July 25, 2002
NEW GOLD DISCOVERY AT THE PASSENDRO PROJECT AREA, CENTRAL AFRICAN REPUBLIC
Toronto, Ontario – AXMIN Inc. (AXM-TSX Venture) today announces assay results from the Rotary Air Blast ("RAB") drilling program in the Main Zone area on the Passendro project, Bambari permit in the Central African Republic. Assay results for the French Camp Zone are expected in early August. The drill program has identified a new zone of gold mineralisation called the "Katsia" prospect as well as having confirmed the southeasterly extension of the Main Zone, referred to as "Main Zone South". In addition drilling delineated strongly anomalous gold mineralisation over a broad corridor to the northwest of the Main Zone referred to as "Main Zone North".
By tightly delineating targets, the RAB program is considered to be a key step in the planning for a substantial follow up reverse circulation ("RC") and core drilling program scheduled for the dry season in early 2003 that would focus on resource definition.
This RAB program involved shallow, vertical drilling of saprolite to depths of 20-25 metres, with holes located at 20 metre intervals along fences. This technique has been successfully used before at Passendro Main Zone to outline mineralisation prior to follow-up by angled RC drilling. From this previous experience, average gold grades from 0.4-1.0 g/t Au over the length of the vertical RAB holes can substantially underestimate the grade of mineralisation where vertical drill holes test sub-vertical structures. In these previous instances, hole grades of 0.4-1.0 g/t Au equated to eventual average grades that typically exceed 3 g/t Au when subsequently drilled across structure by angled RC holes. Therefore, average hole grades of 0.4 g/t Au have been taken in the main as a cut off level in this program to delineate the targets for resource drilling. Width of structure can only be determined when angled holes are used.
Katsia Prospect
The Katsia prospect represents the first new discovery of the recently completed RAB drill program and is located about 1 kilometre east southeast of the Main Zone. The Katsia prospect has been identified across four drill fences set between 160 metres and 320 metres apart, over a strike length of 800 metres. The zone remains open to the northwest and to the southeast, with soil geochemistry suggesting that it could eventually be traced over a distance of at least 1,500 metres (see accompanying map and section). Preliminary interpretation suggests gold mineralisation to be associated with quartz and tourmaline in greenschists and banded ironstone formations (BIF), similar to that of the Main Zone. At least two parallel zones of gold mineralisation have been interpreted, with inferred widths ranging from 20-70 metres.
The table below summarises the weighted average gold grade across each fence within the mineralised zone. Individual holes contain intersections over 5 metre widths that can range up to 5.3 g/t Au.
| Katsia Prospect – RAB drill program 2002 |
| |
West Zone |
East Zone |
| Fence No. |
Width
(m)
|
Av. Grade1
(g/t Au) |
Width
(m) |
Av. Grade1
(g/t Au) |
| 2840 |
30 |
0.5 |
60 |
0.9 |
| 2520 |
>20 |
0.5 |
70 |
1.1 |
| 2200 |
|
|
50 |
0.5 |
| 2040 |
|
|
40 |
0.4 |
| 1 average grade of all holes in the zone, from surface to end of each hole. |
|
Using historic data as a guide it is anticipated that the results from the current vertical RAB drill program point to the likely existence of economically significant widths and grades of gold mineralisation over at least 800 metres of strike length at the Katsia prospect.
Main Zone South
A single RAB fence was drilled to test the southeasterly extension of the Main Zone. The fence was designed to test a 240 metre wide corridor, 320 metres southeast of the most southerly line in Main Zone and is contained within a soil anomaly (50ppb) that extends in a more broken fashion for at least 400 metres to the southeast of the RAB fence.
Vertical holes were drilled along the fence at 20 metre intervals and to a depth of 25 metres. Strongly anomalous gold mineralisation was identified over a 140 metre wide corridor. The weighted average grade for all drill intersections beneath the surface ferricrete cover was 0.55 g/t Au with individual intersections over 5 metres of up to 2 g/t Au.
The assay results from this RAB fence indicate that within this corridor there are gold mineralised structures with potential for economic grades and widths which could extend the strike of the Main Zone to the southeast by at least 320 metres. This does not take into account the soil anomaly, which would extend the strike a further 400 metres to the southeast.
Main Zone North
One RAB fence tested a corridor of 140 metres width located about 1,600 metres northwest and along strike from the most northerly fence previously drilled on the Main Zone. Two other RAB fences were abandoned due to poor ground conditions caused in part by a high water table. The completed fence (line 13040N) extends to 800 metres a zone of anomalous gold mineralisation between 100-150 metres wide which was previously identified in two RC holes drilled in the 2000 program, with average grades of 0.5 g/t Au. Although no higher grade core zone has yet been indentified in this area, the target warrants further drill testing, with strike extensions possible in both directions.
The RAB drilling program was completed utilising the AXMIN owned "Timberjack Rig" which has proven to have high mobility and productivity, enabling drill samples to be collected efficiently and economically. Samples were collected on a 1 metre basis, prior to compositing to form 5 metre samples that were sent to the independent OMAC Ltd laboratory in Ireland for 50 gram fire assay.
 
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