Desert Gold Ventures Inc. Provides Corporate Update on Segala West Property in Mali, Western Africa

VANCOUVER, BC / ACCESSWIRE / October 26, 2016 / Desert Gold Ventures Inc. (TSXV: DAU) (FSE: QXR2) (OTC Pink: DAUGF) (the "Company"), is pleased to provide the following update on its Segala West property in Western Mali.

About Segala West

The Segala West permit is surrounded by several mines, which include Randgold's Loulo-Gounkoto mine complex to the West where the company has declared resources of 51 Mt at 4.4 g/t for 5.7 million oz au Measured and Indicated, 20 Mt at 3.9 g/t for 2 million oz au inferred and ore reserves of 32 Mt average at 4.6 g.t for 3.7 million oz au in the Proven and Probably category. Adjacent to the East of Segala West are Endeavour Mining's Tabakoto and Segala mines with Kofi and Kefola prospects to the north and south respectively. Within the Segala West permit exists a large soil geochemical anomaly covering an area of 24 km² within which 3 significant artisanal mines are active. The surface expression of the neighbouring mine, Tabakoto (Endeavour Mining), which hosts ~3 million oz Au is less than 1 km² (18.5 Mt at 3.5 g/t for 1.8 million oz au measured and indicated, 9 Mt at 3.6 g/t for 1 million oz au inferred and 6.4 Mt at 3.5 g/t for 0.7 million oz au proven and probable). The mineralization hosted on the Company's property is not necessarily indicative of the mineralization hosted on Loulo-Gounkoto and Tabakoto deposits. However, the extent and persistence of the soil geochemical gold anomaly is the surface expression of significant mineralization below ground. Combined with the extensive artisanal mining presence on sight, Desert Gold is actively seeking investors to finance a focused exploration program to prove the presence of mineralization at depth.

Previous exploration at Segala West focused on the Northern Sector of the permit. The company now intends to focus its exploration efforts in the southern area of the permit. The first area of interest is known as the "Baroya area" where extensive artisanal mining operations exist.

Highlights:

• The Company successfully renewed the Segala West permit in July 2015 securing the permit until November 2017.

• The Company is actively seeking investors and joint venture partners to fund the USD $1.1 million exploration at Segala West's southern target know as the Baroya area where 3 large artisanal gold mining operations exist.

• Results from a grab sampling program at the Baroya Pit in the southern sector of the permit indicated positive gold grades and positive structural indicators necessitating the requirement for trenching and drilling in the area.

The Relevance of the Baroya Area

The soil geochemical survey performed in May of 2014, in which 2,342 soil samples were collected by GeoActiv Pty Ltd (a South African geological contracting and consulting company) and analyzed by the ALS Chemex SA PTY Ltd laboratory in South Africa, completed a blanket geochemical analysis of the exploration permit. The results delineate an 8 km long and 3 km wide corridor traversing the tenement in a northwesterly direction. The soil sample database comprises 6,032 lognormally distributed Au Values with thresholds of 669 ppb, 204 ppb and 20 ppb, for the respective 1, 5 and 50 percentiles. There are significant artisanal mining activities focused in three areas: one on the NW strike extension of Endeavour's Segala mine, (the "Segala pit") and, two in the southeastern part of the tenement nearby the village of Baroya, (the "Baroya pit"). These mining sites target mineralized vein systems within the metasediment host rocks. Grab samples of the material being mined within the property were collected and assayed. Results are tabulated below (Table 1) and demonstrate high grades in the mineralized vein systems. Grab samples are selected samples and are not necessarily representative of the mineralization hosted on the property.

Table 1. Table of assay results of selected grab samples collected from the artisanal mining operations. Approximate in situ depths from which the samples were collected are given.

Given the mineralization in the district is hosted by geological structures, the company recently completed an analysis of structure both from remote sensing data as well as from previous drill core data. The results point to a coherent set of fractures congruent with the mineralized systems noted both at Tabakoto mine and at the Segala mine. The Segala and Baroya artisanal mining sites follow these structural orientations. The company is actively seeking investors to raise funds to drill both sites to confirm the continuity of the mineralization and will selectively trench some of the other significant soil geochemical anomalies to determine the source of these anomalies.

