Local employment showcased during Phase 2 Exploration at Cabin Gold Project
Local employment showcased during Phase 2 Exploration at Cabin Gold Project
VANCOUVER, British Columbia, Aug. 10, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Rover Metals Corp. (TSXV: ROVR) (OTCQB: ROVMF) (FRA:4X0) (“Rover” or the “Company”) discusses the positive impact of the Cabin Gold project on the local community: https://rovermetals.com/landingpages/aug2021corporateupdate.html
About Rover Metals Rover is a precious metals exploration company specialized in North American precious metal resources, that is currently advancing the gold potential of its existing projects in the Northwest Territories of Canada (60th parallel). The Company commenced Phase 2 Exploration at its Cabin Gold Project this summer.
Stock Option Grants The Company has re-engaged Momentum PR (“Momentum”) to provide another six months of investor relations services. Pursuant to the renewal of the Momentum contract, the Company has granted 750,000 stock options with a four year life on the following terms: 175,000 options vesting September 30, 2021 with an exercise price of $0.125; 175,000 options vesting December 31, 2021 with an exercise price of $0.150; 175,000 options vesting March 31, 2022 with an exercise price of $0.175; and 175,000 options vesting June 30, 2022 with an exercise price of $0.200. The Company has also granted 52,400 stock options to a consultant. The 52,400 options are fully vested on grant, have a life of four years, and have an exercise price of $0.15.
ON BEHALF OF THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS “Judson Culter” Chief Executive Officer and Director
For further information, please contact: Email: info@rovermetals.com Phone: +1 (778) 754-2617
NEITHER THE TSX VENTURE EXCHANGE NOR ITS REGULATION PROVIDER (AS THAT TERM IS DEFINED IN THE POLICIES OF THE TSX VENTURE EXCHANGE) ACCEPTS RESPONSIBILITY FOR THE ADEQUACY OF THIS RELEASE.
Joining us for a conversation is Roger Moss, the CEO of Labrador Gold (TSX.V: LAB | OTCQX: INOKF). It’s a pleasure to be speaking with you sir, as you have some very encouraging news coming from the Kingsway Gold Project, this time in the form of pristine gold grains. Before we begin, Dr. Moss, who is Labrador Gold, and what is the opportunity the company presents to shareholders?
Dr. Roger Moss:
Labrador Gold is a junior mining company based in Canada, and we’re currently exploring in Newfoundland on our flagship Kingsway Gold Project. We’ve done quite a bit of work on there over the last year, and this Spring we embarked on a 50,000-meter drill program. We made a discovery late last year of visible gold in quartz grain boulders. And we’ve been drilling for a few months with some nice high-grade hits. We are quite excited about the potential before us, and our recent press releases seem to indicate that we may be onto something. And today’s news adds even more to the story.
Maurice Jackson:
Dr. Moss take us to the Kingsway Gold Project, which is along a structure highway known for gold-bearing fluids, please acquaint us with the primary structures.
Dr. Roger Moss:
One of the things that interested me about Kingsway when I first heard about it and we moved to acquire it, was the fact that we had these major crustal structures running through it. And we know that the kinds of gold deposits that we’re looking at here, orogenic and epigenetic gold deposits, they are associated with these major crustal structures. If you have them, it’s great, you can find gold along them. And we are fortunate enough to have two, the Appleton Fault Zone and Dog Bay Line. Most of our work to date has been along the Appleton Fault Zone, and it’s almost a no brainer because down to the south of us where New Found Gold are exploring, they’ve been having incredible success exploring along the Appleton Fault Zone with their great intersections at Keats and Lotto, and most recently at the Golden Joint, so they have three occurrences down there along the Appleton Fault Zone, and ours is just starting, and our Big Vein target is also located along the Appleton Fault Zone. It seems to be a pretty prospective structure that’s running through the property.
Maurice Jackson:
Speaking of the Big Vein in the Appleton Fault Zone, at the conclusion of our last interview, you stated that, “the Big Vein may be the first of many occurrences and that the ideal situation is finding a string of pearls along the Appleton Fault Zone.” Let’s see if the ideal has the potential to come to fruition. Let’s visit the Appleton Fault Zone as earlier today, Labrador Gold announced till results of pristine gold grains. Dr. Moss, what can you share with us?
Dr. Roger Moss:
Labrador recently conducted a pretty big till sampling survey over the lowermost, southernmost two licenses of the Kingsway Project. And I think there was 57 till samples in total, and we got some nice results and the key here, and I think you said it twice, I’m going to say it again, is pristine. Pristine gold grains and that means that these grains haven’t traveled very far from their source, and that’s what we see here in these results.
