Wilco Project Reports 1.28 Million Ounces Of Gold

VANCOUVER - Rye Patch Gold Corp reported the resource update on the Wilco project located along the Oreana gold and silver trend.

The Whittle pit resource was calculated using US$1,200 per ounce gold and US$20 per ounce silver. Mining, milling and leaching costs were assembled from nearby geologically similar gold and silver deposits. The calculation used key assumptions for mining, processing and gold and silver recoveries. A cost of US$1.20 per tonne was used from mining while the processing costs were broken down for oxide and mill material. For heap leaching, a cost of US$1.30 per tonne was used. Mill ore was calculated at US$7.25 per tonne. A pit slope of 50 degrees was achieved, and an overall strip ratio of 1.3 tonne of waste to 1 tonne of ore.

Gold and silver recoveries for the different process technologies were broken down for oxide leach, oxide mill and sulphide mill. Recoveries were based on metallurgical results from July 2011 for Wilco, process recoveries reported from nearby mining operations, and industry information. Heap leach recoveries for oxide material are 75% for gold and 50% for silver; oxide mill recoveries are 90% for gold and 70% for silver; and sulphide mill recoveries are 90% for gold and 85% for silver. However, additional metallurgical testing is required.

The Section Line pit measures 1,500 metres in an east-west direction, 1,100 metres in a north-south direction, and has a maximum depth of 340 metres. At Colado, the pit measures 750 metres in an east-west direction, 1,450 metres in a north-south direction, and has a maximum depth of 160 metres.

The resource estimates are based on 709 exploration drill holes. There were a total of 13,732 twenty-foot-length composites used in the estimation of gold and 13,732 twenty-foot-length composites used in the estimation of silver. The results were calculated using Vulcan software and stored in a Vulcan block model. SEWC used ordinary kriging as the preferred estimation technique for Section Line and inverse distance estimation methods on the Colado Deposit.

"The Company is delighted with the work completed to date and the in-pit resource estimate generated from the data. The project appears robust at gold and silver prices that are significantly below the current spot gold and silver price. There is additional upside in bringing material not included in the pits through additional drilling and metallurgical test work," said William C. Howald, President and CEO.