Freegold Intersects New High Grade Structures (2 m of 54 g/t Gold) and Multiple Shear Zones in 700 m Step-Out Drilling at Golden
April 23 2008 - 3:01AM
PR Newswire (US)
VANCOUVER, April 23 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Freegold Ventures
Limited (TSX: ITF, OTCBB: FGOVF, Frankfurt: FR4) is pleased to
announce results from holes in Fence 6 North drilled as part of the
Phase 2, 40,000 foot on-going, systematic RAB drilling program at
the Golden Summit project outside Fairbanks, Alaska. The closely
spaced holes in Fence 6 North cover a north-south area of
approximately 850 feet in width, and are a 2,300 foot step-out to
the west of Fence 5, which was the limit of the previously
identified package of multiple, parallel vein swarms and shear
zones tested in the Cleary Hill area last fall. The identification
of gold mineralization in Fence 6 North similar to that traced from
fence to fence in last year's drilling on the eastern half of this
area represents a significant expansion of this bulk tonnage
mineralization. Included within the broad zones of lower grade gold
mineralization are multiple higher grade structures (e.g. 3 foot
intervals of 12.3, 21.8, 14.4, 24.2 g/tonne and a 6 foot interval
of 60.3 g/tonne) that have also been shown to be traceable from
fence to fence in the drilling on the eastern portion of this area.
Fence 6 North drilling has now extended this broad area of gold
mineralization in the Cleary Hill area to over 5,000 feet in
length, and mineralization continues to remain open along strike in
both directions and at depth. Fence 6 North consisted of a single
row of 46 vertical holes (holes 731 to 776) that were drilled to an
average depth of 75 feet. The average spacing between holes was 20
feet, with spacing reduced to 10 feet in areas of intense
alteration (which has been shown to correlate well to higher-grade
gold mineralization in previous drilling) and extended to 40 feet
in areas exhibiting less alteration. This program of shallow RAB
drilling is designed to test the extent of the 100 to 300 foot wide
east-west trending parallel zones of gold mineralization that have
been identified in previous drill fences and in on-going
bulk-sampling. Step out drilling in the eastern Tolovana area was
conducted last year, and fences 6 to 8 and 15 to 17 were able to
trace an individual shear zone to the east, trending directly
towards the central part of the 1,200 foot wide area of gold
mineralization last delineated in Fence 5. Fence 6 North has now
confirmed additional shear zones to the north of the vein swarm
tested in Fence 6, while current drilling is testing for additional
shear zones to the south of Fence 6. Fences 17 North and 20, in
filling within the 2,300 foot gap between Fence 6 North and Fence 5
have recently been completed and assays are pending. Deeper core
drilling is also in progress, with 23 deeper, grid-based holes
having been drilled in the Fence 1 and Beistline areas. Given the
extension of mineralization in this eastern Tolovana area, and
given the intersection of previously unidentified high grade veins
in the drilling, Freegold has also drilled 3 deeper core holes into
the Fence 6 North area. A map showing the locations of all of the
drill fences in the Cleary Hill area at Golden Summit can be found
at http://www.freegoldventures.com/i/maps/maps022708ITF.pdf.
Significant intercepts from Fence 24 include:
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From To Thickness Gold Grade Gold Grade Hole Number (foot) (foot)
(feet) (g/tonne) (oz/ton)
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734 6 78 72 0.9 0.03
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742 39 63 24 1.1 0.03
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748 39 63 24 2.0 0.06
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Including 57 60 3 12.3 0.36
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749 24 75 51 2.6 0.08
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Including 36 39 3 21.8 0.64
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Including 51 54 3 9.8 0.29
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Including 66 69 3 6.1 0.18
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751 0 48 48 1.3 0.04
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Including 0 3 3 14.4 0.42
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757 33 39 6 54.4 1.59
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including 33 36 3 60.3 1.76
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including 36 39 3 48.6 1.42
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758 0 33 33 1.2 0.03
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761 18 39 21 1.0 0.03
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762 9 39 30 0.8 0.02
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765 21 63 42 2.5 0.07
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including 27 30 3 24.2 0.70
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including 60 63 3 6.0 0.17
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769 27 45 18 1.1 0.03
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770 3 45 42 1.2 0.04
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773 24 72 48 1.0 0.03
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including 24 27 3 5.3 0.16
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775 51 78 27 1.4 0.04
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The average of all 1,154 three-foot assay intervals over the 850
foot width of holes in Fence 6 North is 0.52 g/tonne, which
compares favorably with the current reported reserve grade of the
nearby Fort Knox mine of 0.53 g/tonne). Steve Manz, President and
CEO of the Company, stated "Through our combination of trenching,
shallow and deep drilling, and bulk sampling, we are starting to
develop an excellent understanding of the gold mineralization in
this broad area, and are very encouraged at the successful results
and the continuity that our step-out work continues to demonstrate.