Dr. Roger Moss:
If I may just digress a little bit so that I can explain why these pristine grains are so important. We’re looking at rocks and grains that have been dumped out of glaciers as they melt and recede, so when the glaciers move across the rock, they scrape and scour the bedrock and they entrain all the material that they’re scouring and they carry it with them, and when they recede and melt, they start dropping that material all the way back to the source, so the more pristine the gold grains are, the closer to the source they would have been because you can’t transport these very flaky gold grains very far without completely modifying their shape.
Dr. Roger Moss:
And so, in terms of gold grain morphology for till sampling, we talk about pristine, closest to the source. Modified, further away, maybe around half a kilometer or more, and then reshaped where the gold grains are totally bent onto themselves and more rounded, and that’s furthest away from the source and probably up to over a kilometer away from the source. So, the pristine grains that we have, they indicate that those grains are very close to the source of mineralization that they came from.
Maurice Jackson:
Identifying the source, mode of transportation, along with pristine gold is a huge success. Does today’s release bode well on the ideal of having a string of pearls along the Appleton Fault Zone?
Dr. Roger Moss:
Oh, absolutely! To give you an example, and this is where it gets really exciting because we had a till sample that was taken right next to Big Vein, and it had something like 165 grains of gold in total and something like 80% of them were pristine. That’s great. So, it hadn’t come very far from the source, but we know that Big Vein has visible gold in there. We found a big boulder last year of quartz vein with visible gold in it, so it’s not a big jump to say that, “Well yeah, sure. That till sample came from Big Vein.” It seems to be a reasonable idea, but the results that we announced today, there are two samples, another one with 165 grains of gold, somewhere just over 90% of them pristine, very close to the source and the other one, 311 grains of gold, just over 80% pristine.
Dr. Roger Moss:
311 grains of gold is almost double the number of grains of gold that we found in the sample next to Big Vein and that occurs 700 to 800 meters northeast of Big Vein, so that means that the gold grains in those samples did not come from Big Vein. They came from somewhere much closer to the sample locations, so this goes back to my pearls on a string story, and we’re just adding pearls to the string with these till samples. It’s very exciting. It means that Big Vein is likely not the only occurrence that we’re going to be drilling, and there’s definitely more to be found along this Appleton Fault Zone.
Maurice Jackson:
Speaking of extending the string, Labrador Gold has embarked on a 50,000-meter drill program this spring. What work is currently being conducted on-site, and do you have any updates on when we may expect more assays?
Dr. Roger Moss:
Oh, that’s what everybody asks, of course. You got to ask it at some point and the answer is always the same. The labs are backed up, we’re getting results, but they’re much slower, and it seems like as every week goes by the turnaround time gets longer. One of our guys was at the lab yesterday and he came back, and he said, “Roger, you won’t believe the number of samples that are in that lab waiting to be assayed.” He said, “There are bags and bags and bags, just waiting to be assayed.”
Dr. Roger Moss:
I said, “Man, you should have taken a photograph, and that could be my answer when I get asked that question. ‘Look, folks this is what it’s like, the labs are jampacked”. We are getting results in, we will be putting out more results from the drilling. It’s going well, and yeah, I know patience is not the biggest trait of some investors, but you know what? I think that we’re going to be there. When these results come in, it’s going to be good, and I think we’ve got a long way to go yet, so yeah, I think patience is definitely required here.
Maurice Jackson:
Leaving the Kingsway Gold Project, let’s get into some numbers. Sir, please provide the capital structure for Labrador Gold.
Dr. Roger Moss:
Right now, we have around 150 million shares outstanding, and probably another 50 million warrants and options, so just over 200 million are fully diluted. We have 35 million in the bank. We don’t have any debt. So yeah, I think we’re in a pretty good position to keep on with this exploration that we’re doing and to keep going.
Maurice Jackson:
In closing, Dr. Moss, what would you like to convey to shareholders?
Dr. Roger Moss:
Well, earlier in the season when we were drilling, and it can be frustrating sometimes when we’re not hitting as often as we would like or we don’t see the results that we would like, but of course not every hole is going to hit, but I just tell myself, “Don’t stop believing,” and that’s the name of the game here. You have to believe as a geologist in this industry, you got to believe that you’re going to find the deposit that you’re looking for. And I think all indications right now are that we’re on the right track, and it’s a matter of time before we see something significant.
Maurice Jackson:
Dr. Moss for readers that wants to get more information about Labrador Gold, please share the contact details.
Dr. Roger Moss:
Yeah, you can email info@labradorgold.com, www.labradorgold.com is our web address. And I would recommend people look at our Twitter feed @LabGoldCorp. We post a lot of information on Twitter. YouTube is another channel, our YouTube channel, lots of videos there, so there’s a lot of information out there besides what’s on the website, but yeah, Twitter and YouTube both are channels that we use fairly extensively.
Maurice Jackson:
Dr. Moss, it’s been a pleasure speaking with you. Wishing you and Labrador Gold the absolute best, sir.
