VANCOUVER, British Columbia, June 19, 2019 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Liberty Gold Corp. (LGD-TSX) (“Liberty Gold” or the “Company”) is pleased to announce that new drilling at Black Pine in southern Idaho has intersected thick intervals of high grade oxide gold mineralization in a new area, greatly expanding the size potential of this Carlin-style gold system. All ten holes drilled to date in this area confirm the discovery (see January 5, 2018; April 11, 2018; and May 29, 2019 press releases).
The drill holes in the current release targeted a 500 metre (“m”) wide gap between an area of known gold mineralization and a historic pit with flanking gold mineralization. The drilling not only confirms that high grade oxide gold mineralization is present in the gap area, but it is also drill-confirmed evidence for the presence of a mineralized zone that is over one kilometre (“km”) long, remaining open for extension laterally in all directions.
Drill highlights include:
| Hole ID (Azimuth, Dip) (degrees) | From (m) | To (m) | Intercept (m) | Grams per tonne gold ("g/t Au") | Au Cut-Off | Hole Length (m) | Target | g/t x m | |
| LBP019 (319, -74) | 18.3 | 29.0 | 10.7 | 0.30 | 0.2 | 211.4 | B Pit -A Basin | Step out along B Pit to A-Basin Section | 23.3 |
| and | 88.4 | 91.4 | 3.0 | 0.38 | 0.2 | ||||
| and | 129.5 | 172.2 | 42.7 | 0.40 | 0.2 | ||||
| including | 149.4 | 152.4 | 3.0 | 1.24 | 1 | ||||
| and | 189.0 | 192.0 | 3.0 | 0.55 | 0.2 | ||||
| LBP020 (036, -79) | 38.1 | 50.3 | 12.2 | 0.40 | 0.2 | 257.6 | B Pit-A Basin | 150 metre step-out from intercept in hole LBP002, along B Pit to A Basin Section | 57.3 |
| including | 39.6 | 41.1 | 1.5 | 1.31 | 1 | ||||
| and | 74.7 | 80.8 | 6.1 | 0.21 | 0.2 | ||||
| and | 88.4 | 103.6 | 15.2 | 0.41 | 0.2 | ||||
| including | 102.1 | 103.6 | 1.5 | 1.18 | 1 | ||||
| and | 164.6 | 199.6 | 35.1 | 0.75 | 0.2 | ||||
| including | 170.7 | 176.8 | 6.1 | 1.27 | 1 | ||||
| including | 182.9 | 184.4 | 1.5 | 1.09 | 1 | ||||
| including | 190.5 | 193.5 | 3.0 | 1.21 | 1 | ||||
| including | 196.6 | 198.1 | 1.5 | 1.19 | 1 | ||||
| and | 217.9 | 234.7 | 16.8 | 1.12 | 0.2 | ||||
| including | 227.1 | 233.2 | 6.1 | 2.62 | 1 | ||||
| LBP021 (144, -75) | 38.1 | 44.2 | 6.1 | 0.25 | 0.2 | 266.7 | B Pit-A Basin | 250 metre step-out from intercept in hole LBP002, and 300 metre step-out from intercept in hole LBP016, along B Pit to A Basin Section | 90.6 |
| and | 45.7 | 53.3 | 7.6 | 0.45 | 0.2 | ||||
| and | 83.8 | 89.9 | 6.1 | 0.22 | 0.2 | ||||
| and | 189.0 | 236.2 | 47.2 | 1.78 | 0.2 | ||||
| including | 199.6 | 222.5 | 22.9 | 3.24 | 1 | ||||
| and including | 202.7 | 205.7 | 3.0 | 9.99 | 5 | ||||
| and including | 216.4 | 217.9 | 1.5 | 5.73 | 5 | ||||
| including | 231.6 | 233.2 | 1.5 | 1.39 | 1 |
For a cross section and long section of drill collars and traces for the current release, please click here: http://libertygold.ca/images/news/2019/june/BlackPine_NR06192019CSandLS.pdf
For a map of drill collars and traces for the current release, please click here: http://libertygold.ca/images/news/2019/june/BlackPine_NR06192019Map.pdf
For a complete table of drill results from the current holes, please click here: http://libertygold.ca/images/news/2019/june/BP_Intercepts06192019.pdf
Key Points
- Oxide gold is found throughout a 100 to 300 m thick, structurally prepared horizon, with higher grades encountered near the base of it in several wide structural corridors.
- All gold mineralization encountered to date in this area is oxide.
- Each drill hole in this new target zone returned strong oxide gold grades over 40 to 50 m down-hole, following a faulted stratigraphic zone near the base of the carbonate sequence. Six of the first ten released holes in this area returned significant intercepts in the 1.12 g/t Au to 1.78 g/t Au range.
- Approximately 30 to 60% of total drill hole lengths comprise gold above a cut-off grade of 0.20 g/t Au.
- Cyanide solubility for the significant intervals in this release averages 87%.
- All future drill holes are planned to drill the full receptive carbonate sequence above and through the lower contact.
