Redstar Gold Corp (TSX.V: RGC, OTCQB: RGCTF, FRA: RGG) continues to make astounding progress on its flagship Unga Gold Project in Alaska, having completed a 12-hole diamond drilling program that started in May 2017 on the high-grade Shumagin Gold Zone.
The 2,287.8-meter drill program was predicated on ground-based geophysical surveys, completed in April 2017, which identified multiple hidden structures along strike and a new parallel vein discovery, all with the potential to host high-grade gold mineralization.
While drill results are still pending (assays were sent to the lab on June 6 and are expected in July), the drills have expanded the strike length by 42% to now 1,350 meters, and all indications are the Shumagin Gold Zone remains open in all directions. If we remember back to 2016, Shumagin was increased from 300 meters to 950 meters. Drilling continues to increase this one vein system each time it is explored. The Shumagin Gold Zone is one of up to 13 known gold zones on the island, and makes up only a portion of the known 35+ line kilometers of veins.
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We are excited to have intersected the Shumagin vein structure along strike to the southwest, and in addition intersected the vein structure within the main breccia system to the northeast with infill drill holes,”
said Redstar’s President & CEO, Peter A. Ball.“The Shumagin Gold Zone has now been traced by drilling for approximately 1,350 m, up from approximately 950 m in 2016, an increase of 42% or 400 m. The work completed this spring both confirms the extension of the vein structure and, importantly, shows that the structure remains open along strike and at depth.”
The Company intersected Shumagin-style breccias/vein systems in 10 out of 12 drill holes, with minor zones of alternation and stockwork veining observed in the other two holes. About 600 soil samples were taken to determine the strike potential of the newly discovered footwall veining and associated geophysical anomalies just 400 meters north of Shumagin. This new footwall system is another new vein to add to the inventory, and no better place to discover a new vein, than directly next to the main system you are drilling.
“Delineating the expansion potential of the Shumagin Gold Zone to the southwest has been the Company’s prioritized goal for the initial 2017 Spring Exploration and Drill Program. The methodical step-out drilling, that was guided by detailed IP (induced polarization-resistivity) and MAG (ground magnetic) surveys, has provided us with an exploration “template” that will be utilized on the other epithermal gold prospects within the Unga Gold District,”said Jesse C. Grady, Redstar's VP of Exploration.“A significant panel of vein breccia at the Shumagin Gold Zone has now been defined that can be infill-drilled, while regional exploration efforts can focus on the other noteworthy gold prospects.”
The main goal of the 2017 Drill Program, totaling up to 5,000 meters, is to trace the occurrence of quartz-adularia-carbonate breccias along strike of the Shumagin Fault and the new footwall splay recently discovered along approximate 100 m centers. The step-out drill program will move southwest along the Shumagin structure towards Orange Mountain.
The Company announced that a follow-up drill program is likely expected to continue once assay results are received and reviewed.
Drill targets were identified based on geophysical surveys over the Shumagin Gold Zone, which traced the Shumagin Fault a total of 1.6 kilometers, pinpointed a new footwall splay and discovered a parallel footwall structure/anomaly. Structurally the system has been traced to the Orange Mountain Gold Zone, but only the drill bit will tell if the strike length continues to get bigger. So far drilling has been quite successful.
Of the previous 65 drill holes drilled before the current drill program, 100% intersected gold mineralization, 38% returned intersections over 15 g/t Au, 25% over 25 g/t Au, and 12% over 50 g/t Au.
An 8-hole drill program in 2015 yielded several high-grade gold intersections. Assay results included 202 g/t Au over 1.9 meters and 35.3 g/t Au over 2 meters. The $1 million program comprised 7 holes, spaced over the 750-meter-long strike. That program was designed to test the down-dip and along-strike expansion potential of high-grade vein and breccia mineralization at various elevations.
Results from the 2016 fall drill program at Shumagin indicated that high-grade gold-silver mineralization occurs for approximately 950 meters of tested strike length and extends vertically to approximately 330 meters.
