TORONTO, May 20, 2020 /PRNewswire/ - Nighthawk Gold Corp.
("Nighthawk" or the "Company") (TSX: NHK; OTCQX:
MIMZF) is pleased to provide the following summary of its
successful 2019 exploration program on its flagship Colomac Gold
Project ("Colomac") centrally located within its Indin Lake
Gold Property, Northwest Territories,
Canada. The Company highlights key deliverables for the
project moving forward and provides an update for 2020.
Dr. Michael Byron, President and
CEO commented, "Last year was our most active and successful
exploration program to date. We accomplished a tremendous amount,
with our greatest achievements centred around the discovery that a
panel of higher-grade mineralization exists spanning Zone 1.5 and
the northern section of Zone 2.0, and of its three-fold increase in
true width to upwards of 155 metres at depth. Equally as important
was the discovery that the main body of the intrusion between Zone
1.5 and Zone 3.5 also shows a significant widening of the
mineralized upper portion of the sill to depth, in excess of 3.5
kilometres along strike delivering another previously unknown
opportunity that is expected to add to our resource expansion
goals. These are just two of the many key deliverables achieved in
2019 that collectively establish an exciting path for Nighthawk
going forward."
2019 Highlights and Key Deliverables:
- Most extensive and successful drill program completed
to-date at Colomac, including the Colomac main sill ("Colomac
Main") and the Goldcrest sill ("Goldcrest")
-
- Completed 91 drillholes for a total of 35,018 metres of
drilling.
- Drilling continued to intersect significant grade over broad
true widths within high-grade Zone 1.5
-
- Hole C19-08 returning the best intercept to date of 56.00
metres of 13.49 grams per tonne ("gpt") gold
("Au") hosted by a fluidized breccia – a newly recognized
and highly mineralized phase within the mineralized quartz diorite
portion of the sill.
- Newly defined panel of mineralization exhibiting strong
continuity, formed by the merger of high-grade Zone 1.5 and the
northern portion of Zone 2.0
-
- Traced up to 500 metres in strike with a true width of 30
metres to 50 metres at shallow depths and progressively expands to
upwards of 155 metres in true width at 800 metres vertical depth
where it remains open.
- Breakthrough Discovery - mineralized portion of the Colomac
Main widens upwards of three-fold to depth throughout the best
mineralized section of the Main sill (Zone 1.5-2.0 Panel)
-
- This represents one of the greatest advances made to-date at
Colomac, and highlights this area for its potential to host
significant tonnes of high-grade mineralization over extraordinary
true widths, thus presenting a new opportunity for underground bulk
mining as a possible means of future exploitation.
- Confirmation that the mineralized portion of Colomac Main
widens significantly to depth throughout the 3.5 kilometres that
separates Zone 1.5 from Zone 3.5
-
- It is believed that this progressive widening to depth reflects
the sill's true geometry and is typical of its entire 9-kilometre
strike length, thus providing a new and exciting opportunity for
significant resource expansion at depth.
- New style of Colomac high-grade quartz vein hosted
mineralization documented at Zone 3.5 outside of the quartz
diorite
-
- Intersected mineralization within the intrusion's basal quartz
gabbro representing a new style of mineralization that requires
additional follow-up.
- Drilling targeted new resource expansion opportunities
within Goldcrest's southern section
- Metallurgical testwork continues to characterize Colomac
rock as extremely consistent and predictable in terms of hardness
and response to standard gold recovery processes
- Continued streamlining of operational efficiencies have led
to reductions of all-in drilling costs to $286 per metre
The 2019 drill season commenced in early March 2019 and ran until late September with
three drills active. A total 110 drillholes for 40,834 metres of
drilling was completed with the majority of drilling focused at
Colomac (35,018 metres), in preparation for an updated mineral
resource estimate in 2020. Drilling at Colomac continued to:
delineate discrete higher-grade domains within Colomac Main along
strike and to new depths; explored for new zones similar to Zone
1.5 throughout Colomac Main and Goldcrest; infilled and tested
the boundary area between Zones 1.5 and 2.0; and drilled
shallow gaps in the resource from Zone 3.5 northwards to Zone 2.0,
a region that remains largely underexplored to depth (Figure
1).
Seven (7) holes (2,190 metres) were completed at Goldcrest,
located parallel and 400 metres west of Colomac Main, to
follow-up on areas highlighted by Nighthawk's three previous
drill campaigns, and to target new resource expansion opportunities
to depth within Goldcrest's southern section ("Goldcrest
South").
