Pacific Empire Receives Exploration Permit for Jean Marie Project and Mobilizes Field Crews for Drilling

 Pacific Empire Minerals Corp. (TSXV:PEMC) (“Pacific Empire”, “PEMC” or the “Company”) is pleased to announce the receipt of its 2020 Notice of Work Mineral Exploration Permit from the BC Ministry of Energy Mines and Petroleum Resources. The multi-year exploration permit encompasses 100 reverse circulation and 20 diamond drill hole sites at the Company’s flagship, Jean Marie Cu-Au-Ag-Mo project in north-central British Columbia.

2020 Exploration Drilling

Drilling at Jean Marie will initially focus on the A-Zone, proximal to numerous 1974 percussion drill holes which intersected attractive copper grades. Despite the presence of these mineralized intervals, no further drilling has taken place since the first drill program when the A-Zone was discovered.

The drill target area is an extension of the A-Zone, which is characterized by a 900 metre by 300 metre disruptive magnetic low. This feature lies at the boundary of the previously drilled area and sits directly adjacent to the best drill hole from 1974 (P74-27), which graded 0.3% copper over the entire 76.2 metre length of bedrock drilled, including 27.4 metres grading 0.53% copper and ended in mineralization. PEMC geologists believe the magnetic low represents the highest probability for extension of the A-Zone and this target will be the location for the first exploration drill holes. Pad building and road completion has been completed with drilling set to begin in the coming days.

A property wide airborne magnetic survey has also been commissioned. Results from this survey will be interpreted in combination with modern GPS-based rock geochemical sampling completed by PEMC during 2020. The geochemical sampling encountered gold, silver and copper mineralization at all three existing zones. Following the completion of the magnetic survey the targets will be prioritized for drill testing.

Brad Peters, Pacific Empire’s President and CEO, states, “We are pleased to receive our exploration permit and look forward to initial drilling at the A-Zone. Results from drilling at the A-Zone and the property wide airborne geophysical survey will be incorporated into the existing dataset as we continue to evaluate and develop exploration targets.”

Figure 1 – Jean Marie Property Map

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The Jean Maire Project

The Jean Marie consists of 7,350 ha of contiguous mineral claims situated 50 kilometres west of Centerra Gold Ltd.’s Mt. Milligan copper-gold mine. PEMC holds an option to earn a 100% interest in the Jean Marie property.

Historical work conducted on the Jean Marie Project includes over 10,000 metres of drilling and dozens of ground-based geophysical and geochemical surveys, with the majority of exploration being completed by Cominco Ltd. between 1970 and 1974. Historical exploration activities were focused on drilling in three copper porphyry zones: the A, B and C Zones. Each of the three mineralized zones straddle the Jean Marie fault, a significant controlling structure that has been mapped for over 12 km on the property.

The A Zone has seen limited historical drilling, with the deepest drilling being 92 vertical metres. Mineralization at the A Zone exists as chalcopyrite dominated by pyrite, with rare covellite and bornite. Rock sampling by PEMC during 2020 confirmed the presence of anomalous to highly anomalous gold values associated with chalcopyrite mineralization and monzonite dikes, though the historical drill core was not systematically assayed for gold. Historical exploration encountered angular float on the southwest margin of the A zone assaying up to 4.43% copper and 0.95 g/t gold.

The B Zone has seen more extensive drilling, with the deepest historical drilling being a 277 m vertical drill hole, J97-11. A high-grade interval in this hole occurs between 181 and 208 metres, where a hydrothermal breccia containing angular clasts of porphyritic material with bornite and chalcopyrite graded 1.2% copper over 27 metres. The presence of this breccia provides direct evidence of a mineralized porphyry system at depth beneath the B-zone.

The most recent drilling at any of the three drill indicated zones was completed at the B zone in 1997. The final hole of the 1997 program intersected 184 m @ 0.33% copper, which includes an interval of hydrothermal breccia grading 1.2% copper over 27 metres.^**

The C Zone is characterized as a broad area of low-grade copper-molybdenum mineralization, with the easternmost hole in the zone grading 0.17% copper over the entire 85.3 metre length of bedrock drilled. However, the presence of a large, strong copper-in-soil anomaly measuring 2,500 x 600 metres, immediately north and east of the C zone, with soil samples assaying up to 0.66% copper suggests more appreciable copper mineralization may exist at depth. The presence of widespread, locally intense clay alteration further suggests there may be potential for higher copper grades at depth.

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^** The Company has not verified historical drilling results but has reviewed the historical sampling and analytical procedures and has no reason to believe the historically reported results are unreliable or misleading.

Qualified Person

Rory Ritchie, P.Geo., Vice President of Exploration for the Company, serves as a qualified person as defined by National Instrument 43-101 and has reviewed the scientific and technical information in this news release, approving the disclosure herein.

About Pacific Empire Minerals Corp.

PEMC is an exploration company based in Vancouver, British Columbia, that employs a “hybrid prospect generator” business model and trades on the TSX Venture Exchange under the symbol PEMC. The Company’s strong portfolio of projects is a result of continuous generative work conducted since the Company’s inception in 2012.

By integrating the project generator business model with low-cost RC drilling, the company intends to leverage its portfolio by identifying, and focusing on, the highest quality projects for partnerships and advancement.

ON BEHALF OF THE BOARD,

“Brad Peters”
President and Chief Executive Officer

Pacific Empire Minerals Corp.
Tel: +1-604-356-6246
brad@pemcorp.ca
www.pemcorp.ca

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 release.

Forward-Looking Statements

Information set forth in this news release may involve forward-looking statements under applicable securities laws. Forward-looking statements are statements that relate to future, not past, events. In this context, forward-looking statements often address expected future business and financial performance, and often contain words such as “anticipate”, “believe”, “plan”, “estimate”, “expect”, and “intend”, statements that an action or event “may”, “might”, “could”, “should”, or “will” be taken or occur, or other similar expressions. All statements, other than statements of historical fact, included herein including, without limitation, are forward-looking statements. By their nature, forward-looking statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors which may cause our actual results, performance or achievements, or other future events, to be materially different from any future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. Such factors include, among others, the following risks: the need for additional financing; operational risks associated with mineral exploration; fluctuations in commodity prices; title matters; environmental liability claims and insurance; reliance on key personnel; the potential for conflicts of interest among certain officers, directors or promoters with certain other projects; the absence of dividends; competition; dilution; the volatility of our common share price and volume and the additional risks identified the management discussion and analysis section of our interim and most recent annual financial statement or other reports and filings with the TSX Venture Exchange and applicable Canadian securities regulations. Forward-looking statements are made based on management’s beliefs, estimates and opinions on the date that statements are made, and the Company undertakes no obligation to update forward-looking statements if these beliefs, estimates and opinions or other circumstances should change, except as required by applicable securities laws. Investors are cautioned against attributing undue certainty to forward-looking statements.

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