Ophir Gold Corp. Drills 3.05 g/t Gold over 11.8 m, Within Wider Zone of 1.68 g/t Gold over 22.8 m at the Breccia Gold Property, Idaho
Vancouver, February 9, 2022 - Ophir Gold Corp. (TSXV: OPHR) (FSE: 80M) (OTCQB: KPZIF) ("Ophir" or the "Company") is pleased to announce sample assays results for the final five (5) holes of the 2021 drill program at the Company's flagship Breccia Gold Property (the "Property"). The drill program targeted the Breccia Gold Zone, which is situated within the larger Meadows Fault Zone. The Company holds an Option to earn 100% interest in the Property, which is located approximately 40 km southwest of Salmon, Idaho, and is accessible directly by road.
A total of 2,063.2 m (~6,769 ft) over ten (10) holes were completed as part of the program, with results for the first set of drill holes announced December 1st, 2021, highlighted by drill hole BG21-004 which returned 13.02 g/t Au and 46.6 g/t Ag over 7.4 m. Core sample assays for the remaining five (5) holes (BG21-005 through 009) of the 2021 drill program are reported herein, and highlights include:
- BG21-06: 1.68 g/t Au and 5.6 g/t Ag over 22.8 m, including,
- 3.05 g/t Au and 10.4 g/t Ag over 11.8 m
- BG21-05: 0.02 g/t Au and 6,940 g/t Ag over 9.5 m*
* The bottom 9.5 m of hole 005 returned very poor core recoveries (<10%), and the grade may not be representative of the interval.
Company CEO Shawn Wescott commented: "We are pleased to report additional intervals of strong gold-silver mineralization in this final series of holes from our 2021 drill program at the Property. These results are very encouraging and build upon our first set of results that returned numerous gold-silver intervals, including BG21-004 that returned 7.4 m of 13.02 g/t Au and 46.6 g/t Ag. Our inaugural drill program at the Breccia Gold Zone has confirmed a much larger breccia system than was previously understood as well as demonstrated its potential for precious metal mineralization. We look forward to following up these results with additional drilling in the spring/summer 2022."
The strongest gold mineralization from the five (5) drill holes reported herein was encountered in BG21-006 and included 3.05 g/t Au and 10.4 g/t Ag over 11.8 m, within a wider mineralized interval of 1.68 g/t Au and 5.6 g/t Ag over 22.8 m, starting at 108.3 m downhole. The interval is highlighted by three intensely altered and brecciated quartz veins, with abundant vugs and occurrences of bladed quartz, within a wider strongly iron-manganese oxide altered breccia unit. These three (3) veins ranged in core length thickness of 0.65 to 0.93 m, each assaying more than 10 g/t Au to a peak assay of 15.2 g/t Au (Table 1, Figure 1, Photos 1, and 2).
Similar high-grade veins have been encountered in previously reported holes, highlighted by drill hole BG21-001 which included a 0.57 m interval of vuggy, hematite-manganese oxide altered quartz vein material assaying 40 g/t Au and 88.2 g/t Ag (see news release dated December 1st, 2021). Drill hole BG21-006 was collared approximately 60 m southwest of BG21-001 and undercut it at a steeper angle of -80° compared to the more shallow -45° of BG21-001. Collectively, these veins highlight a key exploration target at the Property and have been sampled at surface as well as at depth, often returning significant precious metal mineralization in excess of 10 g/t Au. An increase in abundance and coalescence of the strongly mineralized quartz vein material at depth is a key exploration model target for the project.
Strong precious metal mineralization has now been encountered in several of the 2021 program's drill holes highlighted by BG21-001, 003A, 004, 005, and 006, and collectively outline a surface area which exceeds 150 m x 200 m (Table 1 and Figure 1). Insufficient drilling has been completed to confirm the orientation or extent of the precious metal mineralization at Breccia; however, the drilling does confirm the high-grade potential of the area.
Table 1: 2021 mineralized drill core intersections at the Breccia Gold Zone
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Drill hole BG21-005 was the western most drill hole competed as part of the 2021 program. This drill hole encountered a significantly clay altered breccia over most of its length and was lost at a depth of 185.3 m due to poor drilling conditions, just short of the its intended target depth. The last two samples of the drill hole returned highly anomalous silver at 8.6 g/t Ag and 6,940 g/t Ag, respectively. However, sample recoveries were very poor within the final sample, which represented a 9.5 m interval (175.9 m to 185.3 m), where core recovery was less than 10%, and therefore the grade over the interval may not be representative. In any regard, the result is encouraging and indicates significant potential at depth. Deeping of BG21-005 will be a prime objective of future drilling at the Breccia Gold Zone.
Most of the drill holes completed to date by the Company at the Breccia Gold Zone have encountered significant clay alteration and occurrences of bladed and vuggy quartz, as well as wide zones of intense and heavily altered breccia with common quartz veining and negligible base metals. In addition, quartz veining and silicification are observed to increase with depth of the breccia zone intercepted in drill core as well as localized zones of propylitic alteration observed. Collectively these characteristics are consistent with the uppermost regions of a low-sulphidation epithermal system, and/or potentially related to an explosive diatreme breccia complex. The Company believes that the roots of the system have yet to be drill tested and are further encouraged by the magnitude of the brecciation, which is significantly larger than initially mapped (Figure 1), coupled with an increase of quartz veining at depth. In addition, results from drill holes BG21-001, 003A, 004, 005, and 006 suggest significant potential to the north along the Meadows Fault Zone, which hosts numerous surface gold occurrences.
