Freegold Ships First Gold Concentrates from Golden Summit and Continues to Expand Western Mineralized Zones
September 18 2008 - 9:00AM
PR Newswire (US)
VANCOUVER, Sept. 18 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Freegold Ventures
Limited (TSX: ITF, OTCBB: FGOVF, Frankfurt: FR4) is pleased to
announce that it has shipped its first gold concentrates from its
Golden Summit project to the Sunshine Precious Metals Refinery in
Kellogg, Idaho, and that additional gold concentrates will continue
to be shipped through the balance of the bulk sample processing
season this fall. The Company is also pleased to announce further
results from its Phase 2, 40,000 foot, 2008 RAB drilling program,
where shallow exploration drilling in the western portion of the
Cleary Hill area is continuing to intersect and expand zones of
bulk tonnage gold mineralization. Phase 1 step out drilling in this
western Tolovana area was conducted last year, and short drill
fences 6 to 8 and 15 to 17 were able to trace an individual shear
zone (Scheuyemere) across the Tolovana area which trended directly
towards the central part of the 1,200 foot wide area of gold
mineralization last delineated to the east in Fence 5. The RAB
drilling conducted in this area this year was designed to test the
areas to the north and south of this individual shear zone. As was
reported in April, drilling from the first fences (Fences 6 North
and 17) successfully identified new bulk tonnage zones extending to
the north of the Scheuyemere shear zone. All of the assays from the
46, 75-foot deep holes in Fence 6 North, which covered an 850 foot
extension to the north averaged 0.52 g/t, which compares
favorably with the current reported reserve grade of the nearby
Fort Knox mine of 0.50 g/tonne. The latest fences in this program
(Fences 20, 6 South, 19 Extension and 18 South) tested both the
southern extent of mineralization in the Tolovana area and in the
area between Tolovana and Cleary Hill. A map showing the locations
of all of the drill fences in the Cleary Hill area at Golden Summit
can be found at
http://www.freegoldventures.com/i/maps/maps022008ITF.pdf Fence 20
consisted of a single row of 56 vertical holes (holes 815 to 870)
drilled to an average depth of approximately 70 feet. The average
spacing between holes was 20 feet, with spacing reduced to 10 feet
in areas of intense alteration (which has been shown to correlate
well to higher-grade gold mineralization in previous drilling) and
extended to 40 feet in areas exhibiting less alteration.
Significant intercepts from Fence 20 include: Fence 20
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From To Thickness Gold Grade Gold Grade Hole Number (foot) (foot)
(feet) (g/tonne) (oz/ton)
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822 0 51 51 0.78 0.023
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826 6 60 54 0.52 0.015
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836 0 33 33 0.93 0.027
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846 0 48 48 0.65 0.019
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848 0 78 78 0.53 0.015
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855 0 36 36 2.16 0.063
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Including 15 18 3 12.51 0.365
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857 0 45 45 0.95 0.028
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858 0 57 57 0.96 0.028
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Including 18 36 18 2.15 0.063
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859 0 72 72 1.08 0.032
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860 24 69 45 0.87 0.025
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861 0 75 75 1.75 0.051
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including 60 72 12 6.60 0.192
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862 21 48 27 0.98 0.028
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863 36 63 27 3.04 0.089
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including 51 57 6 9.75 0.284
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868 0 69 69 1.25 0.036
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including 21 39 18 2.82 0.082
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869 18 60 42 0.65 0.019
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870 21 24 3 34.29 1.000
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The 22 closely spaced RAB holes in Fence 6 South cover a
north-south distance of 440 feet. This fence was designed to
further test the southward width of the Scheuyemere shear system
and to test for mineralization close to the Dolphin Intrusive that
occurs to the south. Significant intercepts from Fence 6 South
include Fence 6 South
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From To Thickness Gold Grade Gold Grade Hole Number (foot) (foot)
(feet) (g/tonne) (oz/ton)
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
871 3 69 66 0.61 0.018
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872 3 63 60 0.76 0.022
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877 12 30 18 1.61 0.047
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878 18 24 6 20.60 0.601
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885 30 75 45 0.84 0.025
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889 15 78 63 0.70 0.020
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The 20 closely spaced holes in Fence 19 Extension were drilled to
fill in an area where the Tolovana vein was projected to extend
based on results from Fences 6 N and 17 N. The vein was encountered
in drill hole 927. Significant intercepts from Fence 19 Ext
include: Fence 19
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From To Thickness Gold Grade Gold Grade Hole Number (foot) (foot)
(feet) (g/tonne) (oz/ton)
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
895 48 60 12 2.30 0.067
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927 30 69 39 2.18 0.064
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including 45 51 6 10.90 0.318
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931 39 78 39 1.03 0.030
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The 31 closely spaced holes in Fence 18 South cover a north-south
distance of approximately 620 feet. This fence was designed to
further test the southward extension of the Scheuyemere shear
system and to explore the area near the fringes of the Dolphin
intrusive that occurs south of the Tolovana area. Fence 18 South
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
From To Thickness Gold Grade Gold Grade Hole Number (foot) (foot)
(feet) (g/tonne) (oz/ton)
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
907 0 78 78 0.81 0.024
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908 3 78 75 1.03 0.030
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including 54 57 3 13.20 0.385
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909 6 42 36 1.47 0.043
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936 27 48 21 1.94 0.056
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937 51 60 9 3.59 0.105
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With this latest drilling, the gold bearing mineralization - seen
as multiple and parallel 75 to 300 foot wide zones at the various
locations tested in the eastern area of Cleary Hill - are also
being identified in the western part of this area. Mineralization
in this area remains open along strike in both directions and at
depth. True widths of the veins reported in this release are
variable, as the orientation of the various mineralized structures
encountered throughout the drilling is variable. Drilling was
conducted with an Ingersol-Rand conventional percussion drill.
