VANCOUVER, Oct. 30, 2018 /CNW/ - Freegold Ventures
Limited (TSX:FVL Frankfurt: FR4N) ("Freegold") is pleased to
provide an update on its exploration activities. Freegold
continues to actively explore in Alaska holding both the Shorty Creek and
Golden Summit Projects. Shorty Creek is a copper – gold
porphyry target on which Freegold intersected 91.4 metres
grading 0.55% copper during its initial drill campaign in 2015.
Subsequent drilling in 2016 and 2017 intersected broad zones of
copper mineralization. Highlights include 434.5 metres grading
0.36% copper, 0.12 g/t gold, 7.46 g/t silver in hole 16-01, and
409.6 metres grading 0.29% copper, 0.06 g/t Au, and 5.66 g/t
silver in Hole 16-02. A follow-up program in 2017 continued
to expand upon these broad zones of copper mineralization.
Highlights from 2017 include 360 metres grading 0.24%
copper, 0.07 g/t gold, and 4.04 g/t silver, in hole 17-01, and
408 metres grading 0.27% copper, and 0.05 gt/ gold and 4.97
g/t silver in hole 17-02. In addition to the copper mineralization
at Hill 1835 significant tungsten mineralization has also been
intersected, significant intercepts include 207 metres grading
0.045% W03 in hole 16-01, 0.03% W03 over 409.6 metres in hole
16-02, and 0.06% W03 over 87 metres in hole 17-01, and 0.06% W03
over 339 metres in hole 17-02.
The Shorty Creek project area hosts a cluster of magnetic
anomalies commonly seen in porphyry districts. Hill 1835 is
only one of the potentially significant areas identified to date.
The mineralized area at Hill 1835 extends over a 600 metres x 300
metre area and remains open. The 2016 program also tested a
broad magnetic anomaly with coincident geochemistry at Hill 1710,
an area located 2.0 km north of Hill 1835, with 4 holes spaced on
average 400 metres apart. The holes intersected copper
mineralization with the copper grades increasing as drilling moved
to the northeast. Only 1.6 km of the 6.0 km long magnetic feature
has been drilled tested.
Other exploration targets within the 100 square kilometre
property include the Quarry target, where oxidized porphyritic rock
with stockwork veining returned values of 500 ppm copper in rock
samples. Steel Creek, which was initially tested with one hole in
2017, lies two km northeast of Hill 1835 and drilling intersected
anomalous copper and a mineral suite similar to that seen at Hill
1835.
Metallurgical work has been underway for the past several months
aimed at both determining copper, silver and gold recoveries
through locked cycle testing as well as evaluating the potential
for a gravity circuit to recover the tungsten. The tungsten present
at Shorty Creek occurs as wolframite and hence is likely amenable
to gravity recovery. Results will be reported when
available.
During 2018, Freegold undertook a small program, aimed at both
expanding and delineating the copper mineralization discovered at
Hill 1835. A total of 1,148 metres was drilled in two holes during
the 2018 fall program. Assays are still pending. Due to
logistical reasons drilling was undertaken at Shorty Creek, as
drilling at Golden Summit can be undertaken on a year round
basis.
Golden Summit Update
Freegold is continuing to further optimize its Golden Summit
Project near Fairbanks, Alaska on
which it completed a Preliminary Economic Assessment in
January 2016, which provided a first
look at a potential development scenario. The PEA envisioned a
24-year two -phase oxide and sulphide operation. The PEA requires
both the oxide and the sulphide material to be developed in order
to return an after tax IRR (internal rate of return) of 19.6% IRR
and a NPV (net present value) of US$188
Million (5% discount rate) over a 24 year life of mine using
a US $1,300 gold price.
Potential optimization of the project includes the additional
expansion of the current oxide material, which may the potential to
increase the project's overall IRR and NPV by increasing the
throughput during the oxide phase. During the 2017 season a total
of 27 holes were drilled in an area to the north of the current
resource area. Using results of the previously completed RAB
(Rotary Air Blast) drilling, ground resistivity and soil
geochemistry, a series of vertical holes, spaced roughly 50 metres
apart were drilled. The hole pattern was designed to determine if
the current oxide resource could be expanded to the north as well
as to establish boundaries to the current oxide resource. The
results of the 2017 program demonstrated the potential for
expansion of the current oxide resource at Golden Summit to the
north with majority of the holes returning average grades above the
internal cut-off used in the PEA . The oxide cap is contained
largely within the upper 200 feet (60 metres) of the resource. To
date resource drilling has been confined to a 300 metre by 1.5 km
area (approx. 110 acres) however the entire Golden Summit project
area covers 13,000 acres and hosts numerous other significant
exploration targets with potential to host additional resources,
all of which have an oxide cap in the upper 200 feet (60
metres).
Freegold is also pleased to report has received
subscription agreements for the closing of a non-brokered private
placement of 14,935,000 ("Units"), priced at $0.08 per Unit for total proceeds of $1,194,800. Each Unit will consist of one common
share (a "Share") and one common share purchase warrant (a
"Warrant"). Each Warrant will entitle the holder to acquire
an additional Share at a price of $0.12 per Share for a period of 36 months from
the date of closing. Each Warrant is subject to accelerated
expiry provisions such that if at any time after the expiry of any
resale restriction governing the subscribed Shares, the
Corporation's common shares trade on the TSX at or above a volume
weighted average trading price of $0.20 per common share for 10 consecutive trading
days, the Company may give notice to the holders that each Warrant
will expire 30 days from the date of providing such notice.
All securities issued bear a legend restricting resale until
February 27th, 2019. The
foregoing is subject to regulatory approval.
The Qualified Person who has reviewed the technical disclosure
contained in this release is Alvin
Jackson, P Geo-- VP Exploration and Development for the
Company.
The Company would like to thank its Shareholders for their
continued support.
About Freegold Ventures Limited
Freegold is a TSX listed company focused on exploration in
Alaska and holds the Golden Summit
Gold Project, near Fairbanks as
well as a 100% lease interest on the Shorty Creek Copper –Gold
Project near Livengood.
Some statements in this news release contain forward-looking
information, including without limitation statements as to planned
expenditures and exploration programs. These statements address
future events and conditions and, as such, involve known and
unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors which may cause the
actual results, performance or achievements to be materially
different from any future results, performance or achievements
expressed or implied by the statements. Such factors include
without limitation the completion of planned expenditures, the
ability to complete exploration programs on schedule and the
success of exploration programs
SOURCE Freegold Ventures Limited