VANCOUVER, British Columbia, Dec. 16, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Patagonia Gold Corp. (“Patagonia” or the “Company”) (TSXV: PGDC) is pleased to provide an update on its 2021 exploration activities in Argentina. Development activities continue at the Cap Oeste underground and Calcatreu gold/silver properties together with exploration around the Cap Oeste residual heap leach operation and at the other exploration projects. Patagonia holds over 1.29 million hectares (12,900 square kilometers) of mineral properties in the country. By the end of 2021, the Company anticipates having spent a total of US$3.7 million on exploration.
Highlights
- Reconnaissance sampling at the Company’s Las Mellizas property, west of, and adjacent to, the La Josefina group of properties, returned values ranging from less than 0.01 grams per tonne (“g/t”) Au to 187.2 grams per tonne (“g/t”) Au and from less than 0.25 g/t Ag to 78.6 g/t Ag.
- Completed two core holes on the Camino target at Tornado-Huracán, situated between the San Jose and Cerro Negro mines. The first hole ended prematurely at 85 meters but ended in 2.1 meters of oxidized, silicified breccia starting at 64 meters downhole. The second hole intersected two structures at 186 meters and 228 meters respectively. Assays are pending and drilling continues.
- El Tranquilo Block:
- At Monte Leon, southeast of the Company’s Cap Oeste mine, a large program of over 375 shallow, percussion rotary holes was completed;
- Analytical results received to-date defined a +400 meter by +400 meter area of near surface, epithermal gold mineralization; and
- Geologic mapping and reconnaissance sampling continues at the Don Pancho, Felix and Calafate zones due east of the Cap Oeste mine.
- Trench sampling at the Calcatreu project returned high-grade Au and Ag on the Piche vein. Piche is a +650 meter-long low sulfidation vein, located subparallel and close to the main Nelson vein, which hosts part of the mineral resources at the Calcatreu project. Trench assays ranged from less than 0.01 g/t Au and less than 0.25 g/t Ag to 16.7 g/t Au and 356 g/t Ag over variable sample lengths ranging from 0.5 m to 2.3 m and include:
- TR-007-PIC - 0.5 meter grading 15.7 Au g/t and 177.7 Ag g/t;
- TR-008-PIC - 2.2 meter grading 7.67 Au g/t and 119.1 Ag g/t, including 1.2 meter grading 9.54 Au g/t and 169/1 Ag g/t; and
- TR-009-PIC - 2.7 meter grading 8.26 Au g/t and 188.1 Ag g/t, including 1.2 meter grading 16.7 Au g/t and 356 Ag g/t.
Additional trenching is underway.
- Completed restructuring of the La Josefina and La Valenciana area properties with Fomicruz, the Santa Cruz provincial mining company, together with an option agreement over the Abril property bordering the Company’s Martha mine on the south. Mapping, sampling and ground magnetic surveys at the Abril property are underway.
Note:
All Company analytical results cited herein were performed by Alex Stewart International, a certified, independent analytical services company, at their facilities in Mendoza, Argentina and subject to the Company’s QAQC protocols.
Christopher van Tienhoven, CEO of Patagonia, commented, “We are pleased with the geology and various anomalous and, in some cases, high-grade results we are finding on these properties and expect to continue work and drilling during the warm season. We believe our large stable of prospective properties have compelling potential discovery and development potential. In addition, our pre-feasibility work at our Calcatreu development property continues.”
A Media Snippet accompanying this announcement is available by clicking on the image or link below:
Las Mellizas
Las Mellizas, located in Santa Cruz, AR, was acquired by the Company from Goldcorp (now Newmont) in 2019. Goldcorp acquired the property by way of its acquisition of Andean Resources and their Cerro Negro deposit. Before Andean, Iamgold held and explored Las Mellizas. Work by the prior operators defined precious metal mineralization in 11 targets.
Highlights of the prior operators work include:
- +7,000 meters in 64 core and reverse circulation (“RC”) drill holes;
- Low sulfidation, epithermal mineralization in Jurassic-aged host rocks typical of many other mineral occurrences in the Deseado Massif of Santa Cruz;
- Drilling tested N-S trending veins (notably the T12 vein); and
- Au and Ag mineralization from T12 drilling ranged from 1.08 g/t Au to 296.7 g/t Au and from 3 g/t Ag to 159 g/t Ag in RC hole MZRC009 and from 1.33 g/t Au to 939.6 g/t Au and from 0.1 g/t Ag to 670.8 g/t Ag in core hole MRC036.
Monte Leon
Monte Leon is one of several, epithermal precious metal occurrences within the large, +65,500 hectare, El Tranquilo concession block, which encompasses the Company’s Cap Oeste mine and surrounds Pan American Silver’s COSE mine. In April of this year, the Company was granted an option to acquire a 75% interest in the Homenaje project area, bordering El Tranquilo on the southwest, from Mirasol Resources. Together, El Tranquilo and Homenaje are over +79,000 hectares in size of prospective land. Subsequently, the Company commenced geologic reconnaissance work on the combined land with an initial emphasis on the Monte Leon mineral showing located on trend from the Cap Oeste project (Figure 2).
