StrikePoint Gold Inc. (SKP - TSXV and STK - OTCBB) reports that a second 2010 drill program is underway at the Dufferin Mine property in Nova Scotia, having commenced on October 22, 2010.
This second drill program follows the successful completion of the first 2010 drill program that was designed to extend the primary axis of Dufferin gold mineralization, to investigate fold structures and to test the host turbiditic greywackes for different styles of mineralization. The highest gold values obtained from the 2010 summer drill program in terms of grade and intercept length were 79.40 g/t over 0.6m and 7.37 g/t over 1.8m. The program achieved all objectives, leading to the current drill program which is designed to more precisely locate the extensions of the large, stacked gold-bearing saddle deposits.
StrikePoint also reports that the Company and its joint venture partner Ressources Appalaches Inc. (APP - TSXV) have made their second payment of Cdn$1.5 million to Jemma Mining Resources Corp. ("Jemma"). The payment was due October 6th, 2010 pursuant to the Amended and Restated Agreement dated November 11th, 2008 between Ressources Appalaches and Jemma for the right to acquire all of the issued and outstanding shares in the capital of Dufferin Resources Incorporated as well as certain personal property and equipment owned by Jemma. The payment consisted of Cdn$900,000 from StrikePoint and $600,000 from Appalaches as provided for in a joint venture and option agreement between the two companies (See Press Release, June 3, 2010 2010).
The Dufferin Gold project is near Sheet Harbour, which is approximately 1½ hour drive NE of Halifax, Nova Scotia. The project includes the Dufferin Mine area, Ecum Secum, Chocolate Lake and Miller Lake properties. The Dufferin Mine property contains a 300 tpd mill and mine complex with all infrastructure including power, water, tailings management area and a 100m deep decline from surface that provides access to the four shallowest mineralized saddle reefs The decline is currently flooded and all mining infrastructure is currently on care and maintenance.
The 2010 summer field program on the Nova Scotia Projects consisted of an airborne LiDAR survey, ground magnetometer survey, prospecting and mapping. A drill program was carried out on the Dufferin Project and to date has doubled the strike length of the mineralized zones from the previous 700m to 1400m extending ENE along the Dufferin property.
The mineralization on the properties is turbidite-hosted gold where gold is concentrated in quartz vein saddles along the nose of the Crown Reserve anticlinal axis formed in greywacke, and argillite of the Paleozoic Meguma Group. A total of 13 saddles have so far been identified in a 400m drill hole along the anticline at the Dufferin Mine and the mineralization has been confirmed over a strike length of about 700m in shallower holes.
The airborne LiDAR survey was carried out by LiDAR Services Ltd. of Calgary and all properties were covered. The data has permitted the company to identify surficial deposits, geological structures and folding on several of the properties and will be used to help focus follow-up ground geological surveys, prospecting and sampling.
Ground magnetometer surveys were carried out on parts of all properties and have identified late faulting and fracturing of most rocks and of the anticlinal axis at the Dufferin Mine. When combined with LiDAR products the ground magnetometer data show semi-regular lateral offsets to the axis of the mineralized anticline.
The 2010 summer drilling program consisted of 2295m of drilling in 17 holes in seven fences along a strike length of about 600m and the holes ranged in depth from 30 to 204m. All holes were drilled at an azimuth of 165° and a dip of 83°, about 90° to the strike of the anticlinal axis, and parallel to the dip of the axial plane.
Results show that the mineralized Crown Reserve anticlinal axis has been extended for an additional strike length of 700m, bringing the total strike length of mineralization to at least 1400m. The anticline appears to plunge 8-10° to the east and therefore the strongly mineralized Saddle #1 mapped at the Dufferin Mine portal is a depth of about 200m at the eastern end of the drilled zone. Several additional veins have been identified by drilling above Saddle 1 and will be further outlined by drilling.
Gold mineralization occurs most often in bedding-parallel and cross-cutting quartz veins. Bedding-parallel quartz veins develop as saddles in the anticline of the fold axes. The cross-cutting quartz veins are either veins that connect between the saddles or late remobilization of the bedding-parallel veins.
Assays of 5.45-20.9 g/t Au over 0.3-1.8m were reported from nine core samples from bedding-parallel veins in seven drill holes. One core sample from a bedding-parallel vein in drill hole F10-08 reported 79.4 g/t Au over 0.6m in brecciated quartz with argillite and 5% arsenopyrite.
In cross-cutting quartz veins one sample assayed 7.02 g/t Au over 1.0m in drill hole F10-08 and nine other samples reported 0.42-0.94 g/t Au over 0.2-1.3m from eight drill holes.
Assays of argillite and greywacke show generally background values of 0.01-0.02 g/t Au but 11 samples of greywacke or interbedded greywacke and argillite, occasionally containing trace to 2% arsenopyrite reported values of 0.57-8.48 g/t Au over widths of 0.5-1.5m. Some of these samples were described as being silicified and others contained one or two thin cross-cutting veins of quartz.
We are looking forward to the completion of the current drill program that is designed to test extension of the strike length past 1400m east and also test the saddles to depth as well as to test for additional gold-bearing saddles above Saddle #1 as it deepens at 8% declination along the anticlinal axis.
Richard Boulay, Chairman and CEO of StrikePoint stated: "The localization and extension of the main mineralization axis to a total length of 1400m, so far, is an important milestone in the exploration of the Dufferin property. We are looking forward to the results of the current program that are more specifically intended to explore and extend the large mineralized saddles that have been previously identified."
The sampling program was carried out by splitting of the core according to industry norms with blanks, duplicates and analytical standards submitted at regular intervals and assays were carried out at ALS Chemex. The samples were analyzed for gold, and 49 of the 678 samples submitted for analysis were analyzed by screen fire assay where the duplicate assays are performed on two weight fractions that have been screened to 100 microns.
This press release has been reviewed by Daniel A. Beauchamp, B.Sc., P.Geol., StrikePoint Gold's Qualified Person under National Instrument 43-101.