Exploration UpdateSounds promising:
Ecuador Regional Exploration Update
BISHOPSGATE, LONDON / ACCESSWIRE / March 29, 2021 / The Board of Directors of SolGold (LSE:SOLG)(TSX:SOLG) is pleased to provide an update on the Regional Exploration program in Ecuador. The Company continues to pursue its strategy as an integrated explorer and developer, creating value for all shareholders.
SolGold is highly encouraged by recent results out of its regional exploration programme, particularly at the Porvenir project in southern Ecuador where the Company has received strong drilling results to date, and ongoing drilling continues to intersect visible copper-sulphide mineralisation.
This further endorses the Company's blueprint of systematic evaluation and exploration across its 75 concessions, having created the successful blueprint at the Company's world class Alpala project (9.9Mt Cu, 21.7Moz Au, 92.2Moz Ag). SolGold's technical team continues to uncover high potential at each project within the suite of concessions and will focus exploration efforts where needed. The Company currently operates 12 drill rigs in Ecuador employing more than 800 Ecuadorians.
HIGHLIGHTS:
Porvenir Project, Southern Ecuador: Cacharposa Target
- Three drill rigs on site and drilling of holes 12-14 is currently underway
- Final assays from Holes 5,6 & 7 at the Cacharposa porphyry copper-gold target returned encouraging results, including the best intersections to date:
- Hole 5: 528m @ 0.35% CuEq from surface, including 102m @ 0.66 % CuEq from 78m.
- Hole 6: 818m @ 0.41% CuEq from 46m, including 138m @ 0.74 % CuEq from 540m.
- Hole 7: 570m @ 0.75 % CuEq from 288m, including 204m @ 1.23 % CuEq from 316m.
- Visible copper-sulphide mineralisation encountered in Holes 8-11 (assay results pending) are highly encouraging and continue to substantiate the growing potential for significant near-surface resources at Cacharposa.
Blanca Project, Northern Ecuador: Cerro Quiroz Target
- Assays received from BDH-20-004 at Cerro Quiroz target returned:
- 9m @ 3.12 g/t Au, 7.5 g/t Ag, 0.74% Zn from 440m depth, including:
- 2m @ 12.62 g/t Au, 24.9g/t Ag, 1.39% Zn
- Gold mineralisation encountered at Cerro Quiroz occurs coincident with anomalous silver, copper and tellurium geochemistry. The presence of gold-telluride mineralisation is conspicuous at the nearby Cielito narrow-vein gold prospect, which lies approximately 500m to the northeast.
Helipuerto Project, south east Ecuador: New Tinkimints Copper Prospect
- Tinkimints copper prospect and the Helipuerto project concessions is adjacent to Solaris Resources' Warintza deposit within one of the most prolific portions of the Andean Jurassic Porphyry Belt, which hosts the nearby Fruta Del Norte and Mirador mines, the Santa Barbara, Panantza and, and SolGold's newly discovered Cacharposa deposit at Porvenir.
- Extensive soil sampling over the last three months has returned high values of copper in soil at Tinkimints, including up to 0.7% Cu in soils. The Tinkimints prospect is characterised by highly anomalous copper and copper/zinc in soil over a 1.5km by 1km area.
Sharug Project, Southern Ecuador: Santa Martha Target
- Water extraction licence received for the Sharug project, the final milestone to start drilling.
- Drilling planned to test the Santa Martha target that represents a coincident alteration, geochemical and magnetic anomaly characteristic of a copper-gold-molybdenum porphyry system.
Rio Amarillo Project, Northern Ecuador: Varela Target
- Fathom Geophysics was commissioned to undertake 3D geochemical modelling of the Varela target and the resulting 3D models have significantly upgraded the Varela target, highlighting the similarities between the Varela and Alpala lithocap footprints and geochemical signatures. 3D geochemical modelling conducted by Fathom Geophysics has proven highly predictive when used to target porphyry style mineralisation at both the Alpala and Porvenir projects.
- The Varela target exhibits a classic well-preserved metalliferous lithocap and hydrothermal alteration system with a full complement of porphyry plume elements, the classic signature of a large scale strongly mineralised porphyry copper-gold(-molybdenum) system. Drilling is planned for commencement in Q2 2021 following an assessment post the Ecuador presidential elections.
Exploration Projects earn-out initiative
- In early March, SolGold commenced a process to identify potential JV/earn-in partners over 10 of its 100%-owned early-stage exploration projects containing 20 prospective concessions covering 86,000 hectares across Ecuador. These concessions were highly sought after during the original bidding process.
- No comparable and reliable alternative entry routes to exploration ground in Ecuador. Strong interest received from several well-regarded counterparties with due diligence now commenced.
Commenting on today's update on Porvenir, SolGold Technical Services Manager, Benn Whistler, said:
"With continued robust drilling results from Cacharposa, the geology department has commenced level-plan and cross-section interpretation throughout the deposit, ahead of finalising 3D geological models that will form the basis of the Cacharposa Maiden Mineral Resource.
The Cacharposa Deposit covers around one square kilometre at surface and covers a vertical column of over 900m, which is more than the world's tallest building. Mineralisation remains open to the north, the south and at depth, and the geometry and copper and gold grades achieved through drilling thus far are considered amenable for large scale mining methods. The recent drilling results from Cacharposa are a testament to the quality of the Company's regional exploration portfolio and we expect to add further tonnage to the Company's resource base as exploration continues in the country."
References to figures relate to the version visible in PDF format by clicking the link below:
https://www.rns-pdf.londonstockexchange.com/rns/7708T_1-2021-3-29.pdf