A Controlled Source Audio-frequency Magnetotelluric (CSAMT) survey over the Property was completed late last fall with the final dataset recently received. The Company is currently incorporating the geophysical data into its geological model and will provide an update on the survey's results shortly.
The Company has submitted a five-year Plan of Operations to the United States Forestry Service for extended exploration of the Breccia Gold Property (see news release dated May 17, 2021). The permit, once received, will allow the Company to explore the Property for five consecutive years, under the same authorization, providing significant advantages and flexibility for follow-up aggressive and expanded diamond drilling on the Property in 2022. Coupled with the CSMAT data, the Company intends to continue delineating the near-surface mineralized breccia unit with significantly more flexibility on pad locations, as well as guidance from the results of the 2021 drill program and the recently completed CSAMT survey.
Quality Assurance / Quality Control (QAQC)
A Quality Assurance / Quality Control protocol following industry best practices was incorporated into the program and included systematic insertion of quartz blanks and certified reference materials into sample batches, as well as collection of quarter-core duplicates, at a rate of approximately 5%. Core samples were shipped to Activation Laboratories in Kamloops, BC, for analysis. No samples were collected from drill hole BG21-003 as it was lost due to drilling conditions and recollared immediately adjacent as BG21-003A.
Core samples were submitted for multi-element analysis, including silver, with ICP-OES finish (code 1F2), as well as gold by fire assay (gold 1A2B30). Over limits for gold (>10 g/t) were automatically determined by gravimetric. Standard drill core sample preparation was completed and comprised of crushing to 80% passing 10 mesh, followed by a 250 g riffle split and pulverizing to 95% passing 105 µ (package RX1).
Figure 1: 2021 drill hole assays highlights, Breccia Gold Property
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Photo 1: Mineralized drill intersection - BG21-006 (15.2 g/t Au and 51.2 g/t Ag over 0.93 m)
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Photo 2: Mineralized drill intersection - BG21-006 (12.6 g/t Au and 36.6 g/t Ag over 0.83 m)
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Photo 3: Mineralized drill intersection from the bottom of BG21-005
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Disclosure
Darren L. Smith, M.Sc., P. Geo., Director and Vice President of Exploration for the Company, and Qualified Person as defined by NI 43-101, supervised the preparation of the technical information in this news release.
About the Breccia Gold Property
The Breccia Gold Property consists of 102 claims covering approximately 1,836 acres (743 ha) within the Blackbird Mining District, in Lemhi County, approximately 40 kilometres southwest of Salmon, Idaho, USA. The Property is accessible by paved highway and a network of well-maintained gravel roads and is host to the historical Gahsmith Gold Mine. Exploration and development activity on the Property dates back to the 1930's and has been exploited by at least eight adits, with several thousand tons of mineralized quartz veined material extracted. In the 1980s, a bulk sample of 4,621 tons was completed with an average grade of 0.335 oz/t Au reported. The current Property includes the Meadows Fault Zone and the lesser explored, parallel Musgrove Mine Trend. Recent exploration carried out in 2018, 2019, and 2020 included the remapping and sampling of the Meadows Fault Zone and the results are suggestive of the existence of a significant low-sulfidation, epithermal gold system. Surface results include 57.6 g/t Au and 19.6 g/t Ag in outcrop, and 69 g/t Au and 27.5 g/t Ag in float.
About the Company
Ophir Gold Corp. is a gold exploration company focused on the exploration and development of its flagship property, the past producing Breccia Gold Property located in Lemhi County, Idaho. The Company has an option to earn a 100% interest in the Property over a three-year period from CanaGold Resources Ltd. (formerly Canarc Resource Corp.) and DG Resource Management Ltd.
On behalf of the Board of Directors
"Shawn Westcott"
Ophir Gold Corp.
For further information, please contact:
Shawn Westcott, CEO
Phone 1 (604) 365 6681
swestcott@ophirgoldcorp.com
Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.
Cautionary Note
The information contained herein contains "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of applicable securities legislation. Forward-looking statements relate to information that is based on assumptions of management, forecasts of future results, and estimates of amounts not yet determinable. Any statements that express predictions, expectations, beliefs, plans, projections, objectives, assumptions or future events or performance are not statements of historical fact and may be "forward-looking statements." Forward-looking statements are subject to a variety of risks and uncertainties which could cause actual events or results to differ from those reflected in the forward-looking statements, including, without limitation: risk related to the failure to obtain adequate financing on a timely basis and on acceptable terms; risks related to the outcome of legal proceedings; political and regulatory risks associated with mining and exploration; risks related to the maintenance of stock exchange listings; risks related to environmental regulation and liability; the potential for delays in exploration or development activities or the completion of feasibility studies; the uncertainty of profitability; risks and uncertainties relating to the interpretation of drill results, the geology, grade and continuity of mineral deposits; risks related to the inherent uncertainty of production and cost estimates and the potential for unexpected costs and expenses; results of prefeasibility and feasibility studies, and the possibility that future exploration, development or mining results will not be consistent with the Company's expectations; risks related to commodity price fluctuations; and other risks and uncertainties related to the Company's prospects, properties and business detailed elsewhere in the Company's disclosure record. Should one or more of these risks and uncertainties materialize, or should underlying assumptions prove incorrect, actual results may vary materially from those described in forward-looking statements. Investors are cautioned against attributing undue certainty to forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements are made as of the date hereof and the Company does not assume any obligation to update or revise them to reflect new events or circumstances, except in accordance with applicable securities laws. Actual events or results could differ materially from the Company's expectations or projections.
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