Vancouver, British Columbia–(Newsfile Corp. – August 16, 2022) – Angold Resources Ltd. (TSXV: AAU) (FSE: 13L) (OTCQB: AAUGF) (“Angold” or the “Company“) is pleased to provide an update of drilling at its Iron Butte Project, located approximately 60 km south of Battle Mountain, Nevada.
Drilling Highlights
- Drillhole AAU22-001 was stopped at 273 metres (894.5′) depth due to lost tooling, and has been redrilled as AAU22-001A, as PQ-HQ core;
- In hole AAU22-001A, the Company drilled into a shear zone, hosted by dolomitic and siliceous siltstone, with pyrite and carbon, some fine quartz veinlets and continued within Carlin-style alteration (decalcification and dolomitization) at the proposed termination depth of 670 metres (2,200′);
- AAU22-001A was continued with a reduction to NQ core to a termination depth of 710 metres (2,329′);
- Alteration at the TD of 710 metres (2,329′) remains open;
- Core samples from AAU22-001 and AAU22-001A await assay results;
- The Company will complete the planned 2,926 metre (9,600′) drill program with a TH-75 reverse circulation (“RC”) drill rig that will be deployed to site shortly, and meets the Company’s requirement to drill up to 1,000 metres from surface.
Adrian Rothwell, President & Chief Executive Officer, said, “Despite difficult drilling in broken ground, drilling has indicated the potential presence of significant alteration in targeted geophysical and fault structures, in a geological setting never before tested and with surprisingly positive results at the planned termination of our first hole at ~2,200′. We are cautiously optimistic for assay results, which we expect in the next few weeks.”
Angold has now completed logging of the core from AAU22-001 and AAU22-001A. The observations and data from the completed logging are consistent with the Company’s exploration model within the Red Ridge Zone of the project, confirming a discovery of Carlin-style alteration below Ordovician Valmy Formation (see Figure 2), part of the Roberts Mountains Thrust plate, which appears to be continuous along a 6 km (~3.7 mi) strike length from Red Ridge Zone to the Northern Extension Zone. This supports the Company’s interpretation of geophysical results from the Company’s 2021 pre-drilling program demonstrating a large MT and IP anomaly at target depths. See the Company’s previous news releases on April 19, 2022 and February 22, 2022.
Drillhole AAU22-001 was stopped in late May at 273 metres (894.5′) due to hole caving at ~183 metres (~600′), which Angold’s drill contractor believes was the result of challenges associated with voids within the bedrock, sanded and broken ground in the upper plate zone. Drilling restarted on same pad with drillhole AAU22-001A, successfully installed PQ-sized drill rods to a depth of 251 metres (824′) to effectively case off through the challenging interval, and continued to core drill with HQ rods to 514 metres (1,687′) and NQ to the termination of the hole at 710 metres (2,329′). AAU22-01A was terminated below target depth within highly altered and fractured dolomitic siltstone, with decalcification, dolomitization, fine pyrite and carbon representing Carlin-style epithermal alteration (see Image 2).
Core Logging Summary
Drilling to date within and at depth below the Red Ridge zone encountered many epithermal quartz vein-veinlet zones displaying polyphase banding, some quartz after calcite pseudomorphs, and, in some cases, silver sulfide-selenide mineral (acanthite-aguilarite-naumannite) grains in specific bands. These textures and minerals together demonstrate the fertility of the system at this level and provide encouragement for significant precious metals potential at depth, where a boiling horizon in an idealized low-sulfidation epithermal system could occur.
Logging shows several areas with good potential for Au-Ag mineralization between 266 metres and 443 metres (874′ and 1,452′), which is the main targeted area within this hole (Image 1). Abundant disseminated sulfides correlate well with the strong chargeability anomaly being tested, along with quartz veining in an interpreted steeply dipping structure from the MT section. Localized strong sooty sulfide-silica appears especially prospective. Of surprise and note is the apparent Carlin-style alteration starting at 428 metres (1,403′), which also correlates with the projected triple intersection of mineralized faults mapped at surface.
Rock chip samples at surface in the Red Ridge zone, comprised of breccias and banded veinlets, have demonstrated silver grades to 600 g/t and gold grades to 4 g/t. It is encouraging to see silver sulfides at depth in veins within the same zone.
