Aurvista Gold Corporation Plans 30,000 Meters of Core Drilling on 9 Priority Gold and Gold-Copper-Zinc Targets at Douay
MONTREAL, QUEBEC--(Marketwired - Jan 10, 2017) -
- Aurvista now poised to identify gold and base metal potential of Douay with 30,000 meters of core drilling, increased from the previously planned 5,000 meters program.
- Exploration activity objective is to develop higher grade gold zones within the Adam Creek Gold Deposit and identify additional gold and/or base metal zones outside of the currently known mineralized centers.
Aurvista Gold Corporation ("Aurvista" or the "Company") (TSX VENTURE:AVA)(OTC PINK:ARVSF)(FRANKFURT:AV2) is pleased to announce the start of the Phase 2 Core Drilling Program (the "Program") on the Company's Douay Gold Project (the "Project"). The exploration activity objective is to demonstrate the continuity and grade of the newly predicted gold corridors linking the known 9 higher grade gold zones and 2 lower grade gold zones within and outside the defined 10 km by 3 km Adam Creek Gold Deposit (the "Deposit"), potentially leading to an increase in the quantity and quality of the mineralization.
Mr. Jean Lafleur, President and CEO of Aurvista stated "After more than 40 years of exploration on Douay, including the last few by Aurvista, we have finally arrived at a major crossroad. The previous path has included nearly 200,000 meters of drilling in more than 700 holes, ground and airborne geophysical surveys, infrastructure construction, all leading to the discovery of higher and lower grades gold lenses. The gold mineralization at Douay occurs within 9 individual E-W shears and 3 subparallel structural domains inside a 10 km by 3 km corridor of a 20 km long segment of the Casa Berardi Deformation Zone."
Mr. Lafleur added "Douay has always lacked a single cohesive geological exploration model to explain in part why there is gold mineralization and its distribution. After 6 months of re-evaluating the entire database, Aurvista developed a new geological model and can now proceed with focussed multi-staged diamond drilling into a number of target shears and structural domains. These domains could potentially have an impact on the ultimate dimension of the gold system and mineral resources. There is a significant potential of discovering more gold mineralization in addition to our existing multi-million ounces in mineral resource estimates. Aurvista will now begin testing the Adam Creek Gold Deposit with a major 30,000 meter drill campaign."
Phase 2 Diamond Drilling Program
A total of 9 Priority Targets (the "Targets"), identified as T1 to T9, were outlined within the Deposit during the Phase 1 Detailed Targeting Program. These Targets will be tested by more than 70 drill holes totalling 30,000 meters in three sub-phases. The following table summarizes the planned drilling footages for each Targets:
| TARGETS | NUMBER DRILL HOLES | TOTAL FOOTAGE (meters) |
| PHASE 2A | 7 | 3,700 |
| Douay West North Zones (T1) | 4 | 2,000 |
| Main Porphyry (T2), Douay West North Zones | 3 | 1,700 |
| PHASE 2B | 21 | 8,300 |
| Douay West (T1), Main Porphyry (T2), Adam Porphyry (T3), Central (T4) and NW Zones (T5) | 15 | 5,900 |
| TDEM/UTEM Anomalies "E" (T6), "F" (T7) and "G" (T8) | 6 | 2,400 |
| PHASE 2C | 46 | 18,000 |
| Douay West (T1), Main Porphyry (T2), Adam Porphyry (T3), Central (T4) and NW Zones (T5) | 25 | 10,000 |
| TDEM/UTEM Anomalies "E" (T6), "F" (T7) and "G" (T8) | 6 | 2,400 |
| Extensions of the Adam Creek Gold Deposit (T9) | 15 | 5,600 |
| TOTAL | 74 | 30,000 |
Completion of the Phase 1 Detailed Targeting Program
The Phase 1 Detailed Targeting Program (the "Phase 1 Program") has led Aurvista to predict gold and possible massive sulphides occurrences on Douay. The Phase 1 Program's objective was to define and correlate the known gold mineralization chemistry and alteration mineralogy to the geological and geophysical signatures that could then be utilized to predict new gold mineralization. The Phase 1 Program was successful in determining that the nature, distribution and metal history led to one single gold deposit, the Adam Gold Deposit, exhibiting similar host rocks, alteration styles and structural fabric.
A combination of iron-rich rocks with iron carbonate and sulphide alterations produced higher and lower grade gold mineralization in association with E-W shear zones and cross-structures, but more importantly there is a link of the known mineralization to specific shears, potentially predicting where to find additional gold mineralization. In terms of the overall potential, there are two distinct but overlapping metal signatures at Douay, the first is a primary Volcanogenic Massive Sulphide or VMS of Copper-Zinc affinities crosscut by a secondary shear-hosted gold system. This interpretation is very similar to the Doyon-Bousquet-Laronde mining camp located 100 km S-SW of Douay, along the Cadillac Larder Lake Deformation Zone.
