VANCOUVER, BRITISH COLUMBIA, Sep 10, 2013 (Menafn – Marketwired via COMTEX) –Santa Fe Metals Corp. (“SFM” or the “Company”) is pleased to announce the following corporate and project updates.
Management and Board Changes
At a recent Board of Directors meeting, several changes were approved to the management and Board of Directors of the Company. Mr. R. Stuart (“Tookie”) Angus has retired as Chairman of the Board and remains on the Board of Directors as an independent director. Mr. Ian Smith has stepped down from his role as President and CEO of the Company and has assumed the role of Chairman of the Board of Directors. Mr. Scott Broughton, P.Eng., was appointed to the Board of Directors and as President and CEO of the Company.
The Company wishes to thank Mr. Angus for his service as Chair and looks forward to his continued support and input as a valued Boardmember.
Messrs. Smith and Broughton have worked closely over the past several months to ensure a smooth transition of the duties and responsibilities of President and CEO, and to focus and re-brand the Company.
The Company believes that strong demand for copper will continue, that global production costs are unlikely to go down and that the discovery of new world-class deposits is significantly constrained. As a result of poor mining and exploration markets for the past many quarters, opportunities to acquire large-scale copper-focused projects are currently unmatched. To that end, the Company has recently been engaged in the evaluation of projects in Colombia and Central Africa.
Santa Fe has experience and strength in this world-class copper focus and proposes to deliver compelling project opportunities and to add value to those projects through acquisition, exploration and development.
Mr. Scott Broughton, P.Eng., has worked in the mining industry for 30 years and has a broad range of hands-on experience in a variety of operations, consulting and corporate settings. He has well-developed entrepreneurial, management and finance skills. He has been involved in every aspect of mining and exploration; from corporate development, team building and financing to project management, permitting, development and construction. Scott is a recipient of the 2008 Edgar A. Scholz Award for Excellence in Mine Development and the 2009 BC Mining and Sustainability Award. He is Vice-Chair and a member of the Executive Committee of the Mining Association of British Columbia.
Mr. Ian Smith, is an experienced mining engineer with over 45 years’ experience in corporate, operations, project management and consulting internationally. His career work has been dominated by engineering and operations at large-scale open pit copper mines. Mr. Smith was also President and founding partner of MRDI, a successful mining consultancy that was ultimately purchased in 1995. He has completed strategic planning and engineering studies on large-scale mining projects around the world and has an extensive network in the industry.
Project Updates
Mande Norte, Colombia
Further to its news release dated October 29, 2012, the Company has to date been unable complete a purchase agreement with Gold Plata Mining International Corporation, regarding the proposed purchase of the Mande Norte Project located in Colombia.
Cuatro Cienegas, Mexico
Santa Fe has signed a letter of intent (“LOI”) to sell up to 100% of its interest in the Cuatro Cienegas project in Mexico to Brigadier Gold Corp. (“Brigadier”) by way of staged earn-in over a three year period. The LOI contemplates an upfront payment to the Company of 200,000 (which was received on September 6, 2013) and payment by Brigadier of the second semester of 2013 taxes in respect of the property. The parties will work toward signing a definitive agreement, subject to TSX Venture Exchange approval, and, if necessary, shareholder approval, before December 15, 2013.
Preston, British Columbia
The Company recently conducted a small work program on the Preston property including channel sampling, mapping, grab sampling and micro-drilling small 51 mm holes using a gas-powered backpack diamond drill. These holes penetrated the rock up to a depth of 10 metres (the maximum capacity of the micro drill).
Pursuant to the terms of a February 2013 Letter Agreement between the Company and a third party optionor of the property, the Company must spend a minimum of 300,000 in qualifying expenditures by December 31, 2013 in order to earn a 25% interest in the property. After reviewing results from the fieldwork, the Company has elected not to continue with the option agreement.
Scott Broughton, P.Eng., President and CEO of the company, is a qualified person as defined by National Instrument 43-101 – Standards For Disclosure of Mineral Projects and has reviewed and approved the technical disclosure of this news release.
This news release contains forward-looking statements, including statements relating to the Company’s future plans and objectives with respect to proposed transactions and the exploration and development of various mineral projects. This news release also contains forward-looking statements with respect to the demand for copper, production costs of copper, discovery of new world-class deposits, mining and exploration markets, opportunities to acquire new mineral projects and the Company’s experience and strength regarding mineral project opportunities. Forward-looking statements are based on numerous assumptions and are subject to all of the risks and uncertainties inherent in the Company’s business, including risks inherent in resource exploration and development. There can be no assurance that proposed transactions will be completed as proposed or at all, or that economic resources will be discovered or developed at various mineral projects.
The TSX Venture Exchange has in no way passed upon the merits of the proposed transactions and has neither approved nor disapproved the contents of this news release.
Neither TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in policies the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this news release.
Contacts:
Santa Fe Metals Corp.
1 (604) 678-8823
1 (778) 327-4770 (FAX)
www.santafemetals.com
SOURCE: Santa Fe Metals Corp.
