St Elias Mines Ltd. announced that results of drill holes TE-36 to TE-43 as well as the results of trenching at the Tesoro Gold Project, located in southwestern Peru. Forty-three diamond drill holes, totaling 12,740 metres, were completed. The drilling to date has not encountered the causative sources of the Quantec Titan 24 geophysical anomalies. The data are being re-evaluated by third party geophysicists. Despite the inconclusive results from the drill holes that specifically targeted the geophysical anomalies reported by Quantec, many of the drill holes that tested geological targets did intersect gold at depth. Examples of drill holes with relatively deep intersections include DDH TE-14 (7.08 g/t Au at a true depth of 276 metres) and DDH TE-29 (6.08 g/t Au at a 275-metre true depth). The Tesoro gold project is 100% owned by the company with no underlying royalties. The property covers approximately 6,974 hectares (17,436 acres) and is part of the prolific 300-kilometre by 30 km Nazca-Ocona gold belt parallel to the Pacific Coast of southwestern Peru. The Nazca-Ocona gold belt has a long mining history dating back to pre-Incan time. In this belt, gold in quartz veins and the host fault structures occurs with disseminated sulphides, notably pyrite and chalcopyrite. The continuity of the regional-scale fault structures that host the gold-bearing quartz veins and fracture-fillings is impressive. While the veins tend to be narrow, their grades can be in the multi-ounce range. The mineralized structures often extend along strike for several kilometres and certain structures in the gold mines of the district are known to extend to depths of one kilometre. At the Tesoro project, the company has identified five mineralized zones that collectively host more than 50 auriferous quartz veins. Underground exploration and development work has been conducted on three of these veins (C1, C2 and A4 veins). The veins are thought to have formed at medium depths (mesothermal). Mining in Canada, the USA, Mexico, South America and other parts of the world has established that gold-bearing shoots occurring in this type of vein can extend from surface to depths of a kilometre or more.