Buchans; Is There A Mine In Its Future?

Buchans Minerals Corporation (TSXV:BMC)
Basic Shares 124.6 million
Fully Diluted 140.5 million

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Given today’s metal prices, Buchans Minerals believes the known resources at its Lundberg & Engine House properties in Newfoundland warrant further detailed examination to determine the viability of it becoming an operating open pit mine.

As such, it has engaged Wardrop Engineering to complete a Preliminary Economic Assessment "PEA" on the Lundberg and Engine House deposits. The information from the recently completed detailed open pit mine plan based on a 5,000 tonne per day operation and the ongoing metallurgical tests at SGS Canada Inc. "SGS" will be incorporated into the PEA anticipated to be completed in the second quarter of 2011.

The open pit mine plan captures 16.64 million tonnes at a grade of 1.637% zinc (Zn), 0.698% lead (Pb), 0.406% copper (Cu), 5.97 g/t silver (Ag) and 1.254% barium (Ba) for a combined base metal grade of 2.74% (Zn, Pb, Cu).

Subject to it proceeding, the mine life is approximated at 10 years and the average stripping ratio is estimated to be 3.20 : 1 with 53.26 million tonnes of waste material being moved. The open pit would be located just west of the town of Buchans in central Newfoundland.

In addition to the open pit mine plan the Company has embarked on a bench scale metallurgical program to determine the recoverability of the metals from the resource.

In conjunction with the bench scale metallurgical tests currently ongoing at SGS laboratories, the preliminary mining plan will be evaluated with a view to potentially proceeding with a national instrument 43-101 compliant Preliminary Economic Assessment (“PEA”).

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