To date the zone of favourable near-horizontal stratigraphy tested by Liberty Gold along the one km-long structural corridor has returned the following intercepts:
- LBP002 (2017): 1.49 g/t Au over 77.7 m
- LBP003 (2017): 0.61 g/t Au over 15.2 m
- LBP009 (2017): 0.69 g/t Au over 24.4 m
- LBP014 (2019): 1.19 g/t Au over 38.1 m
- LBP015 (2019): 1.51 g/t Au over 48.8 m
- LBP016 (2019): 1.45 g/t Au over 45.7 m
- LBP017 (2019): 0.45 g/t Au over 42.7 m
- LBP019 (2019): 0.40 g/t Au over 42.7 m
- LBP020 (2019): 0.75 g/t Au over 35.1 m and 1.12 g/t over 16.8 m
- LBP021 (2019): 1.78 g/t Au over 47.2 m
“After two years of preparatory compilation, modeling and permitting, our expectations were high, and these holes did not disappoint. Drill holes LBP019 through LBP021 provide the proof of the potential of Black Pine to host significant gold mineralization in the extensive untested area beneath and lateral to historic pits and drilling, returning grades that are over twice what is currently being mined in open-pit heap leach scenarios in the Great Basin,” said Cal Everett, President & CEO of Liberty Gold. “100% of the discovery credit goes to a brilliant group of geologists with a storied history of association with several operating gold mines around the world. With upwards of 85 metres of above-cut-off mineralization in several zones in some of these holes, we expect to be able to build tonnes and ounces rapidly over the course of our 2019 drilling program.”
The Company has successfully confirmed its pre-drilling model, wherein oxide gold mineralization occurs within a 100 to 300 m thick receptive carbonate sequence, with higher grades encountered near the base of the carbonate sequence where it is cut by structural corridors up to several hundred m wide. Historical 1992 – 1997 pits are located along these intersections. Four additional holes are pending that will add to our understanding of the size and grade of this discovery.
“Our exploration model for the area we are currently drilling is that oxide gold is found in a thick, near-horizontal zone of favourable stratigraphy where it intersects a structural corridor of unknown width, forming an elongate, tabular zone of higher-grade mineralization,” said Moira Smith, V.P. Exploration and Geoscience for Liberty Gold. “The zone of favourable stratigraphy underlies virtually the entire property at relatively shallow depth, and there are a number of potential structural corridors that have been identified through examination of historical drilling and mining data, as well as our own mapping efforts. B Pit to A Basin is just the first zone that we have tested so far and it remains open for extension. We are beyond elated that our exploration model has been validated. We eagerly await the results from four pending holes in this zone, as well as testing of several other targets property-wide and the undrilled areas between them.”
ABOUT THE 2019 BLACK PINE DRILL PROGRAM
One Reverse Circulation (“RC”) drill was deployed on April 23, 2019 to drill an estimated 16,000 m in 80 to 100 holes to provide a comprehensive test of the core of an oxide gold system estimated at over 12 square km (“km2“) in size. The drill program represents the culmination of over 2 years of intensive compilation, modeling and interpretation of the complex geology of the project, as well as a 20 month permitting process. The goal of the 2019 drill program is to carry out a comprehensive test of the geological and mineralization model over a roughly seven km2 area within the 12 km2 identified gold system, starting with a highly prospective area near the historic A and B pits. Extensive data compilation, involving over 1800 historic drill holes, thousands of surface soil and rock samples and 5 shallow pits, suggests that a large volume of rock under and adjacent to zones of previously drill-tested and/or mined gold mineralization contains highly prospective stratigraphy and favourable structural settings for hosting Carlin style gold mineralization.
Drill holes LBP019 through LBP021 tested 500 m of strike length along a northwest - southeast section line that stretched from the historic B Pit and the A Basin target (link to cross section and long section). Two of the three holes intersected thick intervals of high grade oxide gold and the third hole intersected moderate grade. All holes are overlain by broad intervals of lower grade gold mineralization.
Gold mineralization is hosted in complexly deformed strata of the Pennsylvanian to Permian Oquirrh Group, consisting of an upper sandstone unit structurally emplaced over carbonate and siliciclastic rocks, including limestone and dolostone, as well as calcareous and non-calcarous shale, siltstone and sandstone, which in turn overly Mississippian shale and limestone. The carbonate sequence forms a highly prospective tectonostratigraphic sequence ranging from 100 to over 300 m thick. The various rock units were subjected to late Cretaceous folding and thrusting, followed by low- to high-angle normal faulting in the early to middle Cenozoic. The extensive deformation provided the architecture and plumbing for gold-bearing fluids to penetrate the rock and deposit very fine-grained gold in reactive calcareous siltstones and brecciated strata of all types. Liberty Gold has recognized several fault corridors that intersect the most prospective stratigraphic units; collectively these intersections of structure with stratigraphy form the primary targets for 2019 drilling.
