Tinka Drills 5 Metres Grading 20 % Zinc at Zone 3, Ayawilca Project
TINKA RESOURCES LIMITED
#1305 – 1090 WEST GEORGIA STREET
VANCOUVER, B.C. V6E 3V7
Tel: (604) 685 9316 Fax (604) 683 1585
Website: www.tinkaresources.com
TSXV & BVL: TK OTCPK: TKRFF
NEWS RELEASE February 15, 2018
TINKA DRILLS 5 METRES GRADING 20 % ZINC AT ZONE 3, AYAWILCA PROJECT
Vancouver, Canada – Tinka Resources Limited ( “Tinka” or the “ Company”) ( TSXV & BVL: TK )
(OTCPK: TKRFF) is pleased to announce assay results for a further nine drill holes from the Company’s
ongoing drill program at its 100%-owned Ayawilca zinc project, central Peru. All holes were testing for
mineralization outside of the exi sting mineral resource boundar ies (Ayawilca Inferred Mineral Resource
estimate: 42.7 million tonnes grading 6.0% Zn, 0.2% lead, 17 g/ t silver and 79 g/t indium; Nov 8, 2017 ).
Four holes (107, 109, 110 and 111) were drilled at the new Zone 3 discovery area, part of a large geophysical
target believed to be the northe astern extension of Ayawilca. An additional five holes were drilled at South,
West and Central Ayawilca. Drilling of hole A18-112 at Zone 3 has now commenced, with a second drill rig
expected to start up once the wet weather conditions improve in March.
High-grade zinc mineralization intersected in holes A18-110 & A 18-111 at Zone 3 is associated with flat-
dipping massive sulphide replacements of the Pucará limestone a nd lower Goyllar sandstone, similar in style
to the zinc mineralization at South and West Ayawilca. In addi tion, high-grade vein-style polymetallic min-
eralization (zinc-lead-silver-tin) has been intersected in phyl lite rocks at Zone 3 (hole A17-109), which rep-
resents a new style of mineralization encountered at Ayawilca for the first time. The high-grade polymetallic
veins are believed to be feeder structures for the zinc and tin mineralization in the overlying limestones.
Key Highlights
Massive sulphide drill intercepts#
Hole A18-111 (Zone 3):
5.0 metres at 20.2 % zinc, 0.3 % lead, 74 g/t silver & 420 g/t indium from 173.8 metres depth.
Hole A18-110 (Zone 3):
6.0 metres at 5.6 % zinc & 50 g/t indium from 436.0 metres depth; and
4.0 metres at 8.4 % zinc & 126 g/t indium from 454.0 metres depth, including
o 0.5 metres at 41.7 % zinc & 366 g/t indium from 456.2 metres depth; and
Hole A17-107 (Zone 3):
16.0 metres at 0.65 % tin & 0.09 % copper from 576.0 metres depth, including
o 2.8 metres at 2.4 % tin & 0.01 % copper from 582.5 metres depth.
High-grade polymetallic veins*
Hole A17-109 (Zone 3):
0.7 metres at 4.8 % zinc, 8.8 % lead, 674 g/t silver & 0.76 % tin from 577.0 metres depth; and
1.2 metres at 5.2 % zinc, 10.1 % lead, 621 g/t silver & 0.29 % tin from 611.2 metres depth; and
0.6 metres at 5.5 % zinc, 4.8 % lead, 305 g/t silver & 0.48 % tin from 615.4 metres depth; and
0.35 metres at 6.5% zinc, 9.0 % lead, 557 g/t silver & 0.76 % tin from 681.6 metres depth.
Hole A18-110 (Zone 3):
0.35 metres at 17.1 % zinc, 7.5 % lead, 1.15% copper & 513 g/t silver from 530.4 metres depth.
# True thicknesses of the zinc and tin intersections in massive sulphides are estimated to be at least 85% of the downhole thicknesses.
* True thicknesses of the veins are unknown at this time.
