Apr 23 2015
Sage Gold Inc. is pleased to announce that plans for a comprehensive exploration and development program at the company's 100 percent-owned ONAMAN polymetallic property are underway.
Located just over 3 hours northeast of Thunder Bay, Ontario and accessible on maintained roads year-round, the Onaman hosts several base and precious metal occurrences and significant mineralized zones in what appears to be a classic Mattabi-type submarine volcanic-hosted massive sulfide ("VHMS") setting. Foremost among them is the Lynx copper-silver-gold deposit, with an Inferred Resource of 1,936,000 metric tonnes averaging 1.44% copper, 39.6 grams per tonne ("g/t") silver and 0.58 g/t gold (please refer to the company's news release dated March 31, 2009). The Lynx deposit has not been fully delineated by drilling and remains open in both directions and at depth.
Situated roughly 200 meters stratigraphically above Lynx is the Headway deposit, hosting a Historical Resource of 739,400 tonnes averaging 3.15% zinc and 31 g/t silver. Lead and gold mineralization was also historically documented here. Whereas Headway is hosted mostly in submarine felsic volcanics (tuffs), Lynx is hosted in the underlying mafic flows; the area in between has never been drilled despite mineralization having been documented in isolated outcrops in this low-lying intervening area. (See note on historical resource estimate below.)
Several other mineralized zones have been historically documented across the property, hosting different combinations of base and precious metals (copper-lead-zinc and silver-gold, respectively) in variable proportions. None have been fully drilled. Numerous geophysical conductors have been delineated in previous surveys, as well; all but a few remain untested, to date. Additionally, there is a large sulfide-rich zone sitting atop what appears to be a center of shallow submarine felsic volcanism overprinted by zoned and increasingly intense hydrothermal alteration - the "Big Mac" zone, that has been only superficially mapped and drilled; this zone is over 1 kilometer long on surface.
Sage plans a two-pronged approach to advance the Onaman property. In preparation, the company has commissioned Orix Geoscience Inc. (http://www.orixgeo.com) to organize its extensive database into an interactive and accessible "GIS" (Geographic Information System) format. Nigel Lees, President and CEO commented: "This is a long overdue compilation and database organization that will enable our exploration team to make the maximum use of the millions of dollars worth of data we and workers before us have gathered on this compelling property. It will prevent unnecessary duplications, and help achieve a better three dimensional understanding of this mineralized volcanic-hosted setting so that known areas can be better modeled and explored and new target areas more readily delineated."
Concurrently, Sage has commissioned Broad Oak Associates to prepare a Preliminary Economic Assessment of the Lynx deposit and recommend a bulk sampling program, as well as highlight where additional drilling should be undertaken to improve both the quality and quantity of the mineral resource. A drill program at Lynx to accomplish these objectives will follow.
The second focus of Sage's program will comprise "boots on the ground", namely, a summer program focused on completing detailed lithological-alteration-structural mapping over and around known exploration targets such as those referred to, above, so that in conjunction with existing geophysical data, comprehensive three-dimensional geological-exploration models can be developed and drill targets delineated. Additional prospecting and preliminary mapping will be carried out across other portions of the property as greater understanding of this highly prospective setting is achieved.
Sage recently entered into an option to sell its 60% interest in the Clavos gold project in Timmins, Ontario for $4.3 million. A $150,000 option payment has been received and the balance of the purchase price is due by the end of April 2015 with an option extension for a fee to the end of May 2015. The proceeds of this transaction will be used to retire secured debt and provide working capital to advance the Onaman property.
The historical resource estimate on Headway was obtained from a 1952 report on Headway quoted in a 1989 report on the Onaman property prepared by Goldbrook Explorations Inc. A Qualified Person has not carried out sufficient work to classify this historical estimate as current mineral resources and Sage is not treating the historical estimate as current mineral resources. Avrom E. Howard, MSc, PGeo (Ontario) is a Qualified Person in accordance with the terms and provisions of National Instrument 43-101, and has reviewed and approved the contents of this news release. Neither the TSX-V nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX-V) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.