Nevada Exploration Inc. is pleased to announce that it has received new analytical results from eight drill holes at its 100% owned Grass Valley Project. This new drill hole information confirms the presence of a large, gold-bearing hydrothermal system consistent with the geologic setting of a Carlin-style gold deposit.
The Grass Valley Project consists of approximately 15.5 square kilometres (6 square miles) of unpatented mining claims, located along the western side of Grass Valley in central Nevada, approximately 16 kilometres (10 miles) south of Barrick Gold Corp.'s Cortez Hills mine, one of the largest primary gold producing mines in the world. NGE identified the Grass Valley Project in 2012 as part of a targeted reconnaissance groundwater chemistry survey using NGE's groundwater sampling technology. Applying this technology, the Company delineated a 16 kilometre (10 mile) long by 3 kilometre (2 mile) wide target at the Grass Valley Project defined by elevated concentrations of gold and gold-associated trace elements in groundwater.
In 2014, NGE acquired approximately 2,400 metres (8,000 feet) of drill cuttings and drill logs from seven historic (2005 to 2008) geothermal exploration drill holes located on and around the southern end of the Grass Valley Project (the "geothermal holes"). Obtaining these samples has provided NGE a significant opportunity to analyze the bedrock geology beneath the southern part of the Grass Valley Project without incurring any drilling cost. NGE has now received complete geochemical analyses for 367 sample intervals from the geothermal holes, along with analyses for 30 drill sample intervals (representing 182 metres or 600 feet) from another drill hole that had been drilled at the north end of the Grass Valley Project but had not yet been assayed.
The new results show a clear geologic change between the drill hole to the north and the geothermal holes to the south. The geothermal holes show marked enrichment in arsenic, antimony, and sulfur, elements commonly associated with Carlin-style gold deposits. Geothermal drill hole TG3 encountered the most continuous interval of anomalous geochemistry from the top of hole to the bottom at 297 metres (975 feet), with gold concentrations ranging from 3 ppb to 45 ppb (AVG 12 ppb), arsenic concentrations ranging from 60 ppb to 636 ppb (AVG 289 ppb), antimony concentrations up to 85 ppb (AVG 38 ppb), and sulphur concentrations ranging from 2,150 ppm to 36,300 ppm (AVG 19,761 ppm). The other geothermal drill holes showed narrower zones of elevated silver (up to 16.7 g/t), arsenic (up to 1,925 ppm), antimony (up to 86 ppm), and mercury (up to 1.1 ppm). Additionally, TG3 encountered significant intervals of silicified limestone and elevated concentrations of sulfur coincident with the visual identification of increased pyrite, which is likely arsenopyrite, based on an associated increase in iron and arsenic.
NGE believes the new data confirm the presence of favorable host rock in a complex structural setting containing meaningful concentrations of gold and gold-associated trace elements, and exhibiting the features and scale of hydrothermal alteration consistent with a Carlin-style gold deposit, all at a much shallower depth than previously believed. NGE believes that the addition of the new results, along with the other work to date on the Project, solidify the Grass Valley Project as one of the most important new exploration projects in Nevada.
Wade Hodges, CEO explains: "The importance of this new data is that it increases our confidence that we are looking at a system of the size required to support a large deposit, exhibiting all of the correct Carlin-style geology, geochemistry, structure, and stratigraphy consistent with gold mineralization in this part of Nevada. With this evidence, we believe strongly that Grass Valley represents one of the most compelling grass roots exploration projects in Nevada today. Furthermore, these results provide another concrete example of how we are using our groundwater chemistry technology to lead the industry to identify and advance new covered gold projects in Nevada."