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Canada Zinc Metals Announces 2014 Exploration Plans

Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada – Monday, May 12, 2014 – Canada Zinc Metals Corp. (TSX Venture Exchange: CZX) is pleased to announce that it has finalized plans for the upcoming 2014 exploration season. The Company is also pleased to report that Teck Resources Limited (“Teck” TSX: TCK.B) has prepared an exploration plan for 2014 for the Company’s optioned properties - Pie, Yuen and Cirque East.

The Company owns 100% of eleven large, contiguous property blocks that make up the Akie and Kechika Regional projects. The Kechika Regional Project, including the Pie, Yuen, Cirque East and Mt. Alcock properties, extends northwest from the Akie property for approximately 140 kilometres, covering the highly prospective Gunsteel Formation shale; the main host rock for known SEDEX zinc-lead-silver deposits in the Kechika Trough of northeastern British Columbia. The southernmost project boundary is located approximately 260 kilometres northwest of the town of Mackenzie, British Columbia, Canada.

The Pie, Yuen and Cirque East properties are the subject of an option agreement concluded on September 9, 2013 with Teck and its JV partner, Korea Zinc Co., Ltd. ("Korea Zinc" KRX: KorZinc 010130). The option agreement would see Teck and Korea Zinc spend up to $8.5 million to acquire up to 70% interest in the Pie, Yuen and Cirque East properties.

Optioned Properties: Teck 2014 Exploration Plan

A Technical Committee comprised of representatives from Canada Zinc Metals and Teck has reviewed the historical and recent exploration data to plan future work. Teck has now advised the Company that the 2014 exploration program will include targeted geological mapping, selective rock and soil sampling on high priority targets, confirmatory core re-logging and sampling from historical Pie and Yuen drill core, and potentially geophysical surveys. Along with expenditures incurred to date, the planned exploration activities are expected to exceed the required $500,000 in qualifying expenditures that are to be incurred by the 30th of September, 2014 as per the option agreement.

Canada Zinc Metals 2014 Exploration Plan

The Company’s 2014 exploration plans will be directed largely toward advancement of the Cardiac Creek SEDEX Zn-Pb-Ag deposit located on the Akie property, through a number of planned drill holes. There are a total of 118 drill holes on the Akie property with an aggregate core length of 50,895 metres. A total of eighty-three drill holes, totaling 38,521 metres, contribute to the current estimation of the NI 43-101 compliant mineral resource for the Cardiac Creek deposit. The remaining 35 drill holes test the Cardiac Creek horizon over a 7 kilometre strike length, or test other exploration targets on the Akie property. The deposit remains open in all directions.

Drilling planned for 2014 will include both infill and step-out holes on the perimeter and the up-dip edges of the deposit. The program is expected to get underway in early June and to be completed by the fall.

Mr. Peeyush Varshney, President and CEO, states; "Exploration in 2014 will focus mainly on the flagship Cardiac Creek deposit on the Akie property. Results from the 2013 drilling on Cardiac Creek represent expansion of the known mineralization. We believe targeted drilling this season on the deposit will also further increase the dimensions and level of confidence in the resource which will ultimately assist in planning subsequent stages of exploration and potential developments at Akie.”

The Akie Zn-Pb-Ag Project

The Akie property is situated within the Kechika Trough, the southernmost area of the regionally extensive Paleozoic Selwyn Basin and one of the most prolific sedimentary basins in the world for the occurrence of SEDEX zinc-lead-silver and stratiform barite deposits.

Drilling on the Akie property by Canada Zinc Metals since 2005 has identified a significant body of baritic-zinc-lead SEDEX mineralization known as the Cardiac Creek deposit. The deposit is hosted by siliceous, carbonaceous, fine grained clastic rocks of the Middle to Late Devonian Gunsteel Formation.

The Company has outlined a NI 43-101 compliant mineral resource at Cardiac Creek, including an indicated resource of 12.7 million tonnes grading 8.4% zinc, 1.7% lead and 13.7 g/t silver (at a 5% zinc cut-off grade) and an inferred resource of 16.3 million tonnes grading 7.4% zinc, 1.3% lead and 11.6 g/t silver (at a 5% zinc cut-off grade). 

Ken MacDonald P.Geo., Vice President of Exploration, is the designated Qualified Person as defined by National Instrument 43-101 and is responsible for the technical information contained in this release.

The TSX Venture Exchange has neither approved nor disapproved the contents of this press release.

ON BEHALF OF THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS

CANADA ZINC METALS CORP.

“PEEYUSH VARSHNEY”
                                                           
PEEYUSH VARSHNEY, LL.B
CEO & CHAIRMAN