VANCOUVER, April 4, 2018 /CNW/ - ATAC Resources Ltd.
(TSX-V:ATC) ("ATAC") is pleased to announce the 2018 exploration
program for its 1,700 km2 Rackla Gold Property in
east-central Yukon.
The combined 2018 exploration budget for the Rackla Gold
Property is ~$13 million and includes
$7 million from ATAC and $6 million from Barrick Gold Corp.
("Barrick"). The program will include ~20,000 m of diamond
drilling and is planned to begin in May. The focus will be on
identifying and expanding high-grade gold mineralization at
existing zones within the Osiris and Orion
Projects, and advancing 2017 prospecting discoveries at the
Rau Project.
The Rackla Gold Property – 2018 Objectives
- Barrick-funded discovery drilling on high-priority gold targets
at the Orion Project;
- Step-out drilling from significant 2017 results, including:
12.50 m of 20.78 g/t gold at
the Conrad Zone; and 15.24
m of 13.52 g/t gold at the Sunrise Zone;
- Diamond drilling to extend stratigraphically-controlled
mineralization at the Osiris Zone;
- Generative rotary air-blast ("RAB") drilling to explore
untested gold and pathfinder soil geochemical anomalies; and,
- Sampling, prospecting and mapping of high-priority Rau
Project targets discovered, or advanced, during the highly
successful 2017 prospecting program.
"We are excited to get started on what will be the largest
drilling campaign since 2012 on the Rackla Gold Property,"
commented Graham Downs, President
and CEO of ATAC. "Our technical team will work alongside Barrick to
unlock the discovery potential we see emerging at the Orion
Project. Meanwhile, we will be looking to expand some of the
highest grade gold zones identified to date at our wholly-owned
Osiris Project. ATAC will also continue to advance prospecting
activity at our Rau Project, where results indicate the potential
for a district-scale polymetallic
discovery."
The Rackla Gold Property – 2017 Highlights and 2018
Plans
Under an April 2017 earn-in
agreement, Barrick can acquire up to a 70% interest in the 780
km2 Orion Project following the completion of total
expenditures of $63.3 million.
These expenditures include a flow-through private placement under
which ATAC received total proceeds of $8.3
million, completed in 2017, and aggregate exploration
expenditures of $55 million.
The Rackla Gold Property is comprised of three projects: the
100% owned Carlin-type gold Osiris Project, which hosts the Conrad,
Osiris, Sunrise and Ibis Carlin-type gold zones; the 100% owned Rau
Project, which hosts the Tiger Gold Deposit; and the Orion Project,
under option to Barrick. Updated maps and figures can be viewed on
ATAC's website.
Osiris Project
Diamond drilling on at the Osiris Project in 2017 resulted in
the discovery and expansion of high-grade gold mineralization at
the Conrad, Sunrise and Osiris Zones. The newly-identified
mineralization will be followed up through systematic step-out
drilling in 2018.
Conrad Zone
High-grade, structurally-controlled gold mineralization was
encountered within both the 350 and 650 Fault
corridors at the Conrad Zone in 2017.
On the eastern side of Conrad, hole OS-17-238 targeted an area
of limited drilling within the 650 Fault corridor and returned a
high-grade, near-surface mineralized interval of 12.50 m of 20.78 g/t gold from
54.86 m. Holes OS-17-257 and
OS-17-259 also targeted the 650 Fault corridor at the structural
intersection with the Nadaleen Fault and returned high-grade gold
intersections of 12.19 m of 9.44
g/t gold and 25.91 m of 5.44
g/t gold, respectively.
On the western side of Conrad, hole OS-17-233 intersected
67.06 m of 3.35 g/t gold,
including 15.14 m of 7.25 g/t
gold, within the 350 Fault corridor, which highlights the
high-grade nature of the structurally controlled
mineralization.
Drilling in 2018 will focus on systematically stepping out from
known gold mineralization within these fault corridors. The Conrad
Zone remains open in all directions.
Sunrise Zone
Mineralization within the Sunrise Zone occurs as sub-parallel
tabular bodies that dip steeply to the south, paralleling the
Sunrise Fault. Drilling at Sunrise in 2017 showed strong
continuity with a consistent increase in the grade of the
mineralization with depth.
The higher grades are demonstrated in hole OS-17-249, which
returned 10.42 m of 7.97 g/t
gold and 15.24 m of 13.52 g/t
gold. Drilling will continue this systematic expansion of
the zone both at depth and along strike from the previously
delineated mineralization. The Sunrise Zone remains open at depth
and along strike.
Osiris Zone
Gold mineralization at the Osiris Zone is most strongly
developed at stratigraphic boundaries where mineralizing fluids
become focused. This gold concentration is demonstrated in
OS-17-244 where 12.19 m of 9.60
g/t gold was intersected at the stratigraphic contact between
the limestone and mudstone rock units. Drilling at the Osiris
Zone in 2018 will continue to step out on mineralization that has
only been outlined through cursory drilling in 2011 and 2017. The
Osiris Zone remains open along strike and at depth.