Bulk sampling and processing on the property, which was suspended
in October for the winter season, will re-commence later this
quarter. This program is providing us with valuable information as
to how the grades of this gold mineralization continue to hold
together in larger volumes, and a complete update on our on-going
sampling program will be provided shortly." True widths of the
veins reported in this release are variable, as the orientation of
the various mineralized structures encountered throughout the
drilling is variable. Drilling is currently being conducted with an
Ingersol-Rand conventional percussion drill. Cuttings are returned
up the drill hole with the use of an OEM vacuum drill cuttings
collector, and are dropped from a cyclone directly into a sample
bag. Samples are collected every three feet, with the drill bit
being pulled off the bottom and the hole cleaned at the completion
of each sample interval. Freegold maintains a geologist and sampler
at the drill rig for all drilling to take and log all samples to
insure that quality assurance and control procedures are in
accordance with 43-101 requirements. One duplicate assay is being
conducted in every drill hole and either a blank or a standard is
inserted in the sample stream every 10 samples. Alaska Assay
Laboratories in Fairbanks, Alaska is being used to analyze the
drill cuttings for gold via fire assay analysis plus multi element
ICP-AES and ICP-MS analysis using 4 acid digestion. The Qualified
Person, Michael P. Gross, M.S., P. Geo., VP Exploration, Freegold
Ventures Limited has reviewed and approved the contents of this
release. About Freegold Ventures Limited Freegold Ventures Limited
is a North American exploration and development company with a
management team experienced in mine development and production, and
that has a proven track-record in transitioning exploration
companies into gold producers. The Company is currently exploring
advanced-stage gold projects in Idaho and Alaska. Freegold holds a
100% lease interest in the Almaden gold project in Idaho. This
large tonnage epithermal gold deposit was the subject of a
feasibility study in 1997 calling for the development of a 95,000
oz/year open pit, heap leach mine. Freegold has recently finalized
a 54,700-foot drilling program which has successfully identified
numerous extensions to the gold mineralization, along with newly
identified open-ended areas of molybdenum mineralization. The
Company is in the process of generating a new 43-101 resource which
will be followed with the commencement of new economic evaluations.
Freegold's 40,100-foot drill program in 2007 continued to discover
new high-grade veins and bulk tonnage shear zones on its 93%
controlled Golden Summit project outside Fairbanks, Alaska. Over 7
million ounces of gold has historically been recovered from Golden
Summit which is situated less than 5 miles to the north of the +7
million ounce Fort Knox Mine. Further evaluation and expansion of
the mineralization is currently being undertaken with a combination
of closely spaced shallow drilling, deeper, systematic core
drilling and on-going bulk sampling program, which includes
seasonal processing of gold mineralization using an on-site
gravity-based concentration plant. Drilling in 2008 will also be
conducted on the company's 100% controlled Rob property, where the
Company has intersected high-grade gold in near surface quartz
veins similar in appearance and grade to those being mined at the
nearby 5.6 million ounce Pogo, and on the Vinasale deposit, where
the Company has entered into an exploration agreement with option
to lease on a 140,000 acre property in Alaska which contains the
previously identified Vinasale gold deposit On behalf of the Board
of Directors "Steve Manz" Steve Manz, President and C.E.O.
DISCLAIMER - This news release contains certain "Forward-Looking
Statements" within the meaning of Section 21E of the United States
Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended. All statements, other
than statements of historical fact, included herein are
forward-looking statements that involve various risks and
uncertainties. There can be no assurance that such statements will
prove to be accurate, and actual results and future events could
differ materially from those anticipated in such statements.
Important factors that could cause actual results to differ
materially from the Company's expectations are disclosed in the
Company's documents filed from time to time with the Toronto Stock
Exchange, British Columbia Securities Commission and the United
States Securities & Exchange Commission. The TSX has neither
approved nor disapproved the contents of this news release. CUSIP:
45953B107 CONTACT: Kristina Walcott, VP Corporate Development,
(604) 662-7307, DATASOURCE: Freegold Ventures Limited CONTACT:
Kristina Walcott, VP Corporate Development, (604) 662-7307,
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