And as a reminder, I am a licensed representative to buy and sell precious metals through Miles Franklin Precious Metals Investments, where we have several options to expand your precious metals portfolio, from physical delivery of gold, silver, platinum, palladium, and rhodium, to offshore depositories, and precious metals IRA’s. Give me a call at 855.505.1900 or you may email: Maurice@MilesFranklin.com. Finally, please subscribe to www.provenandprobable.com, where we provide: Mining Insights and Bullion Sales, subscription is free.
Resolution Minerals reported that it had received assay results from a recently completed, shallow, reverse circulation drilling program conducted at prospects within the East Pogo block of the 64North Gold Project near Pogo Mine.
No significant gold intersections were realized, but Resolution Minerals reports strong gold pathfinder element signatures in a target area measuring 1,600 meters by 2000 meters.
Resolution states that pathfinder results from drill hole 21EP008 indicate potential for gold at depth and that a follow-up deeper drilling program is warranted.
Felix Gold Partnership
Major soil sampling program continues: 2,000 samples collected to date.
Drill plans are being formulated.
VANCOUVER, BRITISH COLUMBIA, August 5, 2021 – Millrock Resources Inc. (TSX-V: MRO, OTCQB: MLRKF) (“Millrock” or the “Company”) is pleased to provide an update on its exploration activities at its Goodpaster and Fairbanks gold district projects (Figure 1).
Figure 1. Millrock gold project locations within the Tintina Gold Province, Alaska.
Goodpaster District Projects
Millrock owns a 70% interest in a very large claim block surrounding the Pogo Mine in Alaska. Pogo is a high-grade gold mine operated by Northern Star Resources Ltd. The 64North claims, which are subdivided into eight different blocks, are the subject of an option agreement with Resolution Minerals Ltd (ASX: RML, “Resolution”). Recently, a 30% interest was earned by Resolution by virtue of exploration expenditures plus cash and share payments made to Millrock in the first year of the project.
64North Gold Project – East Pogo block: Millrock partner Resolution has recently completed a drilling program at gold prospects located on the East Pogo block (Figure 2). A reverse circulation drill was used to test shallow, gently-dipping conductive zones detected in 2020 by ZTEM and CSAMT geophysical surveys. A total of 1,663 meters was drilled over 12 holes. Gently-dipping altered, graphitic zones with quartz and sulfides were reported in several holes. Assay results indicate only anomalous gold values. However, gold pathfinder elements detected indicate possible proximity to a gold-bearing vein system. At the nearby Pogo Mine, rocks close to the gold-bearing veins are enriched in the pathfinder elements bismuth, tellurium, sulfur, and arsenic. From the recent drilling at East Pogo, Resolution has identified a target area measuring 1,600 meters by 2,000 meters for follow-up, with a CSAMT conductive zone beneath. Drill hole 21EP008 intersected sericite and biotite alteration including minor quartz veining with strongly elevated geochemical pathfinder elements. The hole had a trend of increasing gold and alteration intensity over the last 50 meters drilled with sericite alteration present in the last few meters. This signifies potential for gold mineralization at greater depth, perhaps at the level of the CSAMT conductor. The hole unfortunately had to be terminated prior to reaching target depth. Resolution indicates it is considering drilling deeper with a core rig to test the CSAMT target below the geochemical anomaly detected through the shallow reverse circulation drilling program (Figure 3).
Figure 2. Reverse circulation drill rig in operation on the East Pogo block, 64North Gold Project,Figure 3. CSAMT Line 2 Cross Section on the East Pogo block, 64North Gold Project, Goodpaster District, Alaska.
Fairbanks Gold District Projects
Millrock is in a strategic alliance agreement with Felix Gold Ltd. (“Felix Gold”), a private Australian company that intends to become a public company listed on the Australia Stock Exchange (“ASX”). Millrock is assigning its existing mineral rights in return for Felix Gold shares and royalty interests. Felix Gold is funding exploration work and paying the costs of acquiring claims by staking and by agreements with claim holders. All new properties within the strategic alliance Area of Interest become subject to royalties in favor of Millrock (Figure 4).
Figure 4. Blue shading indicates Millrock / Felix Gold mineral land holdings in the Fairbanks Gold District, Alaska.
A major soil sampling program is well underway. To date, 2,000 soil samples have been collected across the claim holdings. The planned work will be completed at the end of August. Samples are being collected using a small auger Figure 5). The goal is to get uniform, modern soil sample coverage across the claims. Once the soil data is merged with all historic data which has been compiled in a database, drill targeting will be done.
Figure 5. Soil sampling team in action, Fairbanks Gold District, Alaska.
Qualified Person The scientific and technical information disclosed within this document has been prepared, reviewed, and approved by Gregory A. Beischer, President, CEO, and a director of Millrock Resources. Mr. Beischer is a qualified person as defined in NI 43-101.
