VANCOUVER, BRITISH COLUMBIA--(Marketwire - June 14, 2011) - Kent Exploration Inc. (the "Company" or "Kent") (News - Market indicators)(FRANKFURT:7KX) reports that it has completed a sampling program at the Red Queen prospect in the northern end of its Lyell Gold Project, approximately 35 kilometers northeast of the town of Westport, West Coast, South Island, New Zealand.
The Lyell area is considered to be the northern extension of the mesothermal Reefton gold field that has historically produced 2.1 million ounces of lode gold and is the location of the currently operating Globe Progress Gold Mine. The Lyell area contains a number of mines with a total recorded historic underground production of in excess of 91,000 oz gold from narrow high grade quartz veins.
The Red Queen prospect is located on the south bank of the Mokihinui river and produced in total approximately 96,420 grams Au (3,100 oz Au) at a reported average grade of 40.32 g/tonne Au (1.4 oz/t Au) up until 1910 with the highest reported grade being 88.78 g/tonne Au (2.89 oz/t Au). The Red Queen prospect consists of the Red Queen, the Swastika and on strike across the river on the northern bank, the Halcyon workings (average reported historic grade of 30.61 g/tonne Au (1 oz/t Au) for a strike length of approximately 750 meters.
The sampling program was conducted in the historic Red Queen and Swastika workings. The Red Queen quartz vein has a reported width averaging 0.5 meters and visible gold is present in the quartz as flakes, blebs and small flecks. The Company sampled 0.2 meters at 69.4 g/tonne Au from the face of the Red Queen vein in the lower level adit during the 2010 work program that essentially confirmed a historic sample of 88.78 g/tonne (2.89 oz/t Au) taken at the same location during the 1930's. The highest reported grade from the Red Queen vein was from the Paines drive and assayed 168.74 g/tonne (5.51 oz/t). The Swastika vein is parallel to and approximately 30 meters apart from the Red Queen and has a reported historic grade of 7.67 g/tonne Au (0.25 oz/t) over a reported average width of approximately 3 meters. Previous and current exploration shows that gold mineralization in the Red Queen vein and the parallel Swastika vein is hosted in quartz veins in general association with pyrite and arsenopyrite.
Chip samples were taken at 5 meter intervals along the 16 meter length of the Red Queen lower level cross cut with the highest grade being 6.87 g/tonne Au. Chip samples were taken every 5 meters from the wall rock of the Red Queen over 112 meters along the Paines drive, 200 meters along the lower drive, and for 60 meters along the Swastika drive. Anomalous gold (less than 1 g/tonne Au) associated with elevated arseno-pyrite was present in the majority of wall rock samples, with the highest grade being 1.1 g/tonne Au in the Paines drive, 2.53 g/tonne Au in the Red Queen lower level and 1.66 g/tonne Au in the Swastika. The Company notes that the majority of the recorded production from the Red Queen vein was mined from the Paines drive. The lower Red Queen drive runs parallel to and approximately 16 meters to the west of the Red Queen vein, that was neither mined at this level, nor stoped between the levels. The elevation difference between the lower Red Queen level and the upper Swastika level is approximately 160 meters and is open along strike and to depth.
The gold values present in the Red Queen cross cut, where quartz veins of from 3 cm to 10 cm in width are present, indicates the higher grade quartz veins may be surrounded by a lower grade gold bearing mineralized halo that may be in excess of 16 meters in width. The known length of the Red Queen/Swastika workings is in excess of 290 meters and, including the Halcyon workings which are on strike, appears to extend for over 750 meters. The Red Queen/Swastika veins dip at an approximate angle of -74 degrees to the west with a known vertical extent of in excess of 160 meters (525 feet). Mineralization is open along strike and to depth.
The Company advises that where the grade is stated in ounces per ton, (oz/t) the "Ton" referred to in this news release is the "Long Ton", being 2,240 lbs or 1.1063 Metric Tonnes (Williams, Economic Geology of New Zealand) and has been converted to grams/tonne using the factor 0.98421.
With the Alexander River and Lyell Gold Projects, the Company now has two gold projects on the West Coast of the South Island of New Zealand that have the potential to host economic gold mineralization. Work on the Lyell Gold Project is ongoing.
Lyell North Exploration Background
Narrow lenticular, parallel bedding, gold bearing veins were reported from near the head of the Mokihinui River from about 1875. Initially the Halcyon Mine was established on the north bank and obtained grades in excess of 30.61 g/tonne Au (1 oz/t Au). In 1884 a number of other companies, viz. Red Queen, South Pacific, Mokihinui, Southern Light, Lady Agnes and Guiding Star, were established on other gold bearing occurrences in this area. The Swastika Company explored several massive quartz outcrops and obtained grades of about 7.67 g/tonne Au (0.25 oz/t) but these were not sufficient at the time to continue work.
The Southern Light Mine was located on outcrop further north on the same line as the Red Queen, and a small gold mine, the Strathconor, was reportedly worked in the Rough & Tumble Creek in the early 1900's. An approximately one metre thick mineralized quartz vein is reported from a 30m wide zone of silicified Greenland Group with assays of up to 11.81 g/tonne gold and 333 g/tonne Ag (10 oz/t Ag) silver. At the Lyell, numerous small gold mines were worked up until the early 1930's, with the most productive being the Red Queen, which produced approximately 96,420 grams Au (3,100 oz Au) at a historic reported grade of 40.32g/tonne Au (1.4 oz/t Au). Adits are located intermittently along a gold-mineralized northerly to north-westerly trend over a strike length of approximately 3 km to the north and south of the Mohikinui River.
Kent Exploration Inc. is a junior exploration company that has an approximate 35% interest in, and is the controlling shareholder of, Archean Star Resources Inc, ("Archean") which is listed on the TSX Venture Exchange under the symbol ASP. Archean's wholly owned subsidiary, Archean Star Resources Australia, Pty, Ltd, ("ASRA") has an Option Agreement, subject to a 75% back in right, to earn 100% of Teck's interest in Chalice Gold Mines Limited's Gnaweeda Gold Project in West Australia. The Company has also acquired the Alexander River, Paparoa and Lyell gold projects in the highly prolific Reefton gold field in New Zealand.
The Company has an option to earn a 100% interest in the Silver Hills property, a silver/lead/zinc prospect in south-eastern British Columbia, The Company has a 100% interest in Coal Prospecting Permits covering approximately 92,000 ha in east-central Saskatchewan, a 100% interest in a mining lease option on the Flagstaff Mountain property, a fully permitted mine which is approved to produce up to 100,000 tons of barite per year, a gold/silver/zinc/barite prospect in eastern Washington state, a 100% interest in the mining lease option on the Ivanhoe Creek property, a Midas-style gold/silver target in Nevada's Carlin Trend, and 50% of a 100% interest in the Ivanhoe Creek placer claims covering a bentonite deposit.
This News Release has been prepared on behalf of the Kent Exploration Inc. Board of Directors, which accepts full responsibility for its contents. The content of this release has been reviewed and approved by Marvin A. Mitchell, P. Eng. A qualified person as defined by National Instrument NI-43-101.
ON BEHALF OF THE BOARD
Graeme O'Neill, President
Neither the TSX Venture Exchange, nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange), has reviewed, nor do they accept responsibility for, the adequacy or accuracy of this news release.