A Media Snippet accompanying this announcement is available by clicking on the image or link below:
In Q3 2021, Patagonia commenced a program of shallow (less than 25 meter depth), angled, percussion rotary drilling to define the near-surface extent of mineralization discovered with prior reconnaissance sampling. Anomalous analytical results have been received from approximately 377 holes. Results ranged from less than detection limit to up to 15.97 g/t Au over three meters (length-weighted, composite averages). Compositing was limited to continuous analyses greater than or equal to 0.2 g/t Au over a minimum one meter downhole sample length.
The analytical results outline an initial area of anomalous gold, greater than or equal to a length-weighted average of one gram-meter (grade x thickness), over 400 meters NW-SE by over 400 meters NE-SW in size. In many of the holes, mineralization starts at surface, extending to variable hole depths. Mineralization remains open for expansion on strike and at depth. The composites show variable oxidation levels, which the Company believes may develop, with new drilling, into a surface-minable opportunity. Future drilling is planned to help define near-surface mineral resources and probe for extensions at depth.
Abril
As disclosed on December 6, 2021, the Company recently reached an agreement with Fomicruz on the Abril property. Abril is approximately 1,980 hectares in size and borders the Company’s Martha property (Figure 3) in the province of Santa Cruz.
A Media Snippet accompanying this announcement is available by clicking on the image or link below:
Work by prior operators identified vein and silicified structures subparallel to those at the Company’s Martha property and on trend with the main mineralized structures at Manantial Espejo (Pan American Silver Corp) to the southeast. The Abril property has been sporadically explored by prior operators, notably Minera Piuquenes, which drilled 15 short cores in 2006 on two structures: 11 on the west part of the property close to provincial road 12 and four on the north along a SW extension of the past producing Veta Del Medio system at Martha. Analytical results from this historic drilling returned assay values from detection limits up to 0.14 g/t Au and 368.1 g/t Ag over 2.15 drill meters in hole ABR-DDH-001, which included 1.2 g/t Au and 3,911 g/t Ag over 0.15 drill meters. As part of its expected exploration activities, the Company will, among other work, validate these historic results.
Qualified Person’s Statement
Donald J. Birak, an independent geologist, Registered Member of SME, Fellow of AusIMM and a qualified person as defined by National Instrument 43-101, has reviewed and approved the scientific and technical content of this news release.
About Patagonia Gold
Patagonia Gold Corp. is a South America focused, publicly traded mining company listed on the TSX Venture Exchange. The Company seeks to grow shareholder value through exploration and development of gold and silver projects in the Patagonia region of Argentina. The Company is primarily focused on the Calcatreu Project in Rio Negro and the development of the Cap-Oeste underground project. Patagonia, indirectly through its subsidiaries or under option agreements, has mineral rights to over 420 properties in several provinces of Argentina and Chile and is one of the largest landholders in the province of Santa Cruz, Argentina.
For more information, please contact:
Dean Stuart
T: 403 617 7609
E: dean@boardmarker.net
Christopher van Tienhoven, Chief Executive Officer
Patagonia Gold Corp
T: +54 11 5278 6950
E: cvantienhoven@patagoniagold.com
FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS
This news release contains certain forward-looking statements, including, but not limited to, statements with respect to, among other things,having spent US$3.7 million on exploration by the end of 2021, pending results of assays, the expectation that the Company will continue to work in the warm season, the belief that the Company’s prospective properties have compelling potential discovery and development potential, the belief that the composites may develop, with new drilling, into a surface-minable opportunity, results of future drilling, validation of historical results, the belief that the historic drilled mineralization at the Abril property is of similar geologic character to the Martha intermediate sulfidation, epithermal vein-hosted mineralization, advancement and development of gold and silver projects in the Patagonia region of Argentina and the anticipated growth in shareholder value. Wherever possible, words such as “may”, “will”, “should”, “could”, “expect”, “plan”, “intend”, “anticipate”, “believe”, “estimate”, “predict” or “potential” or the negative or other variations of these words, or similar words or phrases, have been used to identify these forward-looking statements. These statements reflect management’s current beliefs and are based on information currently available to management as at the date hereof.
Forward-looking statements involve significant risk, uncertainties and assumptions. Many factors could cause actual results, performance or achievements to differ materially from the results discussed or implied in the forward-looking statements. These factors should be considered carefully, and readers should not place undue reliance on the forward-looking statements. Although the forward-looking statements contained in this news release are based upon what management believes to be reasonable assumptions, the Company cannot assure readers that actual results will be consistent with these forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements are made as of the date of this news release, and the Company assumes no obligation to update or revise them to reflect new events or circumstances, except as required by law.
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 news release.