About Millrock Resources Inc. Millrock Resources Inc. is a premier project generator to the mining industry. Millrock identifies, packages, and operates large-scale projects for joint venture, thereby exposing its shareholders to the benefits of mineral discovery without the usual financial risk taken on by most exploration companies. The company is recognized as the premier generative explorer in Alaska, holds royalty interests in British Columbia, Canada, and Sonora State, Mexico, is a significant shareholder of junior explorer ArcWest Exploration Inc. and owns a large shareholding in Resolution Minerals Limited. Funding for drilling at Millrock’s exploration projects is primarily provided by its joint venture partners. Business partners of Millrock have included some of the leading names in the mining industry: EMX Royalty, Centerra Gold, First Quantum, Teck, Kinross, Vale, Inmet and, Altius as well as junior explorers Resolution, Riverside, PolarX, and Felix Gold.
ON BEHALF OF THE BOARD “Gregory Beischer” Gregory Beischer, President & CEO
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION, PLEASE CONTACT: Melanee Henderson, Investor Relations Toll-Free: 877-217-8978 | Local: 604-638-3164 Twitter | Facebook | LinkedIn
Some statements in this news release may contain forward-looking information (within the meaning of Canadian securities legislation) including without limitation the intention to mount further exploration including drilling in 2021. 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.
TORONTO, Aug. 05, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Labrador Gold Corp. (TSX.V: LAB | OTCQX: NKOSF | FNR: 2N6) (“LabGold” or the “Company”) is pleased to announce the results of a till sampling program recently completed along the Appleton Fault Zone on its 100% controlled Kingsway project Newfoundland. The Kingsway project is located within the highly prospective Gander Gold District.
Highlights from the sampling program include:
Results of 59 till samples taken over the southern Kingsway property show contained gold grains ranging from 0 to 311 grains. Twelve of the 59 samples contain more than 50 gold grains, of which four contain more than 100 grains.
A sample containing 165 gold grains, of which 153 (93%) are pristine, occurs just down ice of Big Vein which is the likely source of the grains in this till sample.
Two samples containing 165 (96% pristine) and 311 (83% pristine) gold grains occur approximately 700 metres northeast (down ice) of Big Vein. The large number of pristine grains in these samples indicates a short transport distance suggesting a source other than Big Vein closer to the sample locations.
Similarly, a sample containing 101 gold grains, 28 of which are pristine, occurs a further 2.3km to the northeast, again suggesting a separate source.
The results from these till samples, together with anomalous soil geochemistry from the 2020 sampling survey, demonstrate the potential for the discovery of further gold mineralization along the Appleton Fault Zone.
“We are very excited by the possibility of additional gold occurrences to the northeast of Big Vein along the Appleton Fault Zone demonstrated by these sample results,” said Roger Moss, President and CEO of Labrador Gold. “While our primary focus remains to drill the Big Vein target and find more high-grade gold mineralization, our field crews will follow up these till results in the coming weeks to generate targets for drilling later this year.”
The Company is pleased to announce that President and CEO Roger Moss will be presenting an update from the Kingsway project in a live webinar taking place on Thursday, August 12th, 2021, at 1 p.m. PT / 4 p.m. ET. The webinar will be hosted by Focus Communications Investor Relations (“FCIR”) and Cory Fleck of the Korelin Economics Report. Participants are encouraged to submit any questions for the company prior to the event by emailing FCIR at info@fcir.ca .
Till samples comprised of 10kg of material were collected, placed in plastic bags and sealed with single use ties. Samples were shipped by transport truck in plastic totes to Overburden Drilling Management (ODM) of Nepean, Ontario for processing. ODM uses custom gravity concentration including shaking tables and micro-panning of the resulting heavy mineral concentrates to recover gold grains from the samples. Any gold grains present are extracted for microscopic study to determine the morphology and dimensions of the grains.
Roger Moss, PhD., P.Geo., President and CEO of LabGold, a Qualified Person in accordance with Canadian regulatory requirements as set out in NI 43-101, has read and approved the scientific and technical information that forms the basis for the disclosure contained in this release.
The Company gratefully acknowledges the Newfoundland and Labrador Ministry of Natural Resources’ Junior Exploration Assistance (JEA) Program for its financial support for exploration of the Kingsway property.
About Labrador Gold
Labrador Gold is a Canadian based mineral exploration company focused on the acquisition and exploration of prospective gold projects in Eastern Canada.
In early March 2020, Labrador Gold acquired the option to earn a 100% interest in the Kingsway project in the Gander area of Newfoundland. The property is along strike to the northeast of New Found Gold’s discovery of 92.86 g/t Au over 19.0 metres on their Queensway property. (Note that mineralization hosted on adjacent or nearby properties is not necessarily indicative of mineralization hosted on the Company’s property). In early July 2020, the Company signed an option agreement to acquire a third license to add to the property package which now covers approximately 77 km 2 . Infrastructure in the area is excellent located just 18km from the town of Gander with road access to the project, nearby electricity, and abundant local water.
