Vancouver, British Columbia--(Newsfile Corp. - May 9, 2024) - Onyx Gold Corp. (TSXV: ONYX) (OTCQX: ONXGF) ("Onyx Gold" or the "Company") is pleased to announce that it has entered into an option agreement (the "Agreement") with Senoa Gold Corp. (the "Optionor") and a wholly-owned subsidiary of the Company (the "Optionee") to acquire the WEAS property (the "Property"), which consists of claims that are contiguous to the Company's King Tut property, in Yukon's Tombstone Gold Belt.
Highlights of the Property and the Agreement:
- The 627-hectare ("ha") land package comprising the Property is located within the King Tut Property (Figure 1). This strategic acquisition consolidates the King Tut Property and provides the Company full control of the two mineralized intrusions on the King Tut Property, the WEAS intrusion and the Golden Mask intrusion located 9 km to the west (Figure 2).
- The Property covers a prospective reduced intrusion-related gold target. Historical work completed by previous operators reported multigenerational gold-bearing sheeted quartz veins within an exposed, 3 km by 2 km granitic intrusion (Plate 1) (See Yukon Occurrence Number 105O 056). Drilling in 1996 (five holes totaling 1,280 m) intersected 1.0 grams per tonne ("g/t") gold ("Au") over 21 meters ("m") (true width unknown) associated with the sheeted quartz veins, along with surface grab samples of up to 20.1 g/t Au (Figures 2 and 3).
- There has been limited work done on the Property and no significant exploration since the mid-1990s. The Company is planning an early summer work program consisting of field mapping, prospecting, and channel sampling to prioritize potential drill targets within areas of exposed gold-bearing sheeted quartz veins. This program will inform a potential drilling program later in the summer.
- Under the terms of the Agreement, the Company can acquire 100% of the WEAS Property by providing the Optionor a total of 3,000,000 common shares of Onyx, consisting of 500,000 shares on closing, 500,000 shares on the first anniversary, 500,000 shares on the second anniversary, and 1,500,000 shares on the third anniversary.
"This agreement underscores our commitment to consolidating our position and unlocking the full potential of our assets in this emerging new mining camp," said Brock Colterjohn, President & CEO. "The Property presents a compelling opportunity with historical data indicating significant gold potential associated with exposed, multigenerational sheeted quartz veins within a granitic intrusion. Our upcoming field program aims to further delineate targets for exploration, marking an exciting step towards our goal of unlocking a new gold discovery in the prolific Tombstone Gold Belt."
To hear more on this news from Brock Colterjohn, please see the video here: https://youtu.be/hZvI-RNTShc
Details of the Property:
The 30-claim (627 ha) Property lies internal to the Onyx's King Tut Property and covers an intrusion target situated between the Golden Mask and Main Tut targets (Figure 2). Historical work completed by previous operators reported multigenerational gold-bearing sheeted quartz veins within an exposed, 3 km by 2 km intrusion (Plate 1) (See Yukon Occurrence Number 105O 056 and Yukon Geological Survey's 1996 Yukon Exploration and Geology (YEG) annual report.). Drilling in 1996 (five holes totaling 1,280 m) at the Ann Mark Zone (Figure 3) intersected 1.0 g/t Au over 21 m (true width unknown) associated with the sheeted veins with quartz-arsenopyrite-bismuthinite, along with surface samples of up to 20.1 g/t Au and chip channel samples of quartz veins in sericite-altered diorite reported 15.3 g/t Au over 3.0 meters.
The Company cautions that none of the historical results from the Property, including drill results, have been verified. Assay methods and sampling techniques are not disclosed in the historical reports, and in the case of drilling on the WEAS target, the Company has only been able to locate indirect references to the results, but no primary source. Historical results discussed herein are presented more generally as an indication of the potential of the Property to host reduced intrusion-related gold systems.
Details of the Transaction:
The Company, through the Optionee, has the option to acquire 100% of the Property from the Optionor (the "Option") by issuing 3,000,000 Shares as follows:
- 500,000 shares upon the Effective Date (as defined below);
- 500,000 shares on the 1st anniversary of the Effective Date;
- 500,000 shares on the 2nd anniversary of the Effective Date; and
- 1,500,000 shares on the 3rd anniversary of the Effective Date.
Under the terms of the Agreement, upon the exercise of the Option, the Optionee will enter into an agreement granting a 1% NSR royalty on the Property to the Optionor.
The Property is subject to an underlying obligation to a third party consisting of a 1.0% NSR and bonus payment of $1,000,000 (the "Bonus Payment"), payable by the Optionee if a measured or indicated mineral resource of greater than 1 million ounces of gold is disclosed in compliance with National Instrument 43-101 - Standards of Disclosure for Mineral Projects on the Property.
The Agreement is subject to the approval of the TSX Venture Exchange (the "TSXV"). The Agreement will be effective three business days following approval of the TSXV (the "Effective Date").
2023 Program Summary and 2024 Planning
The 2023 Yukon exploration program by the Company focused on Phase 1 drill testing of the promising Main Tut and Golden Mask gold-in-soil anomalies, which are associated with two separate intrusion-related gold systems, and the execution of property-wide geophysical surveys, geochemical surveys, and mapping and prospecting programs to refine drill targets and identify prospective area for future exploration.
Results from the inaugural nine-hole 2,123-meter drill program confirmed widespread gold mineralization across the Main Tut and Golden Mask anomalies, including 0.30 g/t Au over 32.50 m in drill hole KT23-005, validating the existence of potential bulk-tonnage reduced intrusion-related gold systems ("RIRGS") on the Property (See Company New Release dated November 15, 2023). In addition, new airborne magnetic surveying and soil sampling have also significantly expanded the size of the mapped intrusions at both targets.
The Company is currently developing its budget and an early summer exploration program for 2024. This program will consist of a reconnaissance exploration program on the newly acquired WEAS claims and follow-up fieldwork on the Golden Mask and Main Tut prospects based on last year's encouraging results. The results from this program will inform a potential drilling program later in the summer.
Lock-up Terms of 5,000,000 Onyx Gold Shares to be Acquired by HighGold
Onyx was created as a result of the spin-out of Canadian assets from HighGold, whereby HighGold received five million common shares of Onyx. The Company is pleased to announce that HighGold has proposed to enter into a fifteen-month lock-up agreement (the "Lock-Up Agreement") in respect of the five million Onyx shares. Under the terms of the proposed Lock-Up Agreement, HighGold has agreed not to sell, swap or otherwise transfer any of its shares of the Company without the prior written consent of Onyx Gold, for a period of 24 months from the lock-up date, subject to automatic timed releases of 25% to be released 15 months from the lock-up date, and 25% to be released every 3 months thereafter. On May 2, 2024, HighGold announced its proposed acquisition by Contango ORE Inc. If the transaction is approved, Contango ORE would adopt the Lock-Up Agreement.
Plate 1 - Multiple Generations of Sheeted Quartz Vein Systems on the Property (16" mattock for scale)
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Figure 1 - Regional Map - Yukon's Selwyn Basin
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Figure 2 - Property Map - King Tut and WEAS Properties - Surface Gold Geochemistry
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Note - Highlighted historical samples noted herein have not been verified by the Company, but they provide evidence for the general gold endowment of the claims. Grab samples are selective in nature and don't necessarily represent bulk tonnage grades
Figure 3 - Property Map - WEAS Property - Historical Surface and Drilling Results
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