Silver Dollar La Joya Silver Project

La Joya Silver (Cu-Au) Project

Our drilling results include some of the highest grade hits ever reported from the Coloradito-Noria area of the La Joya property. One example is hole NOR-013, which was drilled a kilometre west of the Main Mineralized Trend and returned 815 g/t or 28.75 oz/ton AgEq over 5 metres within a broader interval of 363 g/t or 12.8 oz/ton AgEq over 19.35 metres," Mike Romanik, president of Silver Dollar.

Silver Dollar owns a 100% interest in the La Joya silver-copper-gold property (the "Property"). Optioned from First Majestic Silver in August 2020, Silver Dollar completed the acquisition last year ahead of schedule (See news release of May 25, 2023). First Majestic acquired the Property in 2015 as part of its acquisition of SilverCrest Mines; however, no work was carried out on the Property between 2015 and 2020.

Located in the south-eastern portion of the State of Durango in the Mexican Silver Belt, the Property is an advanced exploration stage property consisting of 15 mineral concessions totaling 4,646 hectares and hosting the Main Mineralized Trend (MMT), Santo Nino, and Coloradito deposits (Figure 2).

La Joya location and area mines Figure 1: Location of the La Joya Project along with past-producing and operating mines in the area.

The Property is situated approximately 75 kilometres (km) southeast of the state capital city of Durango in a prolific high-grade silver region with past-producing and operating mines, including Silver Stom's La Parrilla Mine, Industrias Penoles' Sabinas Mine, Grupo Mexico's San Martin Mine, Sabinas Mine, First Majestic's Del Toro Mine, and Pan American Silver's La Colorada Mine. Access and infrastructure near the Property are excellent (Figure 1).

Planview of the MMT, Santo Nino and Coloradito deposits, and Brazo and Central Dyke zonesFigure 2: Planview of the MMT, Santo Nino and Coloradito deposits, and Brazo and Central Dyke zones.

Modern exploration activity began on the Property in 1977, which included extensive drilling by previous operators: Luisman from 1977 to 1997, Boliden from 1998 to 2001, and Solid Resources in 2006. SilverCrest acquired the Property in June 2010 and initiated property-scale mapping and sampling that led to an improved understanding of the skarn and control of the mineralization. Two phases of drilling followed between 2010 and 2012, a 5,753.70 metre (m) Phase I program comprised of 26 holes and a 25,812.65 m Phase II program comprised of 78 holes. A Phase III program of 2,698 m of in-fill drilling comprised of 17 holes was also completed between February and March 2014. The Silvercrest drilling was relatively widespread in the MMT and the separate Santo Nino and Coloradito deposits (Figure 2 above, and Figure 3 and Photo 1 below)

Results from Silvercrest's Phase I and II programs along with 5,907.26 m of drilling by Luisman in 18 holes were included in the geological database used as source data for the mineral resource estimation (below) on the MMT and Santo Nino deposits. The mineral resource estimate was based on results from 122 drill holes totaling 37,473.61 m and had an effective date of December 16, 2012.  

La Joya Mineral Resource Update 121612

In December 2013, Silvercrest released a Preliminary Economic Assessment NI 43-101 Technical Report on the La Joya Property based on the mineral resource estimation (Table above). The mineral resource estimate was reported to conform to CIM definitions for resource estimation at that time. However, a qualified person of Silver Dollar has not done sufficient work to classify the historical resource, and the Company is not treating it as a current mineral resource. Independent data verification and an assessment of the mineral resource estimation methods are required to verify the historical mineral resource.

Historical Resource ModelFigure 3: Model of historical mineral resources for the MMT and Santo Nino deposits

Completing the acquisition of the La Joya Project last year was a major milestone for the Company. Our team has done an excellent job establishing a positive working relationship with the local communities and advancing the project, particularly when you consider we entered into this agreement during the height of COVID-19 restrictions," said Mike Romanik, president of Silver Dollar. “We have completed almost 6,000 metres of exploration drilling thus far, with results that include the discovery of the Brazo Zone, and continue with our new target development work. We would also like to thank the local communities for their cooperation and support.”

Examining La Joya drill core at the core shackPhoto 1: Reviewing historical drill core at the La Joya storage facility.

Work to date by Silver Dollar has focused on the underexplored Coloradito-Noria area of the Property and is highlighted by the discovery of the Brazo Zone, approximately 1 km west of the Main Mineralized Trend or MMT (Figure 4). Silver Dollar has completed two phases of core drilling, with the Phase I program consisting of 11 holes totaling 2,424 m of drilling (See news releases of March 24, 2022, and May 4, 2022, for assay results) and the Phase II program, consisting of 17 holes totaling 3,428 m of drilling (See news releases of June 13, 2022August 17, 2022, and October 25, 2022, for assay results).