The Hopedale gold property covers much of the Florence Lake greenstone belt that stretches over 60 km. The belt is typical of greenstone belts around the world but has been underexplored by comparison. Initial work by Labrador Gold has identified a 3 kilometre mineralized section of the northern portion of the belt in the vicinity of the known Thurber Dog gold showing where grab samples assayed up to 7.8g/t gold.
The Ashuanipi gold project is located just 35 km from the historical iron ore mining community of Schefferville, which is linked by rail to the port of Sept Iles, Quebec in the south. The claim blocks cover large lake sediment gold anomalies that, with the exception of local prospecting, have not seen a systematic modern day exploration program. Results of the exploration to date show gold anomalies in soils and lake sediments over a 15 kilometre long by 2 to 6 kilometre wide north-south trend and over a 14 kilometre long by 2 to 4 kilometre wide east-west trend.
The Company has 150,577,206 common shares issued and outstanding and trades on the TSX Venture Exchange under the symbol LAB.
Neither TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release .
Forward-Looking Statements: This news release contains forward-looking statements that involve risks and uncertainties, which may cause actual results to differ materially from the statements made. When used in this document, the words “may”, “would”, “could”, “will”, “intend”, “plan”, “anticipate”, “believe”, “estimate”, “expect” and similar expressions are intended to identify forward-looking statements. Such statements reflect our current views with respect to future events and are subject to risks and uncertainties. Many factors could cause our actual results to differ materially from the statements made, including those factors discussed in filings made by us with the Canadian securities regulatory authorities. Should one or more of these risks and uncertainties, such as actual results of current exploration programs, the general risks associated with the mining industry, the price of gold and other metals, currency and interest rate fluctuations, increased competition and general economic and market factors, occur or should assumptions underlying the forward looking statements prove incorrect, actual results may vary materially from those described herein as intended, planned, anticipated, or expected. We do not intend and do not assume any obligation to update these forward-looking statements, except as required by law. Shareholders are cautioned not to put undue reliance on such forward-looking statements.
A few months back, I had a discussion with Doug Casey and Matthew Smith. For some reason, the musings in which I mentioned it did not reach several people. So, I am taking the liberty of including it again:
On Investments
Aztec Minerals (AZT; C$0.30): They recently had some drill results from their property in Arizona. I find them very good and talked about them with Cory Fleck in the linked discussion.
Disclaimer: All information found here, including any ideas, opinions, views, predictions, forecasts, commentaries, suggestions, or stock picks, expressed or implied herein, are for informational, entertainment, or educational purposes only and should not be construed as personal investment advice. While the information provided is believed to be accurate, it may include errors or inaccuracies. The sole purpose of these musings is to show my thinking process when analyzing a stock, not to provide any recommendation. I will not and cannot be held liable for any actions you take as a result of anything you read here. Conduct your own due diligence, or consult a licensed financial advisor or broker before making any and all investment decisions. Any investments, trades, speculations, or decisions made on the basis of any information found on this site, expressed or implied herein, are committed at your own risk, financial or otherwise.
Vancouver, British Columbia–(Newsfile Corp. – August 3, 2021) – EMX Royalty Corporation (NYSE American: EMX) (TSXV: EMX) (FSE: 6E9) (the “Company” or “EMX”) is pleased to announce the filing on SEDAR of an amended and restated Timok Project Technical Report entitled: “NI 43-101 Technical Report – Timok Copper-Gold Project Royalty, Serbia” dated July 21, 2021 and with an effective date of December 31, 2020 prepared by Mineral Resource Management LLC (“MRM”). The amended and restated Technical Report can be found under the Company’s profile at www.sedar.com. EMX holds an uncapped 0.5% net smelter return (“NSR”) royalty on Timok’s Brestovać license, which covers the Čukaru Peki copper-gold development project. The Timok Project is controlled and being developed by Zijin Mining Group Co., Ltd (“Zijin”).
The amended and restated Timok Technical Report: a) restates the Timok Project resources and reserves for the Upper Zone and the resources for the Lower Zone as adopted from public disclosures by Zijin, which is the current owner and operator of the Timok Project. Zijin’s Timok Project resources and reserves, disclosed in its 2020 Annual Report, have been conformed to the requirements of NI 43-101 and are materially identical to those of the previous operator Nevsun, which were referenced in the original Report; and b) removes the discussion of EMX’s Brestovać West and Durlan Potok royalty properties from the section of the original Report entitled “Adjacent Properties” to comply with the requirements of NI 43-101. The discussion of these two royalty properties has been moved to the “Property Description and Location” section of this amended and restated Technical Report to accompany the discussion of the Brestovać royalty property.