Exploration Program - Segala West

The exploration program at Segala West will take approximately 6 months to complete and has a budget of USD $1.1 million. It will consist of the following key activities.

Geophysical

The northern part of the concession was surveyed but not the southern part. For completeness of analysis and the relative marginal cost to acquire further ground magnetic data, it is recommended the remainder of the tenement be surveyed.

Trenching

Long trench transects will serve to map bedrock and help towards the identification of important indicators of mineralization, outside lithology, i.e. alteration and structure. Because of the scale and cost efficiencies, it is recommended to use an excavator rather than manual labour. The siting of the drill and trenches will be made during the startup field phase. Trench locations are planned in the south around the Baroya artisanal mining sites and over significant geochemical anomalies not yet tested. This program calls for a minimum of 2,000 meters of trenching in the Baroya area.

Core drilling

Core drilling is fundamentally important to understand the geology and consequently is needed during the exploratory phases. Approximately 14 holes at an average depth of 150 meters is planned during this phase of exploration totaling 2,100 meters.

RC drilling

Assuming the discovery of mineralization and the understanding of the controls of mineralization, evaluation by RC drilling is recommended to improve cost efficiencies. An additional 2000 m RC drilling is budgeted for this program.

Local Area Map of Segala West and Surrounding Mines

Image: https://www.accesswire.com/uploads/23211_a1477492915423_31resize.jpg

To view an enhanced version of local Area Map of Segala West and Surrounding Mines, please visit: [http://www.accesswire.com/uploads/23211_a1477492915423_31.jpg]

Desert Gold CEO Sonny Janda comment's "In my opinion the Segala West property represents an excellent near-term opportunity to prove up a resource on the door step of two of the most prolific mine operators in West Africa. The Tabakoto and Segala Mines were acquired by Endeavour Mining from Avion Gold in 2012 in a share deal that was worth nearly $360 million. This was done arguably at the bottom of the market. Through a well thought out exploration program, we want to prove that these same systems run through our property. There are many positive indicators in the southern area of our property. Extensive artisanal mining and a large surface geochemical anomaly of some 24 square kilometers all point to the potential of this property. The next step is to prove this by drilling these targets at depth."

Shaun Dykes, M.Sc. (Eng); P.Geo (#20044), a Qualified Person as defined in NI 43-101, is responsible for the review of all scientific and technical information contained in this release.

ON BEHALF OF THE BOARD

"Jared Scharf"
Jared Scharf
Director
+1 (416) 662 - 3971

About Desert Gold

Desert Gold Ventures Inc. is an advanced exploration and development company which holds mining assets in Mali and Rwanda.

For further information please visit our website www.desertgold.ca or information available on www.SEDAR.com under the company's profile.

This news release contains forward-looking statements respecting the Company's ability to successfully obtain an exploitation license for its Byumba permit. These forward-looking statements entail various risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those reflected in these forward-looking statements. Such statements are based on current expectations, are subject to a number of uncertainties and risks, and actual results may differ materially from those contained in such statements, including the inability of the Company to successfully complete and obtain the necessary permits to develop its operations. These uncertainties and risks include, but are not limited to, the strength of the capital markets, permitting risk, the price of gold; operational, funding, and liquidity risks; the degree to which mineral resource estimates are reflective of actual mineral resources; and the degree to which factors which would make a mineral deposit commercially viable are present; the risks and hazards associated with mining operations. Risks and uncertainties about the Company's business are more fully discussed in the company's disclosure materials filed with the securities regulatory authorities in Canada and available at www.sedar.com and readers are urged to read these materials. The Company assumes no obligation to update any forward-looking statement or to update the reasons why actual results could differ from such statements unless required by law.

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 release.

This news release does not constitute an offer to sell or a solicitation of an offer to buy the securities described herein in the united states. The securities described herein have not been and will not be registered under the united states securities act of 1933, as amended, and may not be offered or sold in the united states or to the account or benefit of a u.s. person absent an exemption from the registration requirements of such act.

SOURCE: Desert Gold Ventures Inc.