Colomac Higher-Grade Zones
The ongoing frequency of expansive intersections, their
significant true widths, and continuity of higher-grade
mineralization intersected within the targeted zones continues to
enhance project fundamentals. Since the discovery of higher-grade
mineralization at Zone 1.5 in 2014, this area has remained the
focus of systematic drill activity that ultimately lead to the
zone's well-defined strike and depth extents, and recognition of
its prominent three-fold expansion of true width to depth. Success
at Zone 1.5 has helped enormously in the understanding of the key
structural factors responsible for the localization of such
higher-grade domains. This knowledge has been deployed elsewhere
throughout the sills to help delineate other higher-grade prospects
such as Zones 2.0 and 3.5, and in the exploration for additional
discoveries.
Zone 1.5 Advancements
Zone 1.5 continues to deliver outstanding results as shown by its
capacity to host exceptional gold grades over incredible widths.
Early in the 2019 campaign hole C19-08 was drilled 75 metres south
of the high-grade discovery hole C14-06 (see press release dated
December 3, 2014) to infill a gap in
drill coverage at shallow depths. It intersected an intensely
mineralized region 240 metres below surface that returned the best
gold values reported to-date at Colomac, intersecting 56.00 metres
of 13.49 gpt Au, including 30.50 metres of 22.12 gpt Au, and
including 16.50 metres of 34.18 gpt Au, and including 10.00 metres
of 53.57 gpt Au. The intersection is double the deposit's previous
best intercept, and the reason for this remarkable difference may
be a function of the unique textural nature of the sill in this
localized area.
The host rock represents a newly recognized phase within the
quartz diorite, and its distinctive texture is presumed to be the
reason for the localized and highly elevated grade. Figure 2 shows
a 15.50 metre section of hole C19-08 that assayed 32.19 gpt Au.
Inset Figure 2a is an enlargement of part of the photo and depicts
the texture in question. The subangular breccia fragments of quartz
diorite preferentially aligned in a common direction and cast in a
very fine-grained matrix of pulverized quartz diorite suggest that
a focused fluidization process was once active within this part of
Zone 1.5. In some locations the matrix is intensely flow banded and
wraps around larger fragments, clearly demonstrating its once fluid
character. Fluidization refers to a mixture of solid particles
suspended in a turbulent gas. This mixture is proposed to sand
blast its way up a diatreme or "vertical pipe-like" feature
enlarging its diameter and transporting blocks of stoped off
country rock. Fluidization, which results in the rounding of
fragments and the erosion of the pipe, is the operative stage, and
the heightened permeability that such a process would invoke is
probably responsible for the robust mineralization encountered in
C19-08.
Areas of fluidized quartz diorite are now recognised as priority
targets of extremely high-grade gold mineralization that occur as
localized grade blowouts within the sill of limited areal
extent.
Zone 1.5-2.0 Mineralized Panel
The breakthrough discovery of the sill's pronounced widening to
depth at Zone 1.5, its best mineralized section, represents one of
the principal advances made to-date at Colomac.
Drilling in 2019 was instrumental in establishing that an
extensive panel of mineralization with strong continuity spans Zone
1.5 and the northern part of Zone 2.0, in effect linking them into
a 500 metre long wedge shaped sheet with a near-surface true width
of up to 50 metres that progressively expands to upwards of 155
metres in true width at 800 metres vertical depth where it remains
open. (Table 1; Figure 3; see press releases dated December 3, 2019, January
20, 2020).
The recognition and delineation of this immense mineralized
panel highlights this zone's potential for accommodating large
tonnes of high-grade mineralization over exceptional true widths.
This may represent a new opportunity at Colomac for underground
bulk mining as a possible means of future exploitation of these
unique higher-grade prospects. (Figure 4).