Zijin is on a fast-track schedule for Timok’s Čukaru Peki high sulfidation epithermal copper-gold development project. Recently, Zijin stated in a news release dated June 16, 2021, that it “recently obtained the trial production permit for the processing facilities issued by the Serbian Ministry of Mining and Energy, and have entered the trial production stage. At present, the construction of the processing facilities of the project has been completed, and trial production and operation, construction conclusion and greening, etc. are being conducted at full speed. It is planned that all work of the trial production stage shall be completed for submission to the Ministry of Mining for acceptance check before September of this year. This will achieve a smooth transition from mine infrastructure construction to production and operation“. In addition to the Upper Zone, Čukaru Peki also hosts the underlying Lower Zone porphyry copper-gold resource project, which provides substantial exploration upside to EMX’s Brestovać royalty asset.
The start of trial production and the imminent commencement of commercial production this year at the Upper Zone represents an important milestone for EMX which purchased its key 0.5% NSR royalty on the Timok Project in 2013, shortly after the discovery of the Čukaru Peki copper-gold deposit (see EMX News Release dated February 4, 2014). This acquisition serves as an example of how EMX leveraged its in-country expertise through early recognition of the potential value of the Čukaru Peki discovery, but also through the understanding of where key royalty interests were held by third parties that were available for acquisition.
EMX congratulates Zijin on its ongoing progress in developing the Timok Project, and looks forward to new advancements as the work programs progress.
Dr. Eric P. Jensen, CPG, a Qualified Person as defined by National Instrument 43-101 and employee of the Company, has reviewed, verified and approved the disclosure of the technical information contained in this news release.
About EMX. EMX is a precious, base, and battery metals royalty company. EMX’s investors are provided with discovery, development, and commodity price optionality, while limiting exposure to risks inherent to operating companies. The Company’s common shares are listed on the NYSE American Exchange and TSX Venture Exchange under the symbol EMX. Please see www.EMXroyalty.com for more information.
For further information contact:
David M. Cole President and Chief Executive Officer Phone: (303) 979-6666 Dave@EMXroyalty.com
Scott Close Director of Investor Relations Phone: (303) 973-8585 SClose@EMXroyalty.com
Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.
Forward-Looking Statements
This news release may contain “forward looking statements” that reflect the Company’s current expectations and projections about its future results. These forward-looking statements may include statements regarding perceived merit of properties, exploration results and budgets, mineral reserves and resource estimates, work programs, capital expenditures, timelines, strategic plans, market prices for precious and base metal, or other statements that are not statements of fact. When used in this news release, words such as “estimate,” “intend,” “expect,” “anticipate,” “will”, “believe”, “potential”, “upside” and similar expressions are intended to identify forward-looking statements, which, by their very nature, are not guarantees of the Company’s future operational or financial performance, and are subject to risks and uncertainties and other factors that could cause the Company’s actual results, performance, prospects or opportunities to differ materially from those expressed in, or implied by, these forward-looking statements. These risks, uncertainties and factors may include, but are not limited to: unavailability of financing, failure to identify commercially viable mineral reserves, fluctuations in the market valuation for commodities, difficulties in obtaining required approvals for the development of a mineral project, increased regulatory compliance costs, expectations of project funding by joint venture partners and other factors.
Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date of this news release or as of the date otherwise specifically indicated herein. Due to risks and uncertainties, including the risks and uncertainties identified in this news release, and other risk factors and forward-looking statements listed in the Company’s MD&A for the quarter ended March 31, 2021 (the “MD&A”), and the most recently filed Annual Information Form (the “AIF”) for the year ended December 31, 2020, actual events may differ materially from current expectations. More information about the Company, including the MD&A, the AIF and financial statements of the Company, is available on SEDAR at www.sedar.com and on the SEC’s EDGAR website at www.sec.gov.
Joining us for a conversation is David Cole, the CEO of EMX Royalty (NYSE: EMX | TSX.V: EMX), the Royalty Generator.
Maurice Jackson:
Honored to have you with us today sir, as you have some breaking news for shareholders, as EMX Royalty has just consummated a watershed moment with the announcement of the Royalty Portfolio purchase agreement with SSR Mining (Press Release). Mr. Cole, thank you for allowing me to be the first to say congratulations’ sir on a significant milestone on what may be the biggest company event in the history of EMX Royalty.
David Cole:
We are very pleased with this transaction, pleased to have SSR Mining as a shareholder in the company, and it’s been a pleasure to work with them.
Maurice Jackson:
Let’s get right into the press release, the EMX Royalty acquisition consists of 18 geographically diverse royalties with 4 royalty assets at advanced stages of project development. Please provide us with the details of the Royalty Purchase Agreement with SSR Mining.
