Aya Gold & Silver Extends Main Zone to 5km and Adds 7 New Permits at Boumadine

MONTREAL, May 13, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Aya Gold & Silver Inc. (TSX: AYA; OTCQX: AYASF) (“Aya” or the “Corporation”) is pleased to announce new high-grade drill exploration results from its 2024 program of 120,000 meters (“m”) at Boumadine in the Kingdom of Morocco. Today’s results extend the main mineralized trend by 800m and continues to demonstrate continuity of the Boumadine Main Zone, which remains open in all directions. The Corporation also reports it has secured the right to 7 additional exploration permits, expanding the Boumadine exploration footprint to over 198 square kilometers (“km2”).

• Key Highlights1
  • Extension of Boumadine strike length to 5 kilometers (“km”):
    • BOU-DD23-265 intersected 1,355 grams per tonne (“g/t”) silver equivalent (“AgEq”) over 3.1 m (16.25 g/t gold (“Au”), 86 g/t silver (“Ag”), 0.1% zinc (“Zn”), 0.1% lead (“Pb”) and 0.1% copper (“Cu”) and 442 g/t AgEq over 8.0m (4.51 g/t Au, 58 g/t Ag, 0.3% Zn, 0.2% Pb and 0.2% Cu)
    • BOU-DD24-292 intersected 354 g/t AgEq over 2.9m (4.06 g/t Au, 27 g/t Ag, 0.4% Zn, 0.1% Pb and 0.03% Cu)
    • BOU-DD24-284 intersected 1,317 g/t AgEq over 1.9m (15.70 g/t Au, 91 g/t Ag, 0.05% Zn, 0.1% Pb and 0.2% Cu)
  • Extension of the Tizi strike length to 1.6km:
    • BOU-DD24-310 intersected 445 g/t AgEq over 13.7m (4.90 g/t Au, 42 g/t Ag, 0.3% Zn, 0.4% Pb and 0.1% Cu), including 1.6m at 1,988 g/t AgEq and 1.5m at 813 g/t AgEq
    • BOU-DD24-306 intersected 1,021 g/t AgEq over 3.0m (11.48 g/t Au, 89 g/t Ag, 0.8% Zn, 0.2% Pb and 0.2% Cu) including 1.5m at 1,755 g/t AgEq
  • New style of mineralization with very high silver grade:
    • BOU-DD24-310 intersected 7,820 g/t Ag over 1.0m
  • Secured 7 new exploration permits totaling 56.9 km² at Boumadine (Figure 1)
    

“Today’s high-grade drill results including BOU-DD23-265 in the north of the Main Trend extend the Boumadine footprint to 5km, and BOU-DD23-310 at Tizi confirms the potential to increase the resource,” said Benoit La Salle, President & CEO. “We are excited to expand our presence further at Boumadine through the strategic addition of 7 new permits, as part of our ongoing strategy to grow our land package and underscoring our confidence in the region's mineral potential. With an area of almost 200km2 in what we consider to be a generational asset and a potential district, we are in position to deliver value for all stakeholders.”

Table 1 – Significant Intercepts from Boumadine Drill Exploration Program (Core Lengths)

* True width remains undetermined at this stage; all values are uncut.

** Ag equivalent is based on a silver price of US$21/oz with a process recovery of 89%, a gold price of US$1,900/oz with a process recovery of 85%, a zinc price of US$1.20/lb with a process recovery of 72%, a lead price of US$1.00/lb with a process recovery of 85%, and a copper price of US$4.00/lb with a process recovery of 75% resulting on the following ratios: 1g/t Au: 76.9 g/t Ag; 1% Cu: 97.63 g/t Ag; 1% Pb: 27.7 g/t Ag; 1% Zn: 28.1 g/t Ag.

Figure 1 – Location of New Boumadine Permits

Figure 2 – Surface Plan of Boumadine Property with Magnetic Data (Residual Total Field) and 2024 Drill Holes

2024 Exploration Results

This year, 60 diamond drill holes (“DDH”) for 27,122m have been completed at Boumadine (Figure 2 and Appendix 2). Drilling was conducted on strike along the Main Trend (North Zones), Tizi and North-West Zones. The majority of results have been received for drill holes up to BOU-DD23-310 (Table 1, Figure 4, and Appendix 1).

Results received since January 2024 including hole BOU-DD24-292 confirm the high-grade continuity of the Main Trend and extend the mineralized strike length to 5km. The Main Trend remains open in all directions. Today’s results also significantly extend the strike length of the Tizi Zone from 600m to 1.6km. The Tizi Zone also remains open in all directions.

Hole BOU-DD24-310 returned high-grade silver results including 7,820 g/t Ag over 1.0m in a small East-West structure. This new structure is a brecciated carbonate-quartz-galena vein with low temperature texture (blades, crustiform and colloform). Because the drilling was planned for Tizi, the East-West structure was intersected at a very low core-angle. True thickness is still unknown but is probably less than 0.2m. This type of vein will be better targeted with a specific “East-West” drill program.

The main mineralization generally consists of 1m to 4m wide (locally reaching over a 10m width) N340- oriented massive sulphide lenses/veins sharply dipping eastward (> 70°). The massive sulphide veins (>80%) are mainly composed of pyrite, with variable proportions of sphalerite, galena, and chalcopyrite. Tizi and Imarriren share the same characteristics except for their N000 orientation. Figure 3 presents the results of the Boumadine Main Zone on a longitudinal section along the deposit.

