Probe Gold Inc. has announced that it has entered a definitive purchase agreement (the "Agreement") with Leopard Lake Gold Corp. ("Leopard") to acquire a 100% interest in the Stella Property (the "Property").
Probe Gold Val-d’Or properties with the Stella Property. Image Credit: Probe Gold
The property is ideally situated between Probe's Croinor and Megiscane properties, east of the company's Novador Development Project, and about 9 km northeast of the former Croinor Mine. It is located in an NW-SE-oriented volcano-sedimentary corridor with 52 contiguous claims totaling 2,987 hectares.
The Manneville Fault and related splay systems, which are thought to be extensions of the abundant Destor-Porcupine Gold Break, are part of this corridor, which runs from Timmins in the west to the Grenville Front in the east. The company's McKenzie Break property is about 55 km northwest on the same fault system, which contains a 1.45-ounce gold resource.
This tuck-in acquisition is a highly strategic addition to our portfolio. It aligns perfectly with our goal of consolidating the underexplored Vald’Or East region and significantly enhances the high-grade exploration potential of our Novador Development Project. The acquisition also brings strong operational synergies with our Croinor and Megiscane properties, where recent geophysical and soil surveys have identified promising exploration targets that appear to extend onto the Stella property.
David Palmer, President and Chief Executive Officer, Probe Gold Inc.
Palmer said, “Our exploration success in the Val-d’Or East area has been exceptional—growing our gold resources more than 14-fold to surpass the 10Moz mark while uncovering new discoveries in this largely untapped part of the Val-d’Or Camp. For a relatively low cost, this acquisition strengthens our position in Val-d’Or and opens up new opportunities for high-grade gold discoveries.”
By expanding its holdings directly east of the flagship Novador Project (“Novador”), the acquisition will improve Probe's land position in the Val-d'Or region. Probe's entire land package in Vald'Or will grow to 832 km2 after the acquisition and the most recent map staking at Val-d'Or East, solidifying its standing as the region's top explorer.
The deal is anticipated to close in the upcoming weeks, subject to obtaining all required regulatory and Toronto Stock Exchange (“TSX”) approvals and meeting other standard closing requirements.
About the Stella Property
The discovery of gold in 1925 or so marked the beginning of the Stella Property's history. Lacoma Gold Mines Ltd. was founded in 1931 to investigate the region south of Seneterre. To explore four mineralized veins, the company drilled on the surface, sank a 79-m shaft, and created two underground levels between 1931 and 1938. Notable findings included up to 39 g/t Au over 1.1 m. However, in 1939, exploration came to an end.
There was very little exploration and drilling between 1939 and 1983. In addition to magnetic, gradient, and geological surveys, renewed efforts in 1983–1984 included 17 drill holes primarily aimed at the quartz diorite that contains the Lacoma gold zones. In 1987–1988, additional research involved magnetic and EMH surveys, as well as five diamond drill holes.
In 2011, 23 drill holes were finished near the historic Lacoma shaft. Notably, over 14.8 m, hole STE-10 intersected 1.6 g/t Au in a diorite stockwork that was rich in pyrite and veined with quartz.
The property is primarily composed of finely laminated tuffs and intermediate volcanic rocks, with the majority of the mineralized zones located close to a central diabase dyke and a dioritic intrusion near the Lacoma shaft. There is still little exploration beyond the Lacoma region.
About Probe’s Novador Project
With a district-scale land package of 832 km2, Probe Gold has strengthened its land position in the highly promising Vald'Or East region of Quebec since 2016. This makes it one of the largest land holdings in the Val-d'Or mining camp.
Around 80% of the company's gold resources in Val-d'Or East are located in the Novador project, a single 202 km2 property block home to four former producing mines (Beliveau Mine, Bussiere Mine, Monique Mine, and Beaufor Mine). Novador is located in a low-cost, politically stable mining region with many active mills and producers.