Cuttings were returned up the drill hole with the use of an OEM
vacuum drill cuttings collector, and were dropped from a cyclone
directly into a sample bag. Samples were collected every three
feet, with the drill bit being pulled off the bottom and the hole
cleaned at the completion of each sample interval. Freegold
maintained a geologist and sampler at the drill rig for all
drilling to take and log all samples to insure that quality
assurance and control procedures are in accordance with 43-101
requirements. One duplicate assay was conducted in every drill hole
and either a blank or a standard was inserted in the sample stream
every 10 samples. Alaska Assay Laboratories in Fairbanks, Alaska
was used to analyze the drill cuttings for gold via fire assay
analysis plus multi element ICP-AES and ICP-MS analysis using 4
acid digestion. The Qualified Person with respect to scientific and
technical information contained herein is Michael P. Gross, M.S.,
P. Geo., VP Exploration, Freegold Ventures Limited, who has
reviewed and approved the contents of this release. About Freegold
Ventures Limited Freegold Ventures Limited is a North American
exploration and development company with a management team
experienced in mine development and production that has a proven
track-record in transitioning exploration companies into gold
producers. The Company is currently exploring advanced-stage gold
projects in Idaho and Alaska. Freegold holds a 100% lease interest
in the Almaden gold project in Idaho. This large tonnage epithermal
gold deposit was the subject of a feasibility study in 1997 calling
for the development of a 95,000 oz/year open pit, heap leach mine.
Freegold has finalized a 54,700-foot drilling program which has
successfully identified numerous extensions to the gold
mineralization, along with newly identified open-ended areas of
molybdenum mineralization. The Company is in the process of
generating a new 43-101 resource which will be followed with the
commencement of new economic evaluations. Freegold's 40,100-foot
drill program in 2007 continued to discover new high-grade veins
and bulk tonnage shear zones on its 93% controlled Golden Summit
project outside Fairbanks, Alaska. Historically over 6.75 million
ounces have been recovered from streams that drain the Golden
Summit project area and an additional 500,000 ounces of lode gold
were recovered from past producing mines on the Golden Summit
project which is situated less than 5 miles to the north of the +7
million ounce Fort Knox Mine. Further evaluation and expansion of
the mineralization is currently being undertaken with a combination
of closely spaced shallow drilling, deeper, systematic core
drilling and on-going bulk sampling program using an on-site
gravity-based concentration plant. Drilling in 2008 is also being
conducted on the company's 100% controlled Rob property, where the
Company has intersected high-grade gold in near surface quartz
veins similar in appearance and grade to those being mined at the
nearby 5.6 million ounce Pogo Mine. Work programs are also planned
on the Vinasale property, where the Company has entered into an
exploration agreement with option to lease which contains the
previously identified Vinasale gold deposit. On behalf of the Board
of Directors "Steve Manz" Steve Manz, President and C.E.O.
DISCLAIMER - This press release contains "forward-looking
information" within the meaning of Canadian securities laws
including, without limitation, statements and information regarding
the Company's exploration operations and financing needs. Such
forward-looking information reflects the current expectations or
beliefs of the Company. Forward-looking information is subject to a
number of risks, assumptions and uncertainties that may cause the
actual results of the Company to differ materially from those
discussed herein, including the possibility that future exploration
results will not be consistent with the Company's expectations, the
uncertainties involved in interpreting exploration results, other
inherent risks in the mineral exploration and development industry
and the possibility that the loan facilities will not be completed
or completed on terms not currently contemplated by the Company.
Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on
forward-looking information because it is possible that
expectations, predictions, forecasts, projections and other forms
of forward-looking information will not be achieved by the Company.
A change in any one of these factors could cause actual events or
results to differ materially from those projected in the
forward-looking information. Although the Company believes that the
expectations reflected in such forward-looking statements and
information are reasonable, the Company can give no assurance that
such expectations will prove to be correct. Forward-looking
statements and information are based on current expectations,
estimates and projections that involve a number of risks and
uncertainties which could cause actual results to differ materially
from those anticipated by the Company and described in the
forward-looking statements or information. The forward-looking
statements and information are based on a number of assumptions
which may prove to be incorrect. In addition to other assumptions
identified herein, the Company has made assumptions regarding,
among other things, the ability to conduct exploration activities
in a timely manner and in accordance with the Company's drilling
program, the availability and costs of financing, the degree of
risk that credit approvals may be delayed or withheld, and other
risks and uncertainties described elsewhere in this document or in
the Company's other filings with Canadian securities authorities.
Such forward-looking information speaks only as of the date on
which it is made and, unless required by applicable securities
laws, the Company undertakes no obligation to update any
forward-looking information, whether as a result of new
information, future events or results or otherwise. CUSIP:
45953B107 CONTACT: Mark Feeney, Investor Relations, (604) 786-2587,
DATASOURCE: Freegold Ventures Limited CONTACT: Mark Feeney,
Investor Relations, (604) 786-2587,
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