VANCOUVER, BRITISH COLUMBIA--(Marketwire - Sept. 12, 2012) - Orko Silver Corp. (News - Market indicators) is pleased to announce that a field exploration program has commenced on the Esmeralda Targets area of the La Preciosa Silver-Gold Project in Durango, Mexico. The Esmeralda Targets area, located 12 kms northwest of Orko's La Preciosa deposit, consists of a series of major fault controlled blocks, with three historic mining workings called El Cristo, La Blanca and La Esmeralda.
Gary Cope, President of Orko, states: "This is an important expansion of the exploration of Orko's large mineral land concessions in Durango. Reconnaissance studies have yielded interesting results worthy of more detailed field exploration."
Exposures in the area consist of Tertiary age Upper Volcanic Group rhyolites, ignimbrites, and dacites, overlying the Lower Volcanic Group andesites. A structural geology mapping and geochemistry study will be conducted over the six major fault controlled blocks.
The El Cristo Mine, west of the village of Ricardo Flores Magon, has a north-south trending, 3 metre wide quartz-fluorite structure, with historic surface cuts over 150 metres, a shaft and underground levels to about 40 metres depth. The La Blanca Mine is located 1.8 km north of El Cristo and contains a series of narrow silicified and brecciated fractures exposed in several small pits and shafts. The Esmeralda Mine is located 3.7 km northwest of El Cristo and has two small shafts and rock piles, about 500 metres apart. Several reconnaissance rock samples taken in this area yielded elevated silver values, including one high sample at 515.3 g/t. There has been no previous drilling in the area.
Orko Silver Corp. holds over 32,000 hectares of mineral concessions as one contiguous block on the Mesa Central, east of the Sierra Madre Occidental mountains, in the heart of the "Mexican Silver Trend".
As previously announced on June 5, 2012, Orko is also in the process of updating the NI 43-101 compliant resource estimate at La Preciosa, through Mining Plus, an international mining consultancy group. Mining Plus is working in conjunction with AMEC Americas Limited ("AMEC"), who will then prepare a new Preliminary Economic Assessment for the project. The previous resource estimate from August, 2011 contained an Indicated Resource of 24.8 million tonnes grading 142 g/t Ag and 0.28 g/t Au, for a silver-equivalent of 126 million ounces, plus an Inferred Resource of 15.2 million tonnes grading 96 g/t Ag and 0.17 g/t Au, for a silver-equivalent of 52 million ounces.
Ben Whiting, M.Sc., P.Geo., is the Qualified Person for Orko Silver Corp. and takes responsibility for the technical disclosure in this news release.
Silver-equivalent for the purposes of this program is defined as silver grade plus 60 times gold grade. This 60:1 ratio was determined from the ten-year averages of gold and silver prices from the London Metal Exchange. Metallurgical recoveries and net smelter returns are assumed to be 100% for the silver-equivalent value. Base metal values are not included in the silver-equivalent.
About Orko Silver Corp.
Orko Silver Corp. is developing one of the world's largest primary silver deposits, La Preciosa, located near the city of Durango, in the State of Durango, Mexico.
ON BEHALF OF THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS
Gary Cope, President
This News Release may contain forward-looking statements including but not limited to comments regarding the timing and content of upcoming work programs, geological interpretations, receipt of property titles, potential mineral recovery processes, etc. Forward-looking statements address future events and conditions and therefore involve inherent risks and uncertainties. Actual results may differ materially from those currently anticipated in such statements and Orko undertakes no obligation to update such statements, except as required by law.
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