Regional deformation at Douay produced and enhanced the crisscrossing network of NW-SE, NE-SW and E-W structural fabric which led to the eventual emplacement of porphyries and subsequent gold mineralization within the known 10 km by 3 km Adam Gold Deposit and possibly towards the east and west. There are several subparallel shears hosting the 8 higher grade and 2 lower grade gold zones with a significant potential of discovering more gold mineralization in addition to our existing mineral resources based on the number of shears, structural domains and junctions.
The table below summarizes the Phase 1 Program work between June and December 2016, and previously reported in Company news releases.
| ACTIVITY | NUMBER OF DRILL HOLES | DRILL FOOTAGE (m) | NUMBER OF SAMPLES TAKEN | NUMBER OF READINGS TAKEN |
| Drill core re-logging | 300 | 98,135 28 sections | --- | --- |
| Drill core sampled in 1.5 meters lengths | --- | --- | 4,000* | --- |
| Portable XRF | --- | --- | --- | 27,000 |
| XRF check analyses - WR'S, traces, metals | --- | --- | 895 | --- |
| Portable MPP* | --- | --- | --- | 178,000 |
| Thin sections | --- | --- | 205 | --- |
| Field mapping | --- | --- | 58 | --- |
* Assays for Gold-Copper-Zinc, Whole Rock and Trace Element geochemistry being done at the ALS Group Laboratory in Val-d'Or (QC) and Vancouver (BC).
** Instrument measures magnetic susceptibility and conductivity of rocks as part of the field validation of EM-INPUT™ and airborne Total Domain Electromagnetic or TDEM conductors.
Douay Gold Project and Company Profile
Aurvista Gold Corp. is a junior gold exploration and development Company with 131,162,407 shares outstanding trading on the TSX Venture Exchange in Canada, the Frankfurt Stock Exchange and OTC Pink Sheets in the United States. Aurvista's only asset is the Douay Gold Project, consisting of a 100% owned interest in 250 contiguous claims totaling 133.1 km2, plus a 90% interest in 5 contiguous claims totaling 0.2 km2 and a 75% interest (25% held by SOQUEM) in 32 contiguous claims totaling 11.9 km2. In total there are 287 claims covering 145.3 km2 located along a 20 km segment of the Casa Berardi Deformation Zone in the prolific Abitibi Belt of northern Quebec. Douay is located 40 km SW of the Matagami Zinc Base Metal Camp and 150 km N of the Val-d'Or-Malartic gold Camp (both in Quebec).
In August, 2012, Aurvista updated the Mineral Resources estimates that included 657 holes in more than 185,000 metres drilled on Douay since its discovery to the end of March 2012. Douay contains Mineral Resources estimates of 2.7 million tonnes of Indicated Resources at 2.76 g/t gold for 238,000 ounces (above a 0.3 g/t gold cut-off grade) or 2.5 million tonnes grading 2.98 g/t gold (at a 0.5 g/t gold cut-off grade) for 235,500 ounces. There were additional Inferred Resources of 115 million tonnes at 0.75 g/t gold for 2.75 million ounces (above a 0.3 g/t gold cut-off grade) or 62 million tonnes grading 1.06 g/t gold for 2.1 million ounces (above a 0.5 g/t cut-off grade). Details can be viewed on the Company's website at www.aurvistagold.com.
Qualified Person
The technical contents in this news release have approved by Mr. Jean Lafleur, M. Sc., P. Geo., President and CEO for Aurvista Gold Corp., a Qualified Person under National Instrument 43-101.
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 PRESS RELEASE.
Forward-Looking Statements
This news release may contain forward-looking statements based on assumptions, uncertainties and management's best estimate of future events. Actual events or results could differ materially from the Company's expectations and projections. Investors are cautioned that forward-looking statements involve risks and uncertainties. Accordingly, readers should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements. When used herein, words such as "anticipate", "will", "intend" and similar expressions are intended to identify forward-looking statements. For a more detailed discussion of such risks and other factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements, refer to Aurvista Gold Corp.'s filings with Canadian securities regulators available on www.sedar.com or the Company's website at www.aurvistaGold.com.
Contact
Mr. Jean Lafleur, P. Geo., MSc
President and CEO, Director
Cell: +1 514 927 3633
Mr. Keith C Minty, P. Eng., MBA
Chief Operating Officer
Phone: +1 416 682 2671
