Millrock Signs Agreement with Coeur Explorations for Apex Gold Project

Millrock Resources Inc., a premier project generator to the mining industry, has announced that it has signed an agreement with Coeur Explorations, Inc., which is a 100% owned subsidiary of Coeur Mining, Inc., regarding the Apex gold project located in Southeast Alaska.

The project is situated on Chichagoff Island, which is 3 km to the north of the village of Pelican and 70 km to the southwest of Juneau, Alaska.

We are pleased to enter into this agreement with Coeur Explorations and will work diligently with their exploration team to explore the claims. From historic documents, we know that high-grade gold ore was previously mined, but there has never been a single exploratory hole drilled.

Gregory Beischer, President and CEO, Millrock Resources Inc.

“It seems likely that the known high-grade gold-bearing quartz veins will continue along strike and in the down-dip direction. The claims have been completely dormant since the 1980s. We’ll start with surface geochemical sampling and detailed structural mapping this year and look to drill in 2022,” added Beischer.

The aim of the Apex project is to achieve high-grade, mesothermal and gold-bearing quartz vein deposits. The claims encompass the former-producing Apex and El Nido gold mines, which were intermittently functional from the 1920s through to the 1940s and allegedly generated around 34,000 ounces of gold through underground mining.

Almost 1,200 m of workings on four levels were utilized for ore extraction (United States Geological Survey Alaska Resource Data File). The extracted ore was hand-cobbed and milled on the field. WGM Inc. performed surface exploration in the 1980s, but there was no drilling after that and the property has been dormant ever since then.

In 2016, Millrock acquired an option on the core claim group from Apex El Nido Gold Mines Inc. Later, Millrock staked lands around, gathered data and acquired drilling permits. A swarm of quartz veins can be noted over a width measuring more than 200 m at the surface that is present above the caved portal to the Apex Mine.

Inside the swarm, four dense veins were taken into consideration as the subject of the historic mining efforts. Geochemical and geological features indicate the vein system exhibits permanence along strike to the northeast below Cann Creek, towards the tidewater of Lisianski Inlet, located 2 km away. Until now, the gold-bearing vein system has not been drill tested along strike or beneath the historic workings.

As per the agreement, Millrock will allocate its rights under the present option agreement with Apex El Nido Gold Mines to Coeur Explorations. Coeur Explorations will be accountable for cash payments and financially supporting exploration expenditures to hold the option agreement with Apex El Nido Gold Mines in best standing.

On behalf of Coeur, Millrock will perform exploration under a services agreement. Coeur Explorations might decide against exercising the option any time, but if it makes all the payments and expenditures, it will have a 100% interest in the basic claims.

Furthermore, Millrock will transfer the claims it owns outright to Coeur Explorations on exercising the option to buy the Apex El Nido Gold Mine claims. Therefore, the whole project will be subject to a net smelter returns (“NSR”) royalty in pursuance of Millrock.

The royalty that is supposed to be paid is a 2.5% NSR with an advanced minimum royalty (AMR) provision. Coeur Explorations might decrease the NSR to 1.0% by paying Millrock US$3.0 million.

The first AMR payment will be US$50,000 and will increase every year by US$50,000 until production takes place. AMR payments can be deducted from NSR payments. The property will return to Millrock in case Coeur chooses to stop the AMR payments.

Characteristic to Southeast Alaska, the terrain seems to be steep and tough. The former generating Apex and El Nido mine entries are at tree level, measuring around 360 m above sea level.

For the project, a soil sampling crew has been mobilized and is currently functioning out of accommodations provided in Pelican, with the help of boat access. The program aims to track the mineralized structure and improve vein locations expecting a 2022 drilling program.