Olivut Resources Ltd. (TSXV: OLV) has announced that it has signed a non-binding Letter of Intent dated February 15, 2011 with Latin American Minerals Inc. (TSXV: LAT) to explore the Itapoty Diamond Project located in central Paraguay, South America.
The Company is very pleased to be working on this new opportunity as it complements Olivut's existing portfolio of diamond exploration properties in Canada and Uruguay, South America. The Company will be able to utilize its team located in Montevideo, Uruguay to evaluate the potential of the Itapoty Diamond Property.
Highlights of the Itapoty Diamond Project include:
- Stream and rock sample results have yielded numerous Kimberlite Indicator Minerals (KIMs)
- 37 diamonds have been recovered from the property by LAT
- Diamond distribution suggests local and multiple sources
- Diamonds found in coarse fraction (1-2 mm)
- Surface features of diamonds indicate proximal sources
- Regional and local geology supports emplacement of diatremes and dykes
Pursuant to the LOI, the Company and LAT have agreed to negotiate a binding agreement (the "Definitive Agreement") with respect to the Itapoty Diamond Project, anticipated to be finalized no later than March 31, 2011, and if executed, it is anticipated that work will begin immediately on the Itapoty Diamond Project. Pursuant to the LOI terms, the Definitive Agreement would provide Olivut with an option to earn 50% of the project by incurring CDN$250,000 in expenses related to the property in the first 12 months and an additional CDN$750,000 in the following 18 months. Olivut would be the operator of the project. As the LOI is non-binding and is subject to further negotiations, there is no assurance that a Definitive Agreement will be entered into on these terms or at all.
Paraguay remains largely underexplored. It depends for the most part on agriculture production which comprises the vast majority of the country's exports. Argentina and Brazil are its main trading partners.
Rivera Project Update
An early 2011 exploration program is scheduled for the Rivera Diamond Project in Uruguay. Olivut is operator for the Rivera project, a joint venture with Orosur Mining Inc. ("Orosur") (TSXV: OMI). The Company has an option to earn 51% in the project by incurring a total of CDN$750,000 by December 31, 2011. The August 1, 2010 CDN$250,000 earn-in expenditure commitment has been met. Encouraging results from the 2010 pit and stream sampling program as well as the shallow, reverse-circulation drill program, justifies further work. Geophysical analysis conducted over the past several months, combined with very positive indicator mineral chemistry from an unknown source and local geomorphology, has resulted in numerous new drill targets being delineated.
Negotiations have been undertaken to allow access to test these anomalies. Landowner agreements are being finalized, as is the government permitting process, to enable drilling on the priority targets.
HOAM Project Update
The Company's third area of focus, the HOAM Project, will have a full field season of work conducted during 2011. A drill program is being planned to test targets. The Company is very pleased that reinterpretation and analysis of its geophysical data, as well as additional detailed geophysical work, has resulted in numerous new priority targets. Analysis is ongoing. The source of the Company's very positive indicator mineral chemistry, which includes a high percentage of diamond stability field indicator minerals, remains to be found. Additional airborne magnetic surveys and geochemical surveys may also be undertaken. Olivut has discovered 23 kimberlites in this new kimberlite province in Canada.
The Company had approximately $2.9 million in working capital at October 31, 2010.
Source: Olivut Resources Ltd.