next door VANCOUVER, British Columbia, Sept. 09, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Imperial Metals Corporation (the “Company”) (TSX:III) reports on Red Chris drill results which continue to validate the East zone high grade pod. Partial results from drill hole RC634, located in the East zone, returned 394 metres grading 1.6 g/t gold and 0.86% copper starting at 650 metres, and include a 166 metre interval grading 3.0 g/t gold and 1.5% copper from 806 metres down the hole.
Newcrest Mining Limited Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer, Sandeep Biswas, said “Drilling results at Red Chris have returned 166 metres grading 3.0 g/t gold and 1.5% copper, which is significantly higher than we would expect to find in porphyry systems. Red Chris’ results also confirm the presence of multiple discrete high grade pods of mineralization within the East Zone.” Newcrest Red Chris Mining Limited (“NRC”) is operator of the Red Chris Joint Venture (Newcrest 70%; Imperial 30%).
Two drill programs are active, with eight diamond drills in operation. The East Zone Resource Definition program is designed to obtain geological, geotechnical, and metallurgical data to support future studies for underground block cave mining. The Brownfields Exploration program is searching for additional zones of higher grade mineralization within the Red Chris porphyry corridor.
A total of 67,690 metres of drilling has been completed since NRC acquired its interest in the joint venture in August 2019. NRC confirmed they are on track to commence an underground decline into the East zone by the end of 2020 or early 2021, and remain on track to announce an initial resource for Red Chris in the March 2021 quarter.
The 10 follow up infill holes added to further define the high grade pod in the vicinity of high grade intervals intercepted in RC09-350 and RC611 are now complete. Results from these holes continue to confirm the continuity of discrete high grade pods of mineralization.
Drilling to confirm the footprint of the new high grade zone (western pod), which was first intersected in hole RC616, continues. Results of step-out hole RC631, located 200 metres south west of RC616, returned a broad zone of 486 metres grading 0.39 g/t gold and 0.33% copper from 612 metres, including 104 metres grading 0.55 g/t gold and 0.43% copper from 758 metres, and 82 metres grading 0.58 g/t gold and 0.54% copper from 886 metres, which has confirmed the extent of the +0.5 g/t gold halo which surrounds the RC616 high grade pod. Final results for step-out hole RC625, located 100 metres south west of RC616, returned 426 metres^ grading 0.62 g/t gold and 0.48% copper from 640 metres, including 60 metres^^ grading 2.2 g/t gold and 1.3% copper from 736 metres. Drilling to define the extend of this new high grade zone is ongoing.
The Brownfields Exploration program has been expanded with drilling underway for the first time beneath the Main Zone, and property wide Airborne Electro-Magnetic (AEM) and Gravity survey was completed this summer.
Significant Red Chris intercepts include:
| Hole ID | From (m) | To (m) | Width (m) | Gold (g/t) | Copper (%) |
| RC625 | 640 | 1066 | 426^ | 0.62 | 0.48 |
| including | 734 | 810 | 76^^ | 1.9 | 1.2 |
| including | 736 | 796 | 60^^ | 2.2 | 1.3 |
| RC626 | 560 | 1056 | 496 | 0.55 | 0.45 |
| including | 742 | 838 | 96 | 0.95 | 0.75 |
| including | 746 | 784 | 38 | 1.1 | 0.90 |
| including | 828 | 838 | 10 | 2.1 | 0.97 |
| including | 918 | 1006 | 88 | 1.2 | 0.92 |
| including | 920 | 970 | 50 | 1.6 | 1.2 |
| including | 1028 | 1048 | 20 | 0.65 | 0.60 |
| and | 1068 | 1234 | 166 | 0.40 | 0.34 |
| including | 1082 | 1144 | 62 | 0.82 | 0.56 |
| including | 1082 | 1106 | 24 | 1.0 | 0.78 |
| RC627 | 600 | 1172 | 572 | 0.56 | 0.48 |
| including | 752 | 898 | 146 | 0.86 | 0.57 |
| including | 778 | 822 | 44 | 1.2 | 0.71 |
| including | 910 | 1034 | 124 | 0.64 | 0.68 |
| including | 1048 | 1156 | 108 | 0.64 | 0.53 |
| including | 1074 | 1086 | 12 | 1.1 | 0.92 |
| RC628 | 497 | 1071 | 574 | 0.43 | 0.42 |
| including | 631 | 763 | 132 | 0.79 | 0.64 |
| including | 663 | 697 | 34 | 1.0 | 0.70 |
| including | 923 | 943 | 20 | 1.0 | 0.66 |
| RC631 | 612 | 1098 | 486 | 0.39 | 0.33 |
| including | 758 | 862 | 104 | 0.55 | 0.43 |
| including | 886 | 968 | 82 | 0.58 | 0.54 |
| RC632 | 698 | 1260 | 562 | 0.48 | 0.42 |
| including | 856 | 1012 | 156 | 0.71 | 0.49 |
| including | 984 | 1010 | 26 | 1.1 | 0.81 |
| including | 1024 | 1038 | 14 | 0.76 | 0.94 |
| RC633 | 582 | 1156 | 574 | 0.53 | 0.44 |
| including | 792 | 914 | 122 | 0.83 | 0.69 |
| including | 822 | 870 | 48 | 1.3 | 0.97 |
| including | 1016 | 1084 | 68 | 1.7 | 1.3 |
| including | 1018 | 1084 | 66 | 1.8 | 1.3 |
| RC634 | 522 | 628 | 106 | 0.33 | 0.41 |
| and | 650 | 1044 | 394** | 1.6 | 0.86 |
| including | 802 | 1004 | 202 | 2.7 | 1.3 |
| including | 806 | 972 | 166 | 3.0 | 1.5 |
| including | 888 | 914 | 26 | 8.8 | 3.4 |
| including | 890 | 902 | 12 | 12 | 4.4 |
| including | 988 | 1000 | 12 | 1.5 | 0.93 |
| including | 1022 | 1032 | 10 | 1.0 | 0.71 |
**partial intercept, assays pending; ^ updated intercept; ^^ previously reported July 22, 2020 news release