Table 1. 2019 Selected Drill Results – Zone 1.5-2.0 Mineralized
Panel
Zone
|
Drill
Hole
|
Assay
Results
|
Summary
|
2.0
|
C19-24
|
56.25 m at 2.76 gpt
Au
|
Extended
mineralization to over
450 m vertical depth
where it
remains
open
|
including
|
13.00 m at 3.51
gpt Au
|
including
|
4.25 m at 14.89
gpt Au
|
1.5
|
C19-35
|
124.50 m at 1.12 gpt
Au
|
Tested area
immediately north of
the Zone 1.5-2.0
boundary and
extended
mineralization to 530
metres depth, where
it remains
open
|
including
|
13.50 m at 3.60
gpt Au
|
Including
|
4.75 m at 7.64 gpt
Au
|
2.0
|
C19-39
|
118.50 m at 1.57 gpt
Au
|
Tracked
mineralization from near
surface to a vertical
depth of more
than 550 metres where
it remains
open
|
including
|
32.50 m at 2.62
gpt Au
|
including
|
7.75 m at 5.10 gpt
Au
|
2.0
|
C19-39B
|
110.50 m at 1.89
gpt Au
|
Defines widening of
mineralized
portion of the sill
to depth - true
width grown to more
than 110
metres at vertical
depths of 700
metres below
surface
|
including
|
57.00 m at 2.37
gpt Au
|
including
|
6.40 m at 5.16 gpt
Au
|
Widening of the Mineralized Portion of Colomac Main
In 2016, drilling at Zone 1.5 provided early evidence that the
sill may be widening to depth (see press release dated October 12, 2016). This was followed up on in
2017 where drillhole C17-15C revealed that the mineralized portion
of sill in this area has a "wedge shaped" form, where its true
width expands three-fold to 155 metres at vertical depths of 800
metres (see press release dated September
18, 2017).
Drilling in 2019 showed that the true width of the sill at Zone
2.0 increases to more than 110 metres at vertical depths of 700
metres below surface. Clearly illustrating that the widening of the
sill is not an isolated feature to Zone 1.5, as the entire Zone 1.5
- Zone 2.0 mineralized panel widens significantly with depth.
Throughout the remainder of the 2019 program drilling was carried
out within the 3.5-kilometre section of the sill between Zone 1.5
in the north and Zone 3.5 to the south (Table 2) to determine the
sill geometry to depth. Results have confirmed that the mineralized
top portion of the sill widens to depth at Zones 3.5, 3.0, and 2.5,
suggesting that a similar expansion to depth probably exists
throughout its entire 9km strike length and represents the true
morphology of Colomac Main (see press releases dated July 31, 2019, January 7,
2020, March 23, 2020). This
discovery represents the greatest potential for resource growth
ever identified at Colomac.
Table 2. 2019 Selected Drill Results – Colomac Main Zones 2.5,
3.0, 3.5
Zone
|
Drill
Hole
|
Assay
Results
|
Summary
|
2.5
|
C19-47B
|
37.75 m at 1.29 gpt
Au
|
Traced uniform and
expansive
mineralization from
near surface
to 260 m depth where
it remains
open and
unconstrained
|
including
|
24.25 m at 1.61 gpt
Au
|
including
|
9.25 m at 2.22 gpt
Au
|
3.0
|
C19-25C
|
29.50 m at 2.78 gpt
Au
|
Trace mineralization
on undrilled
section – broad
mid-level intercept
extended
mineralization to depth
over 250 m where it
remains open
|
including
|
16.20 m at 4.06
gpt
|
including
|
3.80 m at 6.86 gpt
Au
|
3.5
|
C19-50
|
105.00 m at 1.35 gpt
Au
|
Intersected 170.00 m
downhole
mineralization for a
true width of
71.00 m at 350 m
depth (double
the near surface true
width)
|
including
|
34.50 m at 2.38
gpt Au
|
including
|
12.75 m at 3.23
gpt Au
|
New Style of Mineralization Discovered at Zone
3.5
Two holes drilled at the southern end of Zone 3.5 within a
previous unexplored area intersected shallow high-grade
mineralization outside and west of the quartz diorite portion of
the sill. Holes C19-38 and C19-38B
were drilled to test the projected up-plunge extension of Zone 3.5
mineralization south of previous drilling (see press release dated
December 3, 2019). Both holes
intersected shallow high-grade mineralization hosted by quartz
veins and represent the first documented occurrence of this new
style of mineralization below the quartz diorite upper portion of
the sill within the intrusion's basal quartz gabbro (Table 3).
Given the shallow depths of the intercepts and their high-grade
nature, additional work is needed to trace and ultimately determine
if this represents a dynamic new target opportunity.
Table 3. 2019 Selected Drill Results – Zone 3.5 Discovery
Drill
Hole
|
Assay
Results
|
C19-38
|
11.20 m at 4.41 gpt
Au
|
including
|
6.60 m at 7.09 gpt
Au
|
Including
|
3.75 m at 12.19
gpt Au
|
C19-38B
|
9.00 m at 1.94 gpt
Au
|
including
|
5.25 m at 3.04 gpt
Au
|
And
|
6.00 m at 3.24 gpt
Au
|
including
|
3.00 m at 6.24 gpt
Au
|
Resource Expansion Opportunities at Goldcrest
South
Goldcrest is a 2.5-km long mineralized differentiated intrusion
400 metres west and parallel to Colomac Main. Both sills are
believed to be co-magmatic and have intruded a package of
dominantly mafic volcanic rocks that were subsequently folded
upright such that stratigraphic tops are now facing east. Gold
mineralization is largely restricted within the more silica-rich
upper portions of the sills. Goldcrest is comprised of two main
regions of mineralization: Goldcrest South and Goldcrest North.
