Harvest Gold Corporation (TSX VENTURE:HVG) has updated its shareholders on its plans for its various properties in Nevada and Manitoba.
NEVADA PROJECTS
Rosebud Mine
Rosebud is Harvest Gold's most advanced asset. The Company has now integrated phase one drilling results into its deposit model and is determining drill targets for a proposed phase 2 program. The Company is exploring options regarding a $500,000 phase 2 program that would focus on the mine footprint/bulk tonnage halo target. The Company is also seeking a senior partner capable of taking Rosebud to production and is presently in discussion with four such groups.
CEO Rick Mark states: "As the gold price continues to rise, Rosebud becomes more and more valuable. While we continue our plan to discover high grade "chimneys" at Rosebud, the following excerpt from Pierce Points, a Calgary based group watching the junior metals market http://www.piercepoints.com/, provides HVG management with confidence that our 100% owned Rosebud Mine project is currently undervalued and will eventually provide our shareholders with significant gains."
Excerpt from Pierce Points:
Five years ago, a big investment house like Merrill Lynch would have scarcely thought to mention gold. But in 2010, the yellow metal is a hot topic. A September report on gold from Merrill is much in the news today. The research piece is titled "Global Gold M&A Heats Up", and details the bank's suspicions that major gold producers are on the hunt for acquisitions.
The rationale is simple. Rising gold prices are creating a lot of free cash flow for gold producers. But at the same time, global gold output has been falling at an estimated 5% annually. A big part of the reason is reserves replacement. Large gold deposits are getting harder and harder to find. Majors have been trying to expand their existing mines in order to make up the slack.
But as mines get deeper and more complex, booking new ounces gets expensive. Look at South African major AngloGold. In 2008, the company's costs for expanding existing mines amounted to $239 per ounce. Just to book a new ounce in the ground. Never mind extraction and processing costs. This was obviously unsustainable. Old mines can only be deepened so much before the costs get too heavy. But the alternative was exploring for new deposits, which is a low-success business. Anglo found another solution. Go lower grade.
CEO Rick Mark continues: "Rosebud is an advanced 'gold in the ground' project. Our work developing the deposit model and the demand for gold are working in our favor."
Garcia Flats
The 100% owned Garcia Flats project along the southern projection of the Carlin trend is a blind, district scale Carlin-type gold prospect. Drilling in 2007 intersected anomalous gold and pathfinder elements in altered volcanic and sedimentary rocks interpreted to be of Eocene age, which is the age of Carlin-type deposits in Nevada. The Company is seeking a joint venture partner for the project.
New projects in Nevada
The Company is reviewing several Nevada gold opportunities and expects to announce details on one new project, shortly.
MANITOBA PROJECTS
The Cud Claim
The Cud claim is north of, and adjacent to, the San Gold Corporation (SGR: TSX.V), claims that hold their #3 gold zone. In 2005 San Gold drilled 16 diamond drill holes near the Cud claim's southern and eastern boundary with holes collared as close as 40 m to the claim line. The very close proximity of the San Gold drill holes to the property boundary bodes well for the potential of this claim to host high grade gold mineralization. It is located 7 km from the gold mining community of Bissett, Manitoba where San Gold Corporation is operating two mines and a mill. Harvest is contemplating a drill program to determine if the mineralization continues on to the Cud claim.
Conley Estate Claims
The Conley Estate claims are located on the northwest side of Wallace Lake approximately 25 km east of the Rice Lake Mine in the town site of Bissett in southeastern Manitoba. Reports by government geologists indicate that the rocks that underlie the property are the same age and composition as the Balmer Formation in the Red Lake Gold Camp. These have been referred to frequently as the "Balmer Equivalent rocks" and underscore the significance this holds for the property. Historical work on the property has uncovered high grade gold showings at surface and in drill core. Harvest is presently seeking a joint venture partner for this project.
Assean Lake
The Assean Lake project is a joint venture with Lundin Group Company NGEx (NGQ.T). The claims cover a 20 km length of the Assean Lake Shear Zone (ALSZ), a crustal scale fault zone, of the kind associated with major gold camps elsewhere on the Canadian Shield. In 2001 the Hunt gold zone was discovered. Drill highlights include 4.27 metres grading 27.22 g/t gold. Mineralization has been intersected over a continuous strike length of 600 m and to a depth of 250 metres below surface. Several gold zones have been discovered on the property including iron formation and granite intrusion related gold. NGEx and Harvest Gold are seeking a joint venture partner for this project.
Greg Hill, Certified Professional Geologist, the President of Harvest Gold Corp. (US), is the Qualified Person who has reviewed the contents of this news release.