Red Pine Exploration Inc. [RPX-TSXV] announced the discovery of a new mineralized gold zone, beneath the Surluga deposit, during its on-going exploration program at its Wawa Gold Project, located 2 km southeast of Wawa, northern Ontario. Hole SD-20-289 successfully intersected the Jubilee Shear Zone (host of the Surluga deposit), 350 metres down-plunge of the current resource boundaries, with a significant intercept of 5.2 g/t gold over 6.31 metres (true width) at a depth of 570 metres that included higher grade assays of 15.7 g/t gold over 1.97 metres, 12.5 g/t gold over 0.78 metres. Hole SD-20-287 intersected 4.1 g/t gold over 0.94 metres (true width) below 450 metres depth.
These new drilling results indicate that high-grade gold mineralization extends at depth, well beyond the footprint of the current resource of the Surluga deposit, and that the resource can be expanded.
The 2020 exploration program is funded and drilling is expected to restart in the next two weeks. Remaining drilling assays from the Winter 2020 program and results of the upcoming down-hole IP survey will be announced as they are received.
Quentin Yarie, CEO of Red Pine stated, “Following the results from holes 285A and 286, today’s results from Hole 289 represent more definitive evidence that the higher-grade core of the Surluga deposit extends well beyond the footprint of the current resource. Finding this extension, early in our exploration program, validates the accuracy of our predictive modelling of the Jubilee Shear Zone. Our next holes will test the area up- and down-plunge of this discovery to quantify the extension and grade of the discovery in Hole 289. Targeting will be supported by the interpretation of the borehole IP geophysical program that is starting this week.”
Holes SD-20-287 and SD-20-289 were targeting the down-plunge extension of the southernmost limit of the Surluga deposit resource.
Hole SD-20-287 intersected a large diabase dyke in the upper 20 metres of the Jubilee Shear Zone. There is evidence of stronger alteration and mineralization at the lower contact of the diabase dyke with the Jubilee Shear suggesting that the dyke could occupy a zone of higher-grade mineralization within the structure. The higher-grade gold results in hole 287 came from a 0.7-metre quartz vein in which specks of visible gold were observed. A 10.28 metre-wide halo of low-grade gold mineralization characterized by spaced quartz veins, disseminated pyrite, and weak-moderate biotite/sericite was also intersected in the Jubilee Shear Zone, further down-hole of the diabase dyke.
Hole SM-20-288 was testing the expected limits of the projected plunge of the Surluga deposit resource. No zones of strong alteration or mineralization were observed in that hole.
Hole SD-20-289 intersected gold 40 metres away from the gold intercept in Hole SD-20-286. In the Jubilee Shear Zone, it hit a 7-metre zone characterized by stronger quartz veining associated with pervasive dissemination of pyrite, locally arsenopyrite, and moderate to strong biotite/sericite alteration. A 12.3 metre-wide halo of low-grade gold mineralization characterized by spaced quartz veins, disseminated pyrite, and weak-moderate biotite/sericite alteration is located below the higher-grade zone in SD-20-289. Below the Jubilee Shear Zone, a new shear zone was intersected with pyrite mineralization and spaced quartz veining. Assays are pending for that shear zone and will be released when received.
Red Pine has a 64.5% interest in the Wawa Gold Project with Citabar LP holding the remaining 35.5% interest. Red Pine is the operating manager of the Project and is focused on expanding the existing gold resource on the property.