Barrick Earn-In – Orion Project
Barrick's 2018 diamond drill program at the Orion Project will
consist of approximately 10,000 m of
diamond drilling targeting gold mineralization. The first
year of Barrick's earn-in option and work was focused on
systematically establishing a surface and sub-surface geological,
geochemical and structural framework of the Orion Project area.
The presence of robust Carlin-type alteration identified in 2017
diamond drill holes, well away from any surface geochemical
anomalies, demonstrated that favourable environments for the
development of gold mineralization at Orion are more extensive than
previously understood.
The results of the 2017 work are being evaluated by the joint
Barrick-ATAC exploration team to prioritize the targets for diamond
drill testing in 2018. Diamond drilling will mainly be
focused along the 6 km long Anubis Fault corridor.
Prior to the Barrick earn-in agreement, ATAC completed ~3,000 m
of diamond drilling within the Anubis Fault corridor, and
highlights include: 8.51 m of
19.85 g/t gold from the Anubis Zone and 61.29 m of 2.75 g/t gold from the Orion
Zone.
Nine other prospecting discoveries within the Anubis Cluster
(Ana, Corona, Columba, Dale, Dorado, Draco, Hydra, Lyra and Zodiac)
have received only cursory follow-up since their discovery in
2013.
Rau Project
ATAC will follow-up on gold and base metal potential across its
660 km2 Rau Project located at the western end of the
Rackla Gold Property. Prospecting in 2017 was designed to advance
and prioritize the many known gold and base metal targets along
trend from the advanced stage Tiger oxide gold deposit.
Exploration along trend of the Tiger Deposit in 2018 will
include a targeted advancement of the Condor, Panther
and Spotlight Targets. Work will include hand pitting,
prospecting, and geological mapping. First pass geochemical soil
sampling will be conducted over a large area around the Spotlight
Target not previously sampled.
Highlight grab sample results from the 2017 prospecting program
include:
- 7,080 g/t silver, 4.63% copper, and 3.27 g/t
gold at the newly-discovered Spotlight Target;
- 17.00 g/t gold, 9.46 g/t gold and 23.3%
zinc at the Condor Target; and,
- 8.18 g/t gold and 6.35 g/t gold at the Panther
Target.
The 7,080 g/t silver sample noted above is the highest
silver-in-rock sample collected to date on the Rau Project.
Additional grab samples collected from the 350 by 250 m Spotlight Target returned elevated gold,
copper and tin, a typical metal suite associated with skarn
mineralization.
In preparing for the 2018 field season, ATAC completed a desktop
evaluation of the district-scale potential for intrusive-related
mineralization through the reinterpretation of existing geochemical
and geophysical data sets. The results of this work suggest the
potential for three distinct intrusive centres beneath the Rau
Project. All three intrusive centres and priority geophysical
anomalies will be further evaluated during the 2018 field
program.
Tote Road Update
In March 2018, ATAC received a
joint Decision Document from the Yukon Government and the First
Nation of Na-Cho Nyak Dun stating
that the proposed 65 km, private, all-season tote road to the Tiger
Gold Deposit will be allowed to proceed.
QA/QC
The reported intersections are drilled thicknesses and are
believed to represent approximately 50-70% at the Sunrise Zone,
70-100% at the Osiris Zone, 40-100% at the Conrad Zone, and 50-60%
at the Ocelot Zone. Based on the character of the mineralization
and the limited drilling at Anubis and Orion, it is not possible to
determine the true width of the mineralized intersections at this
time. All prospecting grab samples reported in this release
represent significant results only. Below detection values for
gold, copper, silver, and zinc were encountered in grab samples
from the 2017 prospecting program.
The technical information in this news release has been approved
by Julia Lane, P.Geo., Vice
President of Exploration for ATAC and a qualified person for the
purposes of National Instrument 43-101.
About ATAC
ATAC is a Yukon-based
exploration company focused on developing Canada's only known Carlin-type gold district
alongside Barrick at its Rackla Gold Property. Recent work on the
~1,700 km2 property has resulted in a positive
Preliminary Economic Assessment for the Tiger Gold Deposit,
drilling of multiple high-grade Carlin-type gold zones and the
identification of numerous early-stage gold exploration targets.
ATAC and Barrick have partnered to explore the Rackla Gold
Property's Orion Project, with Barrick having the option to earn up
to a 70% interest in Orion by spending $55
million in exploration. ATAC is well-financed with
approximately $13 million in its
treasury and will be conducting one of Yukon's largest drilling campaigns in
2018.
On behalf of Management and the Board of Directors of ATAC
Resources Ltd.
Graham Downs, President and
CEO
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.
SOURCE ATAC Resources Ltd.