Oct 17 2013
Mega Precious Metals Inc. (“Mega”) is pleased to announce the recent deep drilling exploration program on the Headway High Grade Project in Red Lake has confirmed their geologic model, where drill hole MH1103 has intersected a controlling regional shear zone responsible for gold fluid migration.
Furthermore, the drill program has confirmed that altered and deformed Balmer Assemblage rocks occur within the property which exhibit similar alteration and deformation as those that host the high grade gold deposits at Goldcorp’s Red Lake Mine.
Strongly altered and sheared zone in Balmer basalt at 2268 m, MH1103.
Drill hole MH1103 was extended to a depth of 2735 m and has successfully intersected the following:
- The presence of pervasive brown-biotite in the wall rock with low amounts of disseminated pyrite and anomalous gold (up to 291 ppb Au) from 2261-2264 m indicates that the shear zone was an active structure during auriferous fluid migration.
- The structure, style and intensity of alteration is similar to the HW Shear and Kovala Fault (HW 7 Shear) associated with the High Grade Zone (HGZ) at the Red Lake Mine. (Figure 1 & 3)
- From 2279 – 2735 m down hole, the rocks are strongly altered to silica-andalusite +- sercite which are highly altered Balmer Assemblage rocks, including basalt and “Campbell-Dickenson Diorite” These are equivalent to the thick, aluminous-altered units found deep in Goldcorp’s Red Lake Mine below 1,600 m from surface in the hanging wall of the HGZ.(Figure 2).
Goldcorp’s New Zone Discovery in the 4699 Rampas well as the NXT Zone at the Red Lake Mine, both demonstrate that rocks hanging wall to the HGZ have excellent exploration potential for high-grade gold mineralization. The 4699 development ramp is located ~ 200 m north from our target horizon, boundary .The intersection of a regional shear zone in MH 1103 that was open to auriferous fluids has similarities to ore-bearing structures at the adjacent Red Lake Mine. This suggests any regional structures between this controlling regional shear zone and the HGZ to the northeast have potential to host economic gold mineralization. (Figure 3)
Glen Kuntz, President and CEO, states "The extension drilling continues to discover shear zones, anomalous gold zones and important marker horizons that are analogous to being within approximately 300 metres of high grade mineralization at the HGZ at the Red Lake Mine. Given that this large area has seen little to no previous deep exploration drilling, we are excited by the opportunity to continue to explore these potential structures in 2014 for they have several similarities with the Red Lake Mine’s HGZ.”
Technical Discussion and Analysis
The Headway property is strategically located in the heart of the prolific Red Lake gold mining District. Even with the limited 2013 drill program in 2013 due to conserving cash, the program exposed a potential new shear zone and anomalous gold mineralization. This new discovery shares similarities with, and is located in close proximity to the High Grade Zone that is currently in production by the RLGM operated by Goldcorp. This is considered to be one of the world's richest gold mines with production of more than 18 million ounces of gold and nearly 10 million ounces of mineral resources.
Mega is currently preparing a NI 43-101 report expected in Q4 for the Headway Project and any future drilling will continue to test the down-dip potential of these auriferous structures that are trending into a more favourable geologic environment for hosting bonanza-grade mineralization.
Monument Bay & N. Madsen Project Updates
In addition to the Headway Project in Red Lake, Mega holds several additional highly prospective projects that will be subject to major exploration programs in the coming year. Mega’s fall drill program, in addition to the ongoing OCAP (Old Core Assay Program) Gold/Tungsten Sampling program is currently underway at the Company's Monument Bay Project. In 2013, these programs have successfully identified multiple open pit and underground style gold Resources including the discovery of a High Grade Starter Pit of 667,308 ounces of gold at 2.7 g/t (7.7M tonnes) within the Measured and Indicated Resources of 2.9 M Ounces (67M tonnes) and Inferred Resources of 0.7 M Ounces (26M tonnes) (Details available in the NI 43-101 Report). Mega expects to release a NI 43-101 gold equivalent compliant resource estimate in the first half of 2014.
In Red Lake, the Company is currently updating the NI 43-101 gold resource report on its North Madsen Project that is strategically located adjacent to the Madsen Mine trend and is part of a much larger gold system that encompasses the adjacent Howey, Hasaga and Gold Shore Mines which historically produced approximately 640,000 ounces of gold. Mega’s drill programs have discovered mineralization with grades and widths comparable to those at these mines, within a near-identical geological setting.
Investor Relations
Mega Precious Metals is pleased to announce that it has retained the services of Nicole Marchand to assist with Investor Relations activities. Ms. Marchand will be engaged for 2 months at a rate of $4,000 per month plus applicable expenses.
Qualified Person
Mr. Tim Twomey, P.Geo., Geological Consultant for Mega Precious Metals, is a Qualified Person under National Instrument 43-101 and is responsible for this release and has verified the contents disclosed.
Mr. Twomey, P.Geo. is independent of the Company as defined by Section 1.5 of the NI 43-101 guidelines and have reviewed and approved the technical information contained in this release. Tim is a professional geologist with over 25 years of experience in exploration and production. Tim was previously VP Exploration for Premier Gold Mines Limited and prior to that was part of the geological team that discovered, delineated and put into production the High Grade Zone at Goldcorp’s Red Lake Mines.