No video - News from Excalibur Resources

Just one story from Friday worthy of your attention. Excalibur Resources (XBR) received their explosives permit which is the final permit needed to get to production: Excalibur Resources Ltd (2) Symbol C : XBR Shares Issued 45,560,965 Close 2012-08-16 C$ 0.17 Excalibur unit gains explosives permit in Mexico 2012-08-17 06:13 ET - News Release Mr. Tim Gallagher reports CATANAVA RECEIVES EXPLOSIVE PERMIT Excalibur Resources Ltd.'s 49-per-cent-owned subsidiary Minera Catanava SA de CV has received the permit for use of explosives from the Mexican military called Sedena (Secretary of National Defense). "As the final permit required to begin operations, this is a major milestone as it allows the company to order and use explosives under the supervision of the military and to open up adits on either side of the arroyo and begin processing higher-grade underground material at Camino and San Gil veins, rather than dump material which has been used for plant testing," commented Tim Gallagher, chairman. According to the company's joint venture partner, Don McLeroy, president of Minera Apolo SA de CV, who is managing the Catanava operation: "Over the last couple of months of testing we increased processing of dump material from one-to-two-hour batches to eight-hour test shifts and now have about 100 kilograms of concentrate ready to be refined. Although the plant is operational, we have experienced some mechanical equipment delays including replacing an electrical starter panel, getting parts for the slurry pump, cone crusher ... and are still working to increase recuperation on the large micron wave table. From a construction perspective, the last major item is the installation of the roof as the cement support columns have been built so we are now turning our attention to establishing the mine personnel to run the plant and go underground as well as ordering the required equipment." Excalibur is pursuing the micromining approach which is the search for small, near-surface ore shoots that can be extracted at a low cost. The Catanava project is in the Pinos gold district, in the state of Zacatecas, Mexico, which was discovered by the Spanish in 1546 and mined until the War of Independence in 1810, by Cornish miners from 1870 to 1911 and most recently by an individual miner from 1935 to 1941. Recent exploration work was undertaken through a Penoles/Bethlehem Steel joint venture from 1975 to 1983, All-North Resources in 1993/1994, Hecla Mining Company 1995-1997, and by Romarco Minerals from 2006-2007. Minera Catanava SA de CV is 51 per cent held by Minera Apolo SA de CV which owns and is providing the land, mineral and mining rights and management of the project, and 49 per cent is held by Excalibur which has provided the financing.