Stratigraphy, Alteration and Oxidation
The high-angle faults and fractures seen in AAU22-001/AAU22-001A are associated with both intense oxidation, silicification and hydrothermal argillic alteration, evidencing the importance of these high-angle features in supporting and focusing vertical fluid flow along the margin of the Cateano Caldera. Importantly, as seen in AAU22-001A, the Carlin-style alteration features are contained within the Upper Plate of and may also be below the Roberts Mountains Thrust, supporting Angold’s geologic model of an extensive Eocene-Oligocene hydrothermal system, consistent with the timing of Nevada’s Carlin-type mineralizing events (approximately 40 – 35 Mya) and younger alteration-mineralization hosted in Oligocene Caetano Tuff (32-30 Ma).
The alteration products of the fracture-controlled fluid flow – projected to be travelling upwards and into the Antler Overlap Sequence, below the Golconda Thrust (the upper mineralized zone at the project) – are associated with the highly anomalous, sooty sulfides and green illite clay. Importantly, these sulfide concentrations along the fractures generally increase with depth within the Carlin-style alteration in dolomitic rocks encountered at the bottom of AAU22-01A. It is not clear at this time if the altered carbonate rocks encountered at the bottom of AAU22-01A are within the Roberts Mountains Thrust or below it. The shearing and alteration encountered is not likely to allow age dating of these carbonate rocks, which would be required to unequivocally say whether these rocks are Lower Plate carbonates or carbonate rocks within the Upper Plate of the Roberts Mountains Thrust (Valmy or Cormus).
Geology and Structure
The results of Angold’s drill program confirm that gold-silver mineralization is believed to be controlled by a series of north-south, north-northeast and east-west structures that host silicification and epithermal quartz-pyrite-gold-silver mineralization within Pennsylvanian to Permian siltstones and argillites of the Cedars Sequence (Havallah) and Oligocene felsic volcanic rocks (Caetano Tuff). Mineralization is completely oxidized from surface up to 175 metres depth and continues as sulphides to depths beyond 250 metres. Mineralization is also disseminated between veins, silicified structures and brecciated zones, and can occur as silicified breccia zones at the contact between volcanic and underlying sedimentary rocks. Opaline silica, bladed quartz-chalcedony after calcite, polyphase banded quartz veins and natroalunite veins are exposed at surface, supporting the deduction that the epithermal system at Iron Butte is largely intact. Surface rock chip and soil sampling assay results also support this deduction, with highly elevated mercury, selenium and arsenic present. Quartz textures, alteration and mineralogy described support a low-sulfidation epithermal model, which will be used to guide-inform future exploration efforts at Iron Butte.
Figure 1: Cross-sections of some selected drill holes in Phase 1A program, including AAU22-001/001A.
Qualified Person
Clyde Smith, PhD, P.Eng., a Qualified Person in accordance with National Instrument 43-101, is responsible for supervising the exploration programs at the Company’s projects and has reviewed and approved the technical information contained in this news release.
About Angold
Angold is an exploration and development company targeting large-scale mineral systems in the proven districts of the Maricunga Gold Belt in Chile, Nevada and Ontario. Angold owns a 100% interest in the Dorado, Cordillera and South Bay-Uchi projects, and certain claims that append the optioned Iron Butte project.
ON BEHALF OF THE BOARD OF ANGOLD RESOURCES LTD.
“Adrian Rothwell”
Chief Executive Officer
Further information on Angold can be found on the Company’s website at www.angoldresources.com and at www.sedar.com, or by contacting the Company by email at [email protected] or by telephone at (855) 917 4091.
This news release shall not constitute an offer to sell or a solicitation of an offer to buy, nor shall there be any sale of these securities in any jurisdiction in which an offer, solicitation or sale would be unlawful prior to registration or qualifications under the securities laws of any such jurisdiction.
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Forward-Looking Statements: This news release contains forward-looking statements and forward-looking information within the meaning of applicable securities laws. These statements relate to future events or future performance and includes expectations of the resumption of trading of the Company’s common shares on the Exchange. All statements other than statements of historical fact may be forward-looking statements or information. Forward-looking statements and information are often, but not always, identified by the use of words such as “appear”, “seek”, “anticipate”, “plan”, “continue”, “estimate”, “approximate”, “expect”, “may”, “will”, “project”, “predict”, “potential”, “targeting”, “intend”, “could”, “might”, “should”, “believe”, “would” and similar expressions. Forward-looking statements and information are provided for the purpose of providing information about the current expectations and plans of management of the Company relating to the future. Readers are cautioned that reliance on such statements and information may not be appropriate for other purposes, such as making investment decisions. Since forward-looking statements and information address future events and conditions, by their very nature they involve inherent risks and uncertainties. Actual results could differ materially from those currently anticipated due to a number of factors and risks. Accordingly, readers should not place undue reliance on the forward-looking statements, timelines and information contained in this news release.
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