David Cole:
Well, we’re paying $66 million upfront for this portfolio, $33 million in share capital, and $33 million in cash, which are deferred payments depending upon the performance of the Yenipazar net profit interest royalty in Turkey. Those deferred payments accumulate up to $34 million, but that’s not until that asset cashflows $20 million. We’re pleased with respect to how this is designed. This gives SSR Mining a nice chunk of equity in the EMX which is one of the key things that they were looking for when they chose us to sell the Royalty Portfolio.
Maurice Jackson:
What type of value creation will EMX derive from this transaction and how will it impact the synergies with the existing EMX initiatives around the world?
David Cole:
One of the key things here is immediate large cash flow. The Gediktepe mine which is at the final stages of construction and should be in production within a month or two has a high-grade oxide cap that’s gold enriched with a 10% NSR and we’ll see immediate gold royalty income over double-digit millions of dollars per annum from that royalty right out of the gate. We’re very, very pleased with that so this really propels at the top of our pyramid forward, which is something that we’ve been working on for some time as we’ve discussed previously, with respect to Synergies with our existing portfolio, and one of the reasons why we were able to grab this is because of our relationships in Turkey and our comfort with Lydia as an operator there. And that gave us an edge with respect to working with SSR to accomplish this deal.
Maurice Jackson:
One of the key aspects of this transaction along with all of EMX Royalties is something you’ve covered with us and that is the value proposition of embedded optionality, which is just icing on the cake for each of your royalty properties. Can you please elaborate on the virtues of embedded optionality within royalties?
David Cole:
It’s one of my favorite topics and it’s the reason why royalties traded such premium valuations is because of all the embedded optionality, commodity price optionality, discovery optionality, engineering advancement optionality, et cetera, et cetera. And mining districts have a history of giving and giving and it’s always to the benefit of the royalty holder and no cost to the royalty holder. So that’s why royalties are so dear and I will point out that royalty companies that have large numbers of royalties trade at a much higher valuation per royalty than royalty companies, so the lower number of royalties, this is a phenomenon that’s existed in the royalty sector now for some time. Where the portfolio effect impacts the overall valuation of that portfolio and that’s because of this multiplicative optionality of the entire portfolio. You never know where the big success is going to come from years out.
David Cole:
As you know our goal here is to continue to grow this portfolio through organic methods which we’re good at and have had a track record for 18 years of doing, but also through acquisition. And we’ve been challenged quite honestly, to accomplish big creative acquisitions because it’s a competitive space. That we’ve been very patient. We stood at the plate and they kept throwing more pitches at us and we found one to hit and hit it out of the park.
Maurice Jackson:
Great way to put it, sir. I referenced a watershed moment. Where does today’s press release rank with the relation to the Malmyzh and/or the Timok?
David Cole:
Well, that’s interesting certainly the value proposition of the Timok acquisition is unbeatable because we paid $200,000 Canadian dollars for a royalty that’s going to pay hundreds of millions. So that one’s astonishing, but that had to do with the fact that we were in that district and understood what was going on there very early in the history of the discovery and were able to acquire that royalty early on thanks to our geologic understanding of the region. That’s a tough one to compare. With respect to the Malmyzh transaction that was a fantastic deal that cashed-up EMX and put us in a position where we could do this deal.
David Cole:
And step-by-step we’re building this company. Very pleased with these transactions. Malmyzh was super accretive for us. As you know, we booked $67 million US dollars out of that deal and have put those monies to excellent work. This being the top example. You and other folks have asked me many, many, many times, “What are you going to do with the money, Dave, what are you going to do with the money”? We just kept looking and turning down opportunities and losing sales processes because our bids weren’t as high as our competitors until the right one came along. And one of the key aspects that made this deal happen, as I mentioned, is the fact that SSR specifically wants to be a shareholder in EMX. And I’ve said before that the right transaction that’ll really advance this company is going to be one where the major companies selling their royalties understand the value proposition that EMX offers and want to be a contributor, want to be a member of the team.
Maurice Jackson:
Speaking of the Timok, which is a company making event in and of itself, what are the latest developments there?
David Cole:
It’s going into production. I do believe that they had a couple of delays. So they were originally talking about an opening ceremony in June. I believe that’s been pushed back to August at this point, maybe September, but that’s still ahead of the original schedule. The Chinese have been very aggressive. It’s advancing into production.
Maurice Jackson:
Leaving the property bank Mr. Cole, please provide us with the capital structure for EMX royalty.
David Cole:
Well, we’re sitting here today with $84 million shares issued and outstanding and few over $90 million shares fully diluted. That’s not including the shares that we will issue to SSR, which on a pro forma basis will be approximately 12% of the company. So that’ll push us up towards the 95 issued outstanding and over a hundred million fully diluted at the completion of this transaction, which should hopefully occur within four to five weeks in my opinion. Sitting here today with about $30 million US dollars in cash, of course, those monies get paid to SSR as part of this transaction as well.