Figure 3 – Longitudinal View of Boumadine Main Zone

Figure 4 – Surface Plan of North & Tizi Zones with New 2024 DDH Results

Next Steps

Significant upside potential exists to expand the Boumadine Main Trend, which currently extends 5.0km and remains open in all directions. Currently, the Corporation has mobilized seven drill rigs to complete the 120,000m drilling program. Half of the program will test the continuation of the known trend and infill. The remaining 50% will focus on geological targets generated by 2023 work and will be informed by the ongoing hyperspectral and high-resolution geophysical surveys. Hyperspectral and the geophysical surveys began in early 2024 and results are expected in late Q2-2024. The results from ongoing geology work will determine additional development work.

Technical Information

Aya has implemented a quality control program to comply with best practices in sampling and analysis of drill core. Drill core samples were transported in sealed bags for analysis at Afrilab laboratory in Marrakech. Standards of different grades and blanks were inserted every 20 samples in addition to the standards, blanks and pulp duplicate inserted by Afrilab.

Qualified Person

The scientific and technical information contained in this press release have been reviewed by David Lalonde, B. Sc, Head of Exploration, Qualified Person, for accuracy and compliance with National Instrument 43-101.

About Aya Gold & Silver Inc.

Aya Gold & Silver Inc. is a rapidly growing, Canada-based silver producer with operations in the Kingdom of Morocco.

The only TSX-listed pure silver mining company, Aya operates the high-grade Zgounder Silver Mine and is exploring its properties along the prospective South-Atlas Fault, several of which have hosted past-producing mines and historical resources. Aya’s Moroccan mining assets are complemented by its Tijirit Gold Project in Mauritania, which is being advanced to feasibility.

Aya’s management team maximizes shareholder value by anchoring sustainability at the heart of its production, resource, governance, and financial growth plans.

For additional information, please visit Aya’s website at www.ayagoldsilver.com or contact:

Forward-Looking Statements

This press release contains certain statements that constitute forward-looking information within the meaning of applicable securities laws (“forward-looking statements”), which reflects management's expectations regarding Aya’s future growth and business prospects (including the timing and development of new deposits and the success of exploration activities) and other opportunities. Wherever possible, words such as “confirm”, “remains”, “confidence”, “potential”, “complete”, “expect” “extend”, “expand”, “belief”, and similar expressions or statements that certain actions, events or results “may”, “could”, “would”, “might”, “will”, or are “likely” to be taken, occur or be achieved, have been used to identify such forward-looking information. Specific forward-looking statements in this press release include, but are not limited to, statements and information with respect to the exploration and development potential of Boumadine and the advancement of and success of the exploration program at Boumadine , and timing for the release of the Company's disclosure in connection with the foregoing. Although the forward-looking information contained in this press release reflect management's current beliefs based upon information currently available to management and based upon what management believes to be reasonable assumptions, Aya cannot be certain that actual results will be consistent with such forward-looking information. Such forward-looking statements are based upon assumptions, opinions and analysis made by management in light of its experience, current conditions, and its expectations of future developments that management believe to be reasonable and relevant but that may prove to be incorrect. These assumptions include, among other things, the ability to obtain any requisite governmental approvals, the accuracy of Mineral Reserve and Mineral Resource Estimates (including, but not limited to, ore tonnage and ore grade estimates), silver price, exchange rates, fuel and energy costs, future economic conditions, anticipated future estimates of free cash flow, and courses of action. Aya cautions you not to place undue reliance upon any such forward-looking statements.

The risks and uncertainties that may affect forward-looking statements include, among others: the inherent risks involved in exploration and development of mineral properties, including government approvals and permitting, changes in economic conditions, changes in the worldwide price of silver and other key inputs, changes in mine plans (including, but not limited to, throughput and recoveries being affected by metallurgical characteristics) and other factors, such as project execution delays, many of which are beyond the control of Aya, as well as other risks and uncertainties which are more fully described in Aya's 2023 Annual Information Form dated March 28, 2024, and in other filings of Aya with securities and regulatory authorities which are available on SEDAR+ at www.sedarplus.ca. Furthermore, Aya’s corporate update of May 28, 2020 regarding the materiality of its assets as well as to studies regarding non-material assets remains applicable as at the date hereof. Aya does not undertake any obligation to update forward-looking statements should assumptions related to these plans, estimates, projections, beliefs, and opinions change. Nothing in this document should be construed as either an offer to sell or a solicitation to buy or sell Aya securities. All references to Aya include its subsidiaries unless the context requires otherwise.

Appendix 1 – Full Drill Results from Boumadine (core lengths)

* True width remains undetermined at this stage; all values are uncut.

** Ag equivalent is based on a silver price of US$21/oz with a process recovery of 89%; a gold price of US$1,900/oz with a process recovery of 85%; a zinc price of US$1.20/lb with a process recovery of 72%; a lead price of US$1.00/lb with a process recovery of 85%; and a copper price of US$4.00/lb with a process recovery of 75% resulting on the following ratios: 1 g/t Au: 76.9 g/t Ag; 1% Cu: 97.63 g/t Ag; 1% Pb: 27.7 g/t Ag; and 1% Zn: 28.1 g/t Ag.

Appendix 2 – New Drillhole Coordinates of 2024 Boumadine Exploration Program (completed holes)

1All intersections are in core lengths. Ag equivalent is based on a silver price of US$21/oz with a process recovery of 89%, a gold price of US$1,900/oz with a process recovery of 85%, a zinc price of US$1.20/lb with a process recovery of 72%, a lead price of US$1.00/lb with a process recovery of 85%, and a copper price of US$4.00/lb with a process recovery of 75% resulting on the following ratios: 1g/t Au: 76.9 g/t Ag; 1% Cu: 97.63 g/t Ag; 1% Pb: 27.7 g/t Ag; 1% Zn: 28.1 g/t Ag.

Figures accompanying this announcement are available at

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