LaJoya DDH Plan Map 110122 LRFigure 4: Location of Silver Dollar's Brazo discovery and Phase I and II drill holes. 

Silver Dollar's latest exploration programs have focused on new drill target development primarily consisting of geological mapping with limited drill testing to follow up on data from the ground magnetic (MAG) survey conducted in 2022. As previously reported (See news release of December 15, 2022), the MAG survey identified three notable anomalies (Figure 1: S-1, S-2, and S-3):

Coloradito-Noria geology and MAG targets.Figure 5: Coloradito-Noria geology, MAG anomalies, and target areas.

S-1 is a parallel zone to S-2 located 400 m to the east in a generally blind area mostly covered with caliche (hardpan) with limited outcrops of limestone and hornfels. Samples assayed from this area have not returned any significant results to date despite the magnetic reactions exhibited by some of the samples.

S-2, located approximately 400 m east of S-3, is now known as the Central Dyke Zone where mineralization is found in association with a dyke that runs north-south to north-northwest through the central part of Cerro Coloradito. This is the priority area for drill target development with exploration results described in detail below.

S-3 is coincident with the Brazo Zone where drill testing in hole NOR-23-030 encountered intense and extensive alteration but did not intersect Brazo style mineralization. A sharp change in the angle of the intrusive contact underscores the importance of the structural mapping that has been taking place to better define future drilling.

Central Dyke Zone:

As previously reported (See news release of February 13, 2013), mapping and sampling have included the collection of 156 channel samples along with 14 rock samples taken from outcrop and dumps that have delineated the Central Dyke Zone over a strike length of 770 m. Analytical results for all samples have been received with 134 of the 170 samples collected returning assays greater than 100 grams per tonne (g/t) silver equivalent (AgEq). Notably, sample #161 taken from a historical underground working called Hueco Grande (Photos 2 and 3) returned the highest grade with an assay of 4,311 g/t (or 152.07 ounces per tonne) AgEq.

Sample 161 and where it was taken from the Hueco Grande historical workingPhotos 2 and 3: Sample 161 and where it was taken from the Hueco Grande historical working.

The breakdown of the Central Dyke Zone sample assays greater than (>)100 g/t AgEq includes:

  • - 67 samples >100 g/t AgEq,
  • - 39 samples >200 g/t AgEq,
  • - 20 samples > 400 g/t AqEq, and
  • - 8 samples >700 g/t AgEq.

Note: The rock sample results and the photograph above are selective by nature and may not be representative of the true grade or style of mineralization across the Property. The AgEq results disclosed herein assume US$1,750 gold and US$22 silver per/oz, and US$4.30 copper, US$1.25 lead, and US$1.50 zinc per/lb, and 100% metallurgical recovery.

Ongoing work includes additional trenching and sampling (Photos 4 and 5) to further expose, sample, and interpret the Central Dyke mineralization with the aim of refining and defining potential drill targets.

Trenching and sampling in the Central Dyke ZonePhotos 4 and 5: Trenching and sampling in the Central Dyke Zone.

We are very pleased with the La Joya target development work and particularly the stellar sampling results that have now delineated the Central Dyke Zone over a strike length of 770 metres," said Michael Romanik, president of Silver Dollar. "Notably, sample 161 from the Hueco Grande working returned our highest grade to date on the Property at 152.07 ounces per tonne silver equivalent."

Procedure, quality assurance/quality control, and data verification:

All rock samples were taken, described, photographed, and bagged on-site. They were delivered by Silver Dollar staff to ActLabs in Zacatecas, Mexico, ActLabs is ISO 9001:2015 certified. Gold is analyzed by a 30g Fire Assay with AA (atomic absorption spectroscopy) finish, then gravimetric finish if greater than 10ppm Gold. Silver and 34 other elements were analyzed using a four-acid digestion with an ICP-OES (Inductively Coupled Plasma Optical Emission Spectroscopy) finish. Silver, lead, zinc, and copper over limits were re-assayed using an ore-grade four-acid digestion with ICP-AES (Inductively coupled plasma atomic emission spectroscopy) finish. Control samples comprising certified reference samples and blank samples were systematically inserted into the sample stream and analyzed as part of the Company's quality assurance and quality control protocol.

Silver Dollar owns a 100% interest in the La Joya property subject to a 2% net smelter returns royalty on all minerals produced from the Property.

Mike Kilbourne, P. Geo, an independent qualified person as defined in NI 43-101, has reviewed and approved the technical contents of this webpage on behalf of the Company.

Contact

Investor Relations: 
Michael Romanik, President, CEO & Director,
Direct line:  (204) 724-0613

Email: 

Admin. Contact:     
Phone:  (250) 474-7999
Fax:  (250) 474-7997
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Mailing address:
179-2945 Jacklin Road, Suite 416
Victoria, BC Canada
V9B 6J9