Goldcrest has been drilled significantly less than Colomac Main
(last drilled in 2017), but several key areas remain underexplored
as illustrated by the high-grade intercept in hole C19-05 (see
press release dated February 19,
2020). This hole was drilled within a previously untested
area of the sill and traced strong mineralization to new depths,
opening this part of the sill for continued resource growth (Table
4). All 2019 holes intersected gold mineralization over a strike
length of 400 metres within Goldcrest South, thus the potential for
new discoveries remains high. Ongoing success in locating and
expanding new higher-grade zones within Goldcrest offers strong
support for resource expansion opportunities going forward.
The Company has now completed four drill programs at Goldcrest
(2014, 2016, 2017 and 2019), yet large portions of the sill remain
unexplored to depth and along strike to the south, as well as
within the northern portion of Goldcrest, and the 800-metre section
that separates Goldcrest South and Goldcrest North, which are prime
targets for resource expansion.
Table 4. 2019 Selected Drill Results – Goldcrest South
Drill
Hole
|
Assay
Results
|
Summary
|
C19-05
|
68.50 m at 2.00 gpt
Au
|
Subvertical hole
drilled down the sill in an open
area between two
previous Nighthawk holes to
explore the zone to
depth and intersected 130 m
of relatively
continuous downhole mineralization
throughout a 20.00 m
true width to a vertical
depth of 153 m where
it remains open
|
including
|
15.50 m at 5.47
gpt Au
|
including
|
4.25 m at 16.98
gpt Au
|
And
|
15.25 m at 1.77 gpt
Au
|
including
|
4.00 m at 5.31 gpt
Au
|
And
|
16.25 m at 1.46 gpt
Au
|
including
|
1.50 m at 9.25 gpt
Au
|
Improved Costs
Drilling efficiencies continued to improve in 2019. Three
diamond drills serviced by one helicopter completed 110 holes and
resulted in a 15% reduction in all-in drilling costs to
$286 per metre, for 2019.
Ongoing Metallurgical Test-work
The Company continues to conduct metallurgical testwork which
continued to show that Colomac rock performs exceptionally
well in terms of its grind characteristics, purity, and
responsiveness to all standard gold recovery technologies with
recoveries of upwards of 98.0% using a combination of gravity and
cyanide leach recovery processes. Although the ongoing heap leach
bottle roll and column tests are still at a preliminary stage,
results show a favourable response to the deposit's heap leach
potential (see press release dated April 23,
2020).
Future work will also continue scrutinizing the heap leach
potential of the Colomac deposit. The main objective is to confirm
that the metallurgical responses observed so far will apply over a
broader range of head grades, zone locations, and depths within the
deposit.
2020 Exploration Plans
The Company announced a planned 25,000-metre drill program which
commenced on March 13, 2020 with
three drills. On March 27, 2020, the
Company announced a temporary suspension of exploration activities
on its Indin Lake Gold Property due to the rapidly changing
environment surrounding the Covid-19 pandemic. All camp personnel
were sent home and the camp was officially closed on April 5, 2020. A total of 2,598 metres of
drilling was completed at Colomac and the Leta Arm Gold Project
before the suspension of drilling activities.
The Company is hopeful that exploration activities can resume
before the end of summer 2020 to allow for the completion of the
remaining flow-through commitment. Ongoing metallurgical testwork,
preparation of an updated mineral resource estimate, and the
subsequent preparation of an internal scoping study have not been
affected by the pandemic. Any additional updates will be provided
as they become available.
Nighthawk's goals and objectives moving forward
include:
Colomac
- Delivery of an updated mineral resource estimate
-
- Provide an open pit constrained resource to establish a
higher level of confidence and economic potential
- Examine both open pit and higher-grade underground resource
opportunities
- Conversion of some inferred resources to indicated
resources
- Metallurgical testwork on additional areas within the sill
to assess potential variabilities and overall expected recoveries
and to generate a sound statistical framework for the heap leach
opportunity
- Complete internal scoping studies to assist with future
exploration activities, which could potentially provide the base
work for any future PEA
- Continue drilling throughout the 9km long Colomac Main and
Goldcrest (~4km long) to follow up on resource expansion
opportunities and to explore for additional higher-grade
areas
Regional Targets
- Preparation of a maiden mineral resource estimate for the
Damoti Lake Gold Deposit
- Continue to test high-priority regional targets to advance
them up the value chain
- Continue regional prospecting work to identify new targets
and prioritize existing preliminary targets to drill-ready
status
Technical Information
Nighthawk has implemented a quality-control program to comply
with best practices in the sampling and analysis of drill
core. Drill core samples were transported in security-sealed
bags for analyses at ALS Global Assay Laboratory in Vancouver, BC ("ALS Global"). ALS Global
is an ISO/IEC 17025 accredited laboratory. Pulp and metallics
assaying for gold was conducted on the entire pulverized
sample.