Dr. Graham Carman, Tinka´s President and CEO, stated: “The discovery of high grade mineralization in
limestones and in deep veins at Zone 3 is very exciting, as it opens up a lot more exploration potential at the
project. It is still early days for the exploration at Zone 3, it is a large target area with only a handful of
holes drilled so far and with several geophysical anomalies untested (see drill map, Figure 1). Other priori-
ty targets for this year include extensions of the mineralization at West, South, and Central Ayawilca. A new
geological interpretation suggests that high-grade, th ick zinc mineralization generally lies near the intersec-
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tion points of northeast-trending faults and north-south trending folds in the strata. Tinka plans to drill an
additional 25 to 30 step-out holes into a range of targets during the first half of 2018.”
Dr. Carman continued: “The Company has two key objectives for 2018: (1) Continue our exploration drill
program targeting additional zinc resources at Ayawilca with 15,000 metres of drilling planned; and (2)
Advance the project with desktop mining studies and deta iled metallurgical tests that will form the basis of a
Preliminary Economic Assessment ("PEA") planned for the second half of 2018. Exact timing of the PEA
will depend on the extent to which significant new mineralization is identified in the first half of 2018.
The strong backdrop for zinc remains, with zinc prices close to 11-year highs while inventories are reaching
critically low levels not seen since 2008. In particular, there remains a shortage of large high-grade explo-
ration-development projects for zinc in good mining jurisdictions, like Ayawilca, in the marketplace.”
Geological review and new interpretations
A recent geological review of dr ill cores by Tinka’s geologists , with input from consultant Dr. Paul Pearson
of Latin Global Pty Ltd, has led to some new interpretations of the structural controls to the mineralization at
Ayawilca. We believe that the lower contact of the Mesozoic Pu cará limestone, the principal host to the zinc
mineralization at Ayawilca, is a low-angle ‘thrust’ fault that can be traced over several kilometres and dips to
the east, in contact with underlying phyllite basement rocks.
At South Ayawilca, multiple thrust fault ‘duplexes’ or ramps ha ve caused repetitions of the lime-
stone/sandstone, while at the far western end of South Ayawilca the limestone is almost ‘faulted out’ alto-
gether. The low-angle faults are believed to have acted as con duits for the mineralization, with the ultimate
source of the mineralization believed to be down-dip to the nor theast towards Zone 3 (see longitudinal sec-
tion, Figure 2). Fluids migrating along these low-angle faults mineralized the limestone sequence, while at
South and West Ayawilca mineralization was ‘trapped’ near the a xis of the anticline + fold where the lime-
stone rapidly thins. The syncline + at Zone 3 may also be an important trap site for mineralizatio n, with up-
coming drilling to test this structure. Faulting was pre-miner al, but was important because it created good
ground preparation for the mineralizing fluids to follow, parti cularly where the faults intersect fold hinges,
such as the anticline at South Ayawilca or potentially the syncline at Zone 3 (Figures 1 and 2).
Drilling at Zone 3 has also encount ered significant intervals o f pyrite mineralization near the bottom of the
limestones, which further strengthens the similarities in miner alization styles between Ayawilca and the
Cerro de Pasco lead-zinc-silver-copper deposit, located 40 kilometres southeast of Ayawilca.
The evolving understanding of the structural controls and likel y reasons for the formation of thick zones of
high grade zinc mineralization, such as at South and West Ayawi lca, will aid in the selection of additional
drill targets for 2018.
True thicknesses of the zinc and tin intersections are estimate d to be at least 85% of the downhole thickness,
except in the case of polymetallic veins which have unknown tru e thicknesses. Significant new drill inter-
cepts are summarized in Table 1 with the strongest intercepts in bold text. Table 2 summarizes the drill collar
information for the recent holes.
