VANCOUVER, British Columbia, Feb. 10, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Liberty Gold Corp. (TSX: LGD; OTCQX: LGDTF) (“Liberty Gold” or the “Company”) is pleased to announce that it has secured water rights in excess of 2,300 acre-feet per annum (“AFA”) in the locality of Black Pine, intended for future use as process water supply. Liberty Gold has also obtained a strategic mineral rights lease from the State of Idaho covering 2.6 square kilometres (km2) adjacent to the deposit, representing both an exploration opportunity and a potential area for future heap leach infrastructure. These acquisitions continue to substantially de-risk the property from a development perspective.
Preliminary engineering studies suggest that this water supply is sufficient to sustain up to a ~70,000 ore tonnes per day, run-of-mine heap leach operation and associated infrastructure at Black Pine. We are pursuing multiple strategies for procurement of additional water rights given the potential scale of the new Rangefront discovery and to provide operational flexibility to a future mining operation.
Liberty Gold has also acquired a lease for mineral rights from the State of Idaho on Section 36, a 2.6 km2 (1 square mile) parcel of land located immediately east of the Black Pine deposit. Historic drilling confirms that the Rangefront mineralization extends northeast into this block. A Plan of Operations (“PoO”) to conduct exploration and condemnation drilling on this land was submitted to the Bureau of Land Management ("BLM”) in the third quarter of 2021.
An additional 0.54 km2 of ground has also been acquired by staking in this area. Total Liberty Gold land holdings at Black Pine now aggregate 51.6 km2 of which 54% is subject to a 0.5% Net Smelter Royalty and 41% is royalty free.
Jon Gilligan, Chief Operating Officer of Liberty Gold stated, “Key deliverables for the development team have been securing a reliable and sustainable long-term water supply and identifying additional land for the potential location of infrastructure for the future Black Pine mining operation. We are delighted to be partnering with the State and local communities to achieve this outcome. Liberty Gold will continue to conduct technical studies on this future ground water supply to ensure we manage the water resources in the basin in a sustainable manner, minimising potential impacts and maximizing benefits for stakeholders.”
BLACK PINE MINERAL RIGHTS LOCATION MAP
A map accompanying this press release is available at https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/89aff288-bb7b-41f8-881c-7d97875f4f93
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 Nevada Gold Mines’ 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, with an average head grade of 0.63 grams per tonne of gold (“g/t Au”).
A mineral resource estimate containing an indicated mineral resource of 1,715,000 ounces of gold at an average grade of 0.51 g/t Au and totalling 105,075,000 tonnes; and an inferred mineral resource of 370,000 ounces of gold at an average grade of 0.37 g/t Au and totalling 31,211,000 tonnes was released on July 13, 2021, with the resource technical report filed on SEDAR on August 19, 2021, and available on the Liberty Gold website.
A virtual site tour and 3D model of Black Pine property, including details about the geology and mineralization, is available on the Company’s website: libertygold.ca
QUALIFIED PERSON
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.
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 Black Pine in Idaho and Goldstrike in Utah, both past- producing open-pit mines, where previous operators only scratched the surface.
For more information, visit 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. 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, the impact from the pandemic of the novel coronavirus (COVID-19), availability of equipment, the availability of drill rigs, accuracy of any engineering studies, successful acquisition of further water rights, 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; accuracy of any engineering studies, successful acquisition of further water rights; 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, including impacts from the pandemic of the novel coronavirus (COVID-19); 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 26, 2021 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.
Cautionary Note for United States Investors
The terms “mineral resource”, “measured mineral resource”, “indicated mineral resource” and “inferred mineral resource”, are Canadian mining terms as defined in, and required to be disclosed in accordance with, National Instrument 43-101 – Standards of Disclosure for Mineral Projects (“NI 43-101”), which references the guidelines set out in the Canadian Institute of Mining, Metallurgy and Petroleum (the “CIM”) – CIM Definition Standards on Mineral Resources and Mineral Reserves (“CIM Definition Standards”), adopted by the CIM Council, as amended. However, these terms are not defined terms under SEC Industry Guide 7 (“SEC Industry Guide 7”) under the United States Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and normally are not permitted to be used in reports and registration statements filed with United States Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”). The SEC has adopted amendments to its disclosure rules to modernize the mineral property disclosure requirements for issuers whose securities are registered with the SEC under the United States Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended. These amendments became effective February 25, 2019 (the “SEC Modernization Rules”) with compliance required for the first fiscal year beginning on or after January 1, 2021. The SEC Modernization Rules replace the historical disclosure requirements for mining registrants that were included in SEC Industry Guide 7. The Company does not file reports with the SEC and is not required to provide disclosure on its mineral properties under the SEC Modernization Rules and will continue to provide disclosure under NI 43-101 and the CIM Definition Standards.