ABOUT BLACK PINE
Black Pine is located in the northern Great Basin, immediately adjacent to the Utah/Idaho border. It is a Carlin-style gold system, similar in many ways to the prolific deposits located along Nevada’s Carlin trend. Like Newmont’s Long Canyon deposit, Black Pine represents a growing number of Carlin-style gold systems located off the main Carlin and Cortez trends in underexplored parts of the Great Basin. The historic Black Pine Mine operated from 1992 to 1997, during a period of historically low gold prices, with 435,000 ounces of gold produced from five composite, shallow pits, at an average grade of 0.63 g/t Au and average recovery of approximately 66%.
A virtual site tour and 3D model of Black Pine is available on the homepage of the Company’s website: www.libertygold.ca
Moira Smith, Ph.D., P.Geo., Vice-President Exploration and Geoscience, Liberty Gold, is the Company's designated Qualified Person for this news release within the meaning of National Instrument 43-101 Standards of Disclosure for Mineral Projects ("NI 43-101") and has reviewed and validated that the information contained in the release is accurate. Drill composites were calculated using a cut-off of 0.20 g/t. Drill intersections are reported as drilled thicknesses. True widths of the mineralized intervals vary between 30 and 100% of the reported lengths due to varying drill hole orientations, but are typically in the range of 60 to 100% of true width. Drill samples were assayed by ALS Limited in Reno, Nevada for gold by Fire Assay of a 30 gram (1 assay ton) charge with an AA finish, or if over 5.0 g/t were re-assayed and completed with a gravimetric finish. For these samples, the gravimetric data were utilized in calculating gold intersections. For any samples assaying over 0.20 ppm an additional cyanide leach analysis is done where the sample is treated with a 0.25% NaCN solution and rolled for an hour. An aliquot of the final leach solution is then centrifuged and analyzed by Atomic Absorption Spectroscopy. QA/QC for all drill samples consists of the insertion and continual monitoring of numerous standards and blanks into the sample stream, and the collection of duplicate samples at random intervals within each batch. Selected holes are also analyzed for a 51 multi-element geochemical suite by ICP-MS. ALS Geochemistry-Reno is ISO 17025:2005 Accredited, with the Elko prep lab listed on the scope of accreditation.
ABOUT LIBERTY GOLD
Liberty Gold is focused on exploring the Great Basin of the United States, home to large-scale gold projects that are ideal for open-pit mining. This region is one of the most prolific gold-producing regions in the world and stretches across Nevada and into Idaho and Utah. We know the Great Basin and are driven to discover and advance big gold deposits that can be mined profitably in open-pit scenarios. Our flagship projects are Goldstrike, Black Pine and Kinsley Mountain, all of which are past producing open-pit mines, where previous operators only scratched the surface.
For more information, visit www.libertygold.ca or contact:
Susie Bell, Manager, Investor Relations
Phone: 604-632-4677 or Toll Free 1-877-632-4677
info@libertygold.ca
All statements in this press release, other than statements of historical fact, are "forward-looking information" with respect to Liberty Gold within the meaning of applicable securities laws, including statements that address potential quantity and/or grade of minerals, potential size and expansion of a mineralized zone, proposed timing of exploration and development plans. Forward-looking information is often, but not always, identified by the use of words such as "seek", "anticipate", "plan", "continue", "planned", "expect", "project", "predict", "potential", "targeting", "intends", "believe", "potential", and similar expressions, or describes a "goal", or variation of such words and phrases or state that certain actions, events or results "may", "should", "could", "would", "might" or "will" be taken, occur or be achieved. Forward-looking information is not a guarantee of future performance and is based upon a number of estimates and assumptions of management at the date the statements are made including, among others, assumptions about future prices of gold, and other metal prices, currency exchange rates and interest rates, favourable operating conditions, political stability, obtaining governmental approvals and financing on time, obtaining renewals for existing licenses and permits and obtaining required licenses and permits, labour stability, stability in market conditions, availability of equipment, accuracy of any mineral resources, the availability of drill rigs, successful resolution of disputes and anticipated costs and expenditures. Many assumptions are based on factors and events that are not within the control of Liberty Gold and there is no assurance they will prove to be correct.
Such forward-looking information, involves known and unknown risks, which may cause the actual results to be materially different from any future results expressed or implied by such forward-looking information, including, risks related to the interpretation of results and/or the reliance on technical information provided by third parties as related to the Company’s mineral property interests; changes in project parameters as plans continue to be refined; current economic conditions; future prices of commodities; possible variations in grade or recovery rates; the costs and timing of the development of new deposits; failure of equipment or processes to operate as anticipated; the failure of contracted parties to perform; the timing and success of exploration activities generally; delays in permitting; possible claims against the Company; labour disputes and other risks of the mining industry; delays in obtaining governmental approvals, financing or in the completion of exploration as well as those factors discussed in the Annual Information Form of the Company dated March 27, 2019 in the section entitled "Risk Factors", under Liberty Gold’s SEDAR profile at www.sedar.com.Although Liberty Gold has attempted to identify important factors that could cause actual actions, events or results to differ materially from those described in forward-looking information, there may be other factors that cause actions, events or results not to be as anticipated, estimated or intended. There can be no assurance that such information will prove to be accurate as actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated in such statements. Liberty Gold disclaims any intention or obligation to update or revise any forward-looking information, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise unless required by law.