Notes on sampling and assaying
Drill holes are diamond HQ or NQ size core holes with recoverie s generally above 80% and often close to 100%. The
drill core is marked up, logged, and photographed on site. The cores are cut in half at the Company’s core storage facil-
ity, with half-cores stored as a future reference. Half-core i s bagged on average over 1 to 2 metre composite intervals
and sent to SGS laboratories in Lima for assay in batches. Sta ndards and blanks are inserted into each batch prior to
departure from Tinka’s core storage facilities. At the laboratory samples are dried, crushed to 100% passing 2mm, then
500 grams pulverized for multi-element analysis by ICP using mu lti-acid digestion. Samples assaying over 1% zinc,
lead, or copper and over 100 g/t silver are re-assayed using precise ore-grade AAS techniques.
Samples which assay approximately 200 ppm tin or greater in the ICP analysis are re-assayed for tin by fusion with
sodium peroxide and AAS finish (SGS Lima laboratory method SGS-AAS90B).
+ An “anticline” is a geological structure whereby the strata are folded into an upside down ‘U’. A “syncline” is the
opposite with strata folded in an ‘U’ shape.
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Figure 1. Ayawilca 2017 drill hole location map, with untested areas highlighted
Figure 2. Schematic longitudinal section of Ayawilca looking to the northwest
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Table 1. Significant new intercepts at Ayawilca in 2017-2018 drill program
Drill hole
From
m To m
Interval
m
Zinc
%
Lead
%
Silver
g/t
Indium
g/t
Tin
%
Copper
% Area Reported
A17-103 no significant results South Here
A17-104 289.50 290.00 0.50 5.9 4.2 104 0
South-
Central Here
459.50 460.90 1.40 51 0.55 0.04 South Here
A17-105 93.00 94.00 1.00 2.8 6.1 184 1 West Here
A17-106 288.00 290.60 2.60 10.8 2.2 114 0 West Here
including 289.40 290.60 1.20 20.8 4.3 217 0 West Here
A17-107 576.00 592.00 16.00 2 0.65 0.09 Zone 3 Here
including 582.50 585.30 2.80 1 2.40 0.01 Zone 3 Here
A17-108 174.00 176.00 2.00 4.6 0.1 20 1 West-South Here
A17-109 538.80 542.00 3.20 4.0 0.0 2 35 Zone 3 Here
and 577.00 577.70 *0.70 4.8 8.8 674 10 0.76 0.14 Zone 3 Here
and 611.20 612.40 *1.20 5.2 10.1 621 1 0.29 0.04 Zone 3 Here
and 615.40 616.00 *0.60 5.5 4.8 305 3 0.48 0.05 Zone 3 Here
and 681.60 681.95 *0.35 6.5 9.0 557 0 0.76 0.05 Zone 3 Here
A18-110 436.00 442.00 6.00 5.6 0.0 4 50 Zone 3 Here
including 438.90 439.60 0.70 14.7 0.0 3 137 Zone 3 Here
and 454.00 458.00 4.00 8.4 0.0 5 126 Zone 3 Here
including 456.20 456.70 0.50 41.7 0.0 7 366 Zone 3 Here
and 530.40 530.75 *0.35 17.1 7.5 513 42 N/A 1.15 Zone 3 Here
A18-111 173.80 178.80 5.00 20.2 0.3 74 420 Zone 3 Here
Sampling and assaying of hole A18-111 is incomplete from 276.0 to 493.5 metres
* Vein in phyllite with unknown true thickness at this time
Table 2. Summary of Drill Collar Information (coordinates are in UTM Zone 18S WGS84 datum)
Drill Hole Easting Northing Total depth (m) Elevation (m) Azimu th Dip
A17-103 333322 8844913 345.1 4212 000 -90
A17-104 333942 8845116 498.0 4119 130 -85
A17-105 332612 8846310 371.4 4319 000 -90
A17-106 332666 8845492 361.0 4250 105 -75
A17-107 334042 8846143 618.1 4088 090 -70
A17-108 332772 8845348 389.5 4230 130 -85
A18-109 334040 8846140 704.2 4088 130 -70
A18-110 334049 8846138 566.7 4086 350 -70
A18-111 333982 8846287 566.5 4114 035 -75
On behalf of the Board,
“Graham Carman”
Dr. Graham Carman, President & CEO
Investor Information:
www.tinkaresources.com
Rob Bruggeman 1.416.884.3556
Company Contact:
Mariana Bermudez, 1.604.699.0202
Qualified Person – Mineral Resources: The Mineral Resources disclosed in this press release have bee n
e s t i m a t e d b y M r . D a v i d R o s s , P . G e o . , a n e m p l o y e e o f R P A a n d i n dependent of Tinka. By virtue of his