As part of its QA/QC program, Nighthawk inserts external gold
standards (low to high-grade) and blanks every 20 samples in
addition to the standards, blanks, and pulp duplicates inserted by
ALS Global.
About Nighthawk
Nighthawk is a Canadian-based gold exploration company with 100%
ownership of a district-scale land position within the Indin Lake
Greenstone Belt, located approximately 200 km north of Yellowknife, Northwest Territories, Canada.
Nighthawk is focused on advancing the Colomac Gold Project with a
current inferred resource of 2.6 million ounces of gold (50.3
million tonnes at an average grade of 1.62 grams per tonne gold),
as well as advancing its other regional gold deposits and showings
within this largely underexplored Archean gold camp.
The Company has an experienced and dedicated team and is well
funded to complete its goals and objectives over the next 12
months.
Qualified Person
Dr. Michael J. Byron, Ph.D.,
P.Geo., President & Chief Executive Officer of Nighthawk, who
is the "Qualified Person" as defined by NI 43-101 for this project,
has reviewed and approved of the technical disclosure contained in
this news release. Please refer to NI 43-101 technical report
"Technical Report and mineral resource estimate update on the
Colomac Property of the Indin Lake Project", dated June 13, 2018, as filed under the company's
profile on www.sedar.com.
Neither the Toronto Stock Exchange has neither reviewed nor
accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this news
release.
Forward-Looking Information
This news release contains "forward-looking information" within
the meaning of applicable Canadian securities legislation.
Forward-looking information includes, but is not limited to,
information with respect to the Company's continued exploration
programs (including size and budget) and the ability to advance
targets and conduct enough drilling to produce NI 43-101 compliant
resource estimates, and the timing and results thereof; the ability
to grow ounces at Colomac, as well as the ability to calculate
indicated resources for zones 1.5 and 3.5, and the timing and
results thereof; the ability to conduct additional metallurgical
testwork and the timing and results thereof; preparing an internal
scoping study and utilizing its findings as a basis for any future
preliminary economic assessment and the timing surrounding such a
project; the ability to raise the necessary capital on acceptable
terms in order to conduct exploration programs including mapping,
prospecting and drilling activities and identify new targets in
future years, as well as any intention to expand these programs in
the future. Generally, forward-looking information can be
identified by the use of forward-looking terminology such as
"plans", "expects", or "does not expect", "is expected", "budget",
"scheduled", "estimates", "forecasts", "intends", "anticipates", or
"does not anticipate", or "believes" or variations of such words
and phrases or state that certain actions, events or results "may",
"could", "would", "might", or "will be taken", "occur", or "be
achieved".
Forward-looking information is based on the opinions and
estimates of management at the date the information is made, and is
based on a number of assumptions and is subject to known and
unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause the
actual results, level of activity, performance or achievements of
Nighthawk to be materially different from those expressed or
implied by such forward-looking information, including risks
associated with the exploration, development and mining such as
economic factors as they effect exploration, future commodity
prices, changes in foreign exchange and interest rates, actual
results of current exploration activities, government regulation,
political or economic developments, environmental risks, permitting
timelines, capital expenditures, operating or technical
difficulties in connection with development activities, employee
relations, the speculative nature of gold exploration and
development, including the risks of diminishing quantities of
grades of reserves, contests over title to properties, and changes
in project parameters as plans continue to be refined as well as
those risk factors discussed in Nighthawk's annual information form
for the year ended December 31, 2017,
available on www.sedar.com. Although Nighthawk has attempted
to identify important factors that could cause actual results to
differ materially from those contained in forward-looking
information, there may be other factors that cause results not to
be as anticipated, estimated or intended. There can be no assurance
that such information will prove to be accurate, as actual results
and future events could differ materially from those anticipated in
such information. Accordingly, readers should not place undue
reliance on forward-looking information. Nighthawk does not
undertake to update any forward-looking information, except in
accordance with applicable securities laws.
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SOURCE Nighthawk Gold Corp.