VANCOUVER, British Columbia, Nov. 25, 2019 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Imperial Metals Corporation (the “Company”) (TSX:III) reports results from the 2019 diamond drill program completed at the Ruddock Creek Project. The program consisted of 17 drill holes totaling 8,802.1 metres targeting the V Zone (11 drill holes; 6,955.5 metres) and the Q Zone (6 drill holes; 1,846.6 metres).  Drilling was conducted from  a combination of helicopter support and road accessible drill pads.

Highlights include drill hole RD-19-V54 which intersected 40.9 metres (true thickness 36.8 metres) grading 16.83% zinc, 3.46% lead and 4.74 g/t silver, including 20.1 metres grading 18.93% zinc, 4.15% lead and 6.11 g/t silver. Drill hole RD-19-V54 was drilled targeting the deep V Zone (where 2018 drill hole RD-18-V41 intersected 21.7 metres (true thickness 21.5 metres) grading 16.99% zinc, 3.44% lead and 2.41 g/t silver, including 10.4 metres grading 25.70% zinc, 5.41% lead and 3.44 g/t silver).  

Drill hole RD-19-V54 intersected mineralization 52.0 metres above 2018 drill hole RD-18-V41 and confirmed the presence of wide, high grade mineralization first intersected in RD-V18-41. Drill hole RD-19-V52 intersected mineralization approximately 100 metres west and 100 metres below drill hole RD-19-V54. Drill holes RD-19-V46 and RD-19-V49 were targeting the eastern extent of the V Zone and intersected the mineralization at approximately 400 metres below surface and 100 metres along strike at the same elevation. A plan map and two sections are available on the Company’s Ruddock Creek webpage.

Select significant intersections:

V Zone Drill Holes	Total Length (m)	Interval from (m)	Interval To (m)	Interval Length (m)	Estimated True Thickness* (m)	Zinc (%)	Lead (%)	Silver (g/t)
RD-19-V44	683.4	276.5	340.7	64.2	22.5	2.16	0.36	0.95
includes		276.5	284.8	8.3	2.9	4.00	0.70	2.66
includes		317.6	340.7	23.1	8.1	3.11	0.57	0.58
and		423.3	432.8	9.5	3.3	7.78	1.54	3.57
and		476.1	488.5	12.4	4.3	10.56	2.06	2.74
and		497.4	502.6	5.2	1.8	7.42	1.60	1.50
RD-19-V45	602.0	306.8	315.9	8.5	8.1	6.02	0.86	2.34
includes		312.6	315.9	3.3	3.1	12.92	1.90	4.70
RD-19-V46	648.3	451.1	458.5	7.5	6.4	4.89	0.60	1.17
and		514.6	533.6	19.0	16.2	4.03	0.49	2.93
includes		527.0	530.2	3.2	2.7	6.83	0.44	7.06
and		577.0	587.6	10.6	9.0	6.96	1.10	1.40
RD-19-V47	600.2	331.3	332.1	0.8	0.8	8.71	2.73	2.00
RD-19-V48	535.5	433.6	437.3	3.7	3.7	4.51	0.79	4.11
RD-19-V49	678.8	543.0	552.9	9.9	8.9	10.44	2.16	1.74
and		565.3	569.0	3.7	3.3	2.36	0.23	0.00
RD-19-V51	700.1	597.7	599.3	1.6	1.4	2.33	0.73	0.37
RD-19-V52	861.4	732.8	747.0	14.2	12.8	5.45	0.82	1.39
RD-19-V54	864.4	760.0	800.9	40.9	36.8	16.83	3.46	4.74
includes		780.0	800.1	20.1	18.1	18.93	4.15	6.11
includes		760.0	775.0	15.0	13.5	19.05	3.66	4.23

Q Zone Drill Holes	Total Length (m)	Interval from (m)	Interval To (m)	Interval Length (m)	Estimated True Thickness* (m)	Zinc (%)	Lead (%)	Silver (g/t)
RD-19-Q11	239.9	202.7	210.3	7.6	6.8	4.82	1.05	1.40
includes		208.1	210.3	2.2	2.0	14.94	3.56	4.82
RD-19-Q12	281.2	243.2	255.2	12.0	10.8	6.85	0.91	1.42
RD-19-Q16	316.1	247.5	248.9	1.4	1.3	6.51	1.03	2.00

*true thickness estimated using the east-west strike of the V and Q Zones, along with a 70° dip to the north in the V Zone and a 26° dip to the north in the Q Zone.

The V Zone is located near the western edge of the Ruddock Creek massive sulphide horizons, which have an indicated strike length of about five kilometres, and is approximately two kilometres west of the Creek Zone, the nearest zone of detailed drilling. Little or no exploration drilling has been conducted along the intervening section of the horizon. The V Zone strikes east-west and dips at about 70° to the north.  The zone has been traced with surface showings and by drilling for a horizontal distance of approximately 720 metres, and with this recent drilling to a depth of approximately 600 metres.