education and relevant experience, Mr. Ross is a "Qualified Per son" for the purpose of National Instrument
43-101. The Mineral Resources have been classified in accordanc e with CIM Definition Standards for
Mineral Resources and Mineral Reserves (May, 2014). An indepen dent National Instrument 43-101
Technical Report (the “ NI 43-101 Technical Report ”) on the Mineral Resource Estimate for the Ayawilca
Property, Department of Pasco, Peru has been filed under the Co mpany’s profile on SEDAR at
www.sedar.com and is available on the Company’s website at www.tinkaresources.com
The qualified person, Dr. Graham Carman, Tinka’s President and C E O , a n d a F e l l o w o f t h e A u s t r a l a s i a n
Institute of Mining and Metallurgy, has reviewed and verified the technical contents of this release.
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About Tinka Resources Limited
Tinka is an exploration and development company with its flagsh ip property being the 100%-owned Ayawilca
carbonate replacement deposit (CRD) in the zinc-lead-silver belt of central Peru, 200 kilometres northeast of Lima. The
Ayawilca Zinc Zone Inferred Mineral Resource estimate now consists of 42.7 Mt at 6.0 % zinc, 0.2 % lead, 17 g/t silver
& 79 g/t indium, and a Tin Zone Inferred Mineral Resource of 10 .5 Mt at 0.63 % tin, 0.23 % copper & 12 g/t silver
(Nov. 8, 2017, release). Drilling for resource extensions and the testing of new targets is ongoing.
Forward Looking Statements: Certain information in this news release contains forward-look ing statements and forward-looking
information within the meaning of Certain information in this news release contains forward-looking statements and forward-looking
information within the meaning of applicable securities laws (c ollectively " forward-looking statements "). All statements, other
t h a n s t a t e m e n t s o f h i s t o r i c a l f a c t a r e f o r w a r d - l o o k i n g s t a t e m e nts. Forward-looking statements are based on the beliefs and
expectations of Tinka as well as assumptions made by and inform ation currently available to Tinka's management. Such statemen ts
reflect the current risks, uncertainties and assumptions relate d to certain factors including, without limitations, drilling r esults, the
Company’s expectations regarding the ongoing drill program, the Company’s expectations regarding mineral resource calculations ,
capital and other costs varying significantly from estimates, production rates varying from estimates, changes in world metal markets,
changes in equity markets, uncertainties relating to the availa bility and costs of financing needed in the future, equipment f ailure,
unexpected geological conditions, imprecision in resource estim ates or metal recoveries, success of future development initiat ives,
competition, operating performance, environmental and safety ri sks, delays in obtaining or failure to obtain necessary permits and
approvals from local authorities, community agreements and relations, and other development and operating risks. Should any one or
more of these risks or uncertainties materialize, or should any underlying assumptions prove incorrect, actual results may var y
materially from those described herein. Although Tinka believe s that assumptions inherent in the forward-looking statements a re
reasonable, forward-looking statements are not guarantees of future performance and accordingly undue reliance should not be put on
such statements due to the inherent uncertainty therein. Except as may be required by applicable securities laws, Tinka discla ims any
intent or obligation to update any forward-looking statement.
Neither the 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 news release