005 Almaden and Comaplex staff have sampled one of
several areas of outcrop of vuggy silica and quartz-alunite acid
sulphate alteration. Thirty-two rock chip samples were collected
over a roughly 35 by 100 meter area of vuggy silica. These samples
averaged 0.62 g/t gold and ranged from 0.01 to 4.67 g/t gold.
Eleven samples returned gold grades above 0.50 g/t gold and six
above 1.00 g/t gold. These results, which are interpreted to
represent the gold content of a very high level in a well preserved
high-sulphidation epithermal system, are considered by Almaden
to be very encouraging. The area sampled on surface is spatially
immediately above significant resistivity highs identified in
a ground geophysical induced polarization (IP) survey previously
carried out by Comaplex. The IP survey also identified high chargeability
responses associated with the high resistivity responses at depth.
This data suggests that resistive, vuggy silica material, similar
to that sampled in outcrop, is oxidized at surface and may extend
to considerable depth.
Mr. Andris Kikauka, P.Geo.
was the qualified person, under the meaning of National Instrument
43-101, reviewing the sampling reported in this news release.
The samples were analysed at ALS Chemex Laboratories in North
Vancouver, Canada using conventional fire assay, and inductively
coupled plasma atomic emission spectroscopy (ICP) methods.
Almaden will report the results of all future work from the Caballo
Blanco project as soon as they are received from Comaplex. Almaden
currently has 12 active joint ventures, including 8 in which
other companies are carrying all costs in order to earn an interest
in the projects. Almaden will continue with its successful business
model of identifying exciting new projects through early stage
grass roots exploration and managing risk by forming joint ventures
in which partner companies explore and develop our projects in
return for the right to earn an interest in them.
ON BEHALF OF THE BOARD
OF DIRECTORS
Duane Poliquin
The Toronto Stock Exchange
has not reviewed nor accepted responsibility for the adequacy
or accuracy of the contents of this news release which has been
prepared by management. Statements contained in this news release
that are not historical facts are forward looking statements
as that term is defined in the private securities litigation
reform act of 1995. Such forward -looking statements are subject
to risks and uncertainties which could cause actual results to
differ materially from estimated results. Such risks and uncertainties
are detailed in the Company's filing with the Securities and
Exchange Commission.
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