The V Zone drilling was designed to expand and increase the confidence in the resource in the deep portions of the zone. The V Zone has a steeper dip than all the other known zones at Ruddock Creek. The steeper dip should facilitate lower mining costs than the shallower dipping zones, and thus a larger resource of steeply dipping mineralization in the V Zone would improve the economics of the project. The wide high grade intercept in RD-V19-54 will add to the resource, along with the other V Zone mineralized intercepts obtained this year. However, the results are tempered by the results from drill holes like RD-V18-42 and RD-19-V47 where barren pegmatite replaced the sulphide mineralization in the V Zone.  Drill hole RD-19-V50 was lost before target depth and drill hole RD-19-V53 was successful in intersecting the pyrrhotite marker horizon for geological modeling.

The Q Zone is located  to the west of the V Zone, across a fault. The Q Zone has undergone limited exploration drilling, but it has been traced on surface, and strikes approximately east-west and dips at 26° to the north. The mineralized sheet has now been explored along a length of 600 metres and approximately 300 metres down dip by surface mapping, surface sampling, wide spaced historic drilling and 2019 diamond drilling. Drill holes RD-19-Q11 and RD-19-Q12 intersected the mineralized sheet 125 metres apart down dip.  

SJ Geophysics completed Borehole EM surveys using their Volterra system down holes RD-19-Q16, RD-18-V41, V42 and V43 (2018 surveyed), RD-19-V52 and V54. A comprehensive review will be completed using the geophysical and geological information from the last two years of field work to recommend future exploration at Ruddock Creek.

The Ruddock Creek Project is operated by way of a Joint Venture with Imperial, Mitsui Mining and Smelting Co. Ltd.,  Itochu Corporation, and Japan Oil, Gas and Metals National Corporation (JOGMEC). Imperial operates the project through its wholly owned subsidiary Ruddock Creek Mining Corporation.  JOGMEC funded the 2019 drill program.

Jim Miller-Tait, P.Geo., VP Exploration, is the designated Qualified Person as defined by National Instrument 43-101 for the exploration program, and has reviewed this news release.  Ruddock Creek samples for the 2019 drilling reported were analysed at Bureau Veritas Mineral Laboratories in Vancouver. A full QA/QC program using blanks, standards and duplicates was completed for all diamond drilling samples submitted to the labs.

About Imperial

Imperial is a Vancouver exploration, mine development and operating company. The Company, through its subsidiaries, owns a 30% interest in the Red Chris mine, and a 100% interest in both the Mount Polley and Huckleberry copper mines in British Columbia. Imperial will hold about a 45.3% interest in the Ruddock Creek lead/zinc property upon completion of 2019 exploration expenditures.

Company Contacts

Brian Kynoch | President | 604.669.8959
Andre Deepwell | Chief Financial Officer | 604.488.2666
Sabine Goetz | Shareholder Communications | 604.488.2657 | investor@imperialmetals.com

Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements
Certain information contained in this news release are not statements of historical fact and are “forward-looking” statements. Forward-looking statements related to future events or future performance and reflect Company management’s expectations or beliefs regarding future events and include, but are not limited to, statements relating to: the Ruddock Creek Project drill program that address potential quantity and/or grade of minerals, potential size and expansion of a mineralized zone, proposed timing of exploration and development plans including the Company’s plans for a comprehensive review of the results of the drilling program and expectations regarding the Company’s ownership interest in its Ruddock Creek project.

In certain cases, forward-looking statements can be identified by the use of words such as "plans", "expects" or "does not expect", "is expected", "outlook", "budget", "scheduled", "estimates", "forecasts", "intends", "anticipates" or "does not anticipate", or "believes", or variations of such words and phrases or statements that certain actions, events or results "may", "could", "would", "might" or "will be taken", "occur" or "be achieved" or the negative of these terms or comparable terminology. By their very nature forward-looking statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors which may cause the actual results, performance or achievements of the Company to be materially different from any future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by the forward-looking statements.

These factors and assumptions and beliefs and assumptions include, the risk factors detailed from time to time in the Company’s interim and annual financial statements and management’s discussion and analysis of those statements, all of which are filed and available for review on SEDAR at www.sedar.com. Although the Company has attempted to identify important factors that could cause actual actions, events or results to differ materially from those described in forward-looking statements, there may be other factors that cause actions, events or results not to be as anticipated, estimated or intended, many of which are beyond the Company’s ability to control or predict. There can be no assurance that forward-looking statements will prove to be accurate, as actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated in such statements. Accordingly, readers should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements and all forward-looking statements in this news release are qualified by these cautionary statements.