Located at the end of the Aleutian Peninsula in the Shumagin Island chain, the 240-square-kilometer Unga Gold District has a host of historical drill results that have yet to be consolidated into one NI 43-101-compliant resource estimate – although that is hinted to be next on Redstar's agenda. The project contains two mineralized trends totaling about 20 kilometers. Along one of those trends sits the past-producing Apollo-Sitka mine, which was Alaska's first gold mine.
The underground Apollo-Sitka mine produced about 150,000 ounces, at about 10 g/t Au, but stopped mining in the 1920s when miners hit sulfides in the southern trend. But the Shumagin Gold Zone contains no sulfides, or less than 1%. The Company is looking for the Shumagin-style rhodochrosite brecciated veins at surface, which is the type of rock that typically carries high-grade gold, or as stated earlier every hole hit gold.
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Shumagin Trend is approximately 9.5 kilometers long, and is a major regional structure responsible for epithermal mineralization and associated alteration exposed along its strike length.
Shumagin is just one of up to a dozen gold zones, containing between 25 and 35 kilometers of veins. Recent and historical drilling suggests the Shumagin Gold Zone could host a panel containing at least a million ounces of gold and silver, and no base metals.
Unga's geological profile appears to be similar to the Kupol property in Russia, sold to Kinross Gold (TSX:K) in 2010, and Cerro Negro in Argentina, which Goldcorp (TSX:G) paid $3 billion for through the acquisition of Andean Resources. In 2016, world expert and leader on epithermal gold systems, Dr. Jeffrey Hedenquist, completed a positive report comparing the Unga Gold Project to many world-class gold exploration projects.
In September 2016, Redstar closed a $4.6 million financing, and announced that legendary investor Eric Sprott took an 11.6% interest in Redstar through the purchase of 30 million shares. Other institutional investors that have jumped into Redstar include Geologic Resource Partners, controlled by recognized geological investor George Ireland, U.S Global Investors, led by Frank Holmes and one of the top fund managers Ralph Aldis, New York-based Gabelli Gold and even one of the top-performing European gold gurus, Gold2000.
Respected newsletter author Byron King recently put a “Buy” recommendation on Redstar Gold and touted the Company in a June 2017 Streetwise Report. In the report, King says despite the Unga exploration project being early-stage, he likes what he sees:
“It’s early in the exploration game, but I’m willing to say that Redstar likely has what is called a district-scale deposit, with extensive rock masses infused with high grade gold, as well as silver and copper. From past mining – which barely scratched the surface – we know that the Unga deposit is epithermal gold. This means that it’s easily mineable, near the surface,”
King wrote.
“Already, Redstar has dug trenches and taken samples that show gold indications – actual gold, and related gold-hosting minerals. There are multiple drill ready targets, and that gets us to what’s happening this summer. Redstar is conducting exploration drilling, beginning this month. I expect drilling results to arrive any day now. When those results come back — and if they are as promising as we expect —
this company could skyrocket in value, possibly as much as 1,000%.”
The release of Byron King's report corresponded with a 12% increase in the stock price and a flurry of new retail investor interest, with the stock changing hands at nearly 15 times average volumes. Over the last year the Company is up 150%, and 42% over the last three months.
The past year, in addition to Byron King, Redstar has seen analyst coverage by Michael Niehuser out of New York-based and respected Scarsdale Equities, and coverage by various newsletter writers including European based Thibaut Lepouttre and Bob Moriarty, and US-based John Kaiser and Jeb Handwerger. Each of them must see something they like.
Expect more good news from Redstar in the coming weeks. Assay results from Phase 1 of the 2017 Drill Program are due in July. Planning for the next drill program is currently underway and will be focused on completing a mineral resource and 43-101 technical report at the Shumagin Gold Zone where a total of 77 holes (12,840.5 m) have been drilled, with 37 completed by Redstar since 2011.
The Company is also planning to drill test other high priority gold zones such as Orange Mountain, Empire Ridge, Aquila/Amethyst, and the newly discovered footwall vein to the north of the Shumagin Gold Zone.