VANCOUVER, BRITISH COLUMBIA -- (Marketwire) -- 03/08/11 -- Apella Resources Inc. (TSX VENTURE: APA)(OTCQX: APAFF)(FRANKFURT: NWN) is very pleased to announce that the Quebec Court, Mines Tribunal, Administrative and Appeal Division, has rendered a judgment in favour of Apella Resources Inc. awarding Apella all nine mining claims which it was seeking in the Lac Dore Vanadium-Iron-Titanium deposit. Combined with the nine claims previously awarded to Apella by the Ministere des Ressources Naturelles et de La Faune ('MRNF'), Apella's claims cover approximately 95% of the original 100 Mt Lac Dore Vanadium-Iron-Titanium deposit held by the Province of Quebec as a crown asset for more than 40 years.
The decision of the Quebec court arises out of a staking rush over the prized Lac Dore claims in August, 2007. At that time Apella and another competing party sought to stake the same claims covering the Lac Dore deposit. In January, 2010, the MRNF issued a decision awarding nine claims to Apella and two claims to the competing party while refusing to award the remaining claims to either party. Apella appealed the decision of the MNRF and on February 23, 2011 the Honourable Francois Godbout, J.C.Q. awarded the sought after nine claims to Apella.
Patrick D O'Brien, ICD.D, Apella's Chief Executive Officer commented, 'This is precisely the outcome we sought, nothing more, nothing less. Judge Francois Godbout, J.C.Q. made a just and appropriate decision which now allows Apella to expeditiously focus on the development of the Lac Dore. In concluding this lengthy multi-year process Apella has rightfully gained entitlement for its shareholders to the near entirety of the Lac Dore, notably, the world's second largest vanadium deposit. Apella's Board and Management wish to extend their sincere gratitude to all of the planners, stakers, geologists, legal advisors, and consultants; and especially our patient and devoted shareholders for standing by and supporting us through this long but achievable undertaking. Our goal has been achieved.'
The Lac Dore claims in this matter form a very important and integral part of the well known Lac Dore Vanadium Deposit in Chibougamau, Quebec. The geological setting and mineralization encountered in the Lac Dore Deposit has many similarities to that of Apella's 100% owned Iron-T Vanadium-Iron-Titanium project located in the Bell River Complex to the west, and with typical world-class magmatic Fe-Ti-V oxide deposits associated with a layered intrusive complex. Most of these deposits that are of producible importance world-wide are associated with mafic-ultramafic layered complexes such as the Lake Dore Complex; the Windimurra Complex in Australia; the Panzhihua layered intrusion in China and the Bushveld Complex in South Africa. About 39.5% of total world vanadium production (55 700 t in 2006 (USGS, 2006)) is said to come from the Bushveld Complex alone, in particular the Rhovan Mine. The V-Fe-Ti oxide ores at Bushveld, have one major disadvantage, in that they are formed by concordant layers varying from 0.1 m to only 10 m in thickness within the Upper Zone but most of these layers are relatively thin and less than 30 cm in thickness.
'The economically important Main Magnetite Layer varies from 1.0 to 2.5 m in thickness and covers a strike length of 200 km in the western Bushveld Complex and 120 km in the Eastern Bushveld Complex' (Reynolds, 1985). The Rhovan mine is the primary vanadium producer situated within the Western Lobe of the Bushveld Complex. The mine is located some 35 km ENE of Rustenburg, South Africa. The vanadium mineral resource and ore reserve of Rhovan mine reported by Xstrata Alloys as of September 2007 (Xstrata Alloys, 2008) are:
Proven Ore Reserves - 39.2 Mt @ 0.51% V2O5
Probable Ore Reserves - 10.5 Mt @ 0.53% V2O5
Measured Mineral Resources - 64.4 Mt @ 0.51% V2O5
Indicated Mineral Resources - 13.7 Mt @ 0.53% V2O5
Inferred Mineral Resources - 124.9 Mt @ 0.51% V2O5
The Lac Dore Complex is a Bushveld-type Archean layered mafic intrusion (Allard, 1976) located some 250 km due east of Matagami in the Chibougamau mining camp. The Lac Dore is an advanced Vanadium project; currently the largest vanadium deposit in North America, and the second largest in the world. It shows a geological setting and vanadiferous mineralization similar to Apella's Iron-T vanadium project. Unlike the Bushveld, the Lake Dore Complex itself is 5 to 7 km in thickness. The magnetite horizons vary from 50 to 200 m in thickness and extend several km along strike as inferred from airborne magnetic data. 'The Lac Dore Vanadium deposit at Chibougamau is estimated to host 100.0 Mt grading 0.49% V2O5 including 32.2 Mt of measured resources at 0.65% V2O5' (Girard and Allard, 1998). Apella derived these details from the public domain.
It should be noted that in accordance with present reporting requirements the potential quantity and grade is conceptual in nature, that there has been insufficient exploration to define a mineral resource, and it is uncertain if further exploration will result in discovery of a mineral resource on the property. However, it should also be noted for clarification that historically the Lac Dore deposit was subject to a positive feasibility study in 2002 by SNC-Lavelin for the production of V2O5. The reader is referred to the USA's EDGAR reporting system to access and review a copy of the McKenzie Bay International Ltd. Executive Summary.
Apella has concluded that with the ownership of the aforementioned 18 Lac Dore Vanadium-Iron-Titanium deposit claims, coupled together with Apella's present 100% ownership in the near-by Iron-T and Lac Dore North Vanadium-Iron-Titanium projects, the Company has the potential to quite rapidly control enough mineralization to propel Apella into the position of having the most extensive Vanadium assets in the world.
This press release has been reviewed by Dr. Christian Derosier, P. Geo., Consulting Geologist and Qualified Person for the Lac Dore, Iron-T and Lac Dore North Vanadium-Iron-Titanium projects under National Instrument 43-101.
Additional information is contained on the Company's website at www.apellaresources.com.
ON BEHALF OF THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS OF APELLA RESOURCES INC.
Patrick D. O'Brien, ICD.D - Director
SEC Exemption 12(g)3-2(b) File no. 82-3822, Standard & Poors Listed, Dun & Bradstreet Listed
Neither TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.
Contacts:
Apella Resources Inc.
Patrick D. O'Brien
ICD.D - Director
604-683-8990 or Toll Free: 1-800-663-8990
604-683-8903 (FAX)
apella@apellaresources.com
www.apellaresources.com