David Cole:
We have about $20 million in tradable securities and long-term investments in our portfolio as well and no debt at this time. However, we will be taking on a small $10 million debt from Sprott. We appreciate their support as a capital partner for EMX. They’ve helped us out in the past as well. That puts us in a situation where even though we’re putting out USD $33 million to SSR for this transaction, thanks to Sprott we’ll still have a nice cushion here with respect to money in the treasury to continually advance our organic growth, which is our job one, as you know.
Maurice Jackson:
Just for the record, ladies, and gentlemen, I plan to match my bullion purchases with shares and EMX royalty. I believe the company has the potential to melt-up. And I’m talking about the stock price of course. The stock price, in my opinion, is at a fire sale. And that is Maurice Jackson’s opinion, but not really just my opinion, Mr. Cole, you and I both know some of the most prominent names in the natural resource space. They share the same sentiment about EMX royalty.
David Cole:
Happy to have those guys on as contributors.
Maurice Jackson:
Yes, sir. In closing, what would you like to say to shareholders?
David Cole:
EMX Royalty is in a situation here today where the Bayla royalty of 4% royalty on the lead, zinc, silver mine in Turkey is coming into production. Zijin is advancing the Timok project towards production, of course, Leeville in the background that pays every month. And we have an immense amount of optionality within our pyramid is bubbling up towards the top. And these names I’m throwing out are just examples of that. We’ve talked about the potential for this to become a cash cow over time. We’ve just poured fuel on the fire. We put gasoline on the fire here with this one and the Gediktepe 10% NSR and the oxide gold cap will just propel our gold income in the company here substantially over the next three years. We’re very excited.
Maurice Jackson:
Mr. Cole, for readers that want to get more information about EMX royalty please share the website address.
David Cole:
www.emxroyalty.com -The contact details for myself, Scott Close, and Isabel Belger managing European investor relations, and Scott here in North America are embedded in the website and on the press release feel free to reach out to us.
Maurice Jackson:
Mr. Cole, it’s been a pleasure speaking with you, wishing you and EMX royalty the absolute best, sir.
David Cole:
Thank you, Maurice. Always appreciate your support.
Maurice Jackson:
And as a reminder, I am a licensed representative to buy and sell precious metals through Miles Franklin Precious Metals Investments, where we have several options to expand your precious metals portfolio, from physical delivery of gold, silver, platinum, palladium, and rhodium, to offshore depositories, and precious metals IRA’s. Give me a call at 855.505.1900 or you may email: Maurice@MilesFranklin.com. Finally, please subscribe to www.provenandprobable.com, where we provide: Mining Insights and Bullion Sales, subscription is free.
Figure 1: Locations of assets in the Royalty Portfolio
EMX Executes Agreement to Acquire Royalty Portfolio from SSR Mining
Vancouver, British Columbia, July 29, 2021 (NYSE American:EMX; TSX Venture:EMX;Frankfurt:6E9) – EMX Royalty Corporation (the “Company”, or “EMX”) is pleased to announce that it has entered into an agreement (the “Royalty Purchase Agreement”) dated July 29, 2021 with SSR Mining Inc. and certain of its subsidiaries (“SSR Mining”) to purchase a portfolio of royalty interests and deferred payments (the “Royalty Portfolio”). The Royalty Portfolio consists of 18 geographically diverse royalties, with four royalty assets at advanced stages of project development, and also includes U.S. $18 million in future cash payments to be made to the owner of the Royalty Portfolio (see Figure 1 and Table 1). Upon closing of the transaction EMX will pay to SSR Mining U.S. $33 million in cash and U.S. $33 million in common shares of EMX. EMX will also make deferred and contingent payments to SSR Mining of up to U.S. $34 million if certain project advancement milestones are achieved. Further details of the commercial terms are provided below. Completion of the transaction is subject to customary closing conditions, including acceptance by the TSX Venture Exchange (the “TSX-V”).
The portfolio is highlighted by the Gediktepe royalties, which cover assets currently being developed by Lidya Madencilik (“Lidya”), a private Turkish company that expects initial production from Gediktepe in late 2021. These include a 10% NSR royalty on production from an oxide gold-silver deposit and a 2% NSR royalty on underlying polymetallic volcanogenic massive sulfide (“VMS”) mineralization. Yenipazar (Turkey) and Diablillos (Argentina) are additional royalties on advanced stage projects (see summaries below) and the other 14 royalty interests cover both precious metal and base metal assets in South America, Mexico, the United States (Nevada) and Canada.
This transaction will leverage EMX’s experience base in Turkey, is expected to provide significant near-term cash flow to the Company