🕐29.10.09 - 12:48 Uhr
GREAT WESTERN MINERALS GROUP CONTINUES WORK AT BENJAMIN RIVER
GREAT WESTERN MINERALS GROUP CONTINUES WORK AT BENJAMIN RIVER
October 29, 2009 - Saskatoon, Saskatchewan - Great Western Minerals Group
Ltd.
("GWMG" or the "Company") is pleased to announce that the next phase of
exploration work is now in progress at its Benjamin River rare earth project
in New Brunswick, Canada.
Fugro Airborne Surveys Corp.
completed a 1712 line-km helicopter-borne
magnetic and radiometric survey over the project area.
The goal of the
survey is to further delineate and extend the zone of known rare earth
mineralization and identify new areas of potential rare earth
mineralization.
The data is now being compiled and interpreted.
A
stream-sediment sampling program over the property has also been initiated.
As announced in a news release of June 1, 2009, the Company completed ground
geophysics over the known exposures of a rare earth-bearing
apatite-diopside-magnetite vein system.
This survey outlined a geophysical
anomaly approximately 1,200m long with widths up to 200m.
Previous trenches
within the anomaly have been cleaned out with a backhoe and geological
mapping and sampling of the trenches is underway.
Based on the ground work completed to date, initial drill hole locations
have been selected, and Major Drilling has been awarded the contract to
complete a minimum of 2000m of core drilling before year end.
The scope of
the drill program may be significantly expanded once the results of the
airborne geophysics and stream-sediment geochemistry have been analyzed.
The budget for the current program is estimated at approximately $750,000.
Funding of these programs is also being provided by the New Brunswick Junior
Mining Assistance Program.
Previous sampling of the Benjamin River mineralization yielded significant
rare earth values (0.6% total rare earth oxide to 1.0% total rare earth
oxide) with "heavy" rare earth oxides (yttrium plus europium through
lutetium) representing 30% of the total rare earth content.
Significant
values of phosphate and iron were also noted.
GWMG can earn a 100% interest in the Benjamin River property by making a
series of cash payments, issuing common shares, and granting a net smelter
return royalty to the vendor as reported in the Companys news release of
January 8, 2009.
Jim Engdahl, President and CEO notes, "With our balance sheet in order and
the Company debt-free, we can now focus our attention on aggressively moving
our rare earth projects forward as we strive to complete our mine-to-market
business model.
We expect a steady stream of news in the coming months as
we advance several of our mineral projects and work on expanding the
value-added capability at our UK and US manufacturing plants."
John Pearson, MSc, PGeo, Vice-President Exploration for GWMG, is the
qualified person responsible for reviewing the contents of this news
release.
About Great Western Minerals Group Ltd.
Great Western Minerals Group Ltd.
is a Canadian-based company with six rare
earth exploration and development properties in North America with an option
on a sizable additional property in South Africa.
In addition, as part of
the Companys strategy to pursue a vertically-integrated business model, the
Companys wholly-owned subsidiaries of Less Common Metals Limited located in
Birkenhead UK, and Great Western Technologies Inc., located in Troy,
Michigan, produce a variety of specialty alloys for use in the battery,
magnet and aerospace industries.
These "designer" alloys include those
containing aluminum, copper, nickel, cobalt and the rare earth elements.
For further information, please contact Ron Malashewski, Manager of Investor
Relations at (306) 659-4516.
Email inquiries should be made to
and the company website is located at www.gwmg.ca.
Inquiries by direct mail
should be addressed to Great Western Minerals Group Ltd., 226 Cardinal
Crescent, Saskatoon, SK S7L 6H8.
Cautionary Statement on Forward-Looking Information: Certain information set
out in this News Release constitutes forward-looking information.
Forward-looking statements (often, but not always, identified by the use of
words such as "expect", "may", "could", "anticipate" or "will" and similar
expressions) are based upon the opinions, expectations and estimates of
management of the Company as at the date the statements are made and are
subject to a variety of known and unknown risks and uncertainties and other
factors that could cause actual events or outcomes to differ materially from
those anticipated or implied by such forward-looking statements.
Readers
are cautioned not to place undue reliance upon forward-looking information.
Although the Company believes that the expectations reflected in the
forward-looking statements set out in this press release or incorporated
herein by reference are reasonable, it can give no assurance that such
expectations will prove to have been correct.
The TSX Venture Exchange has not reviewed and does not accept responsibility
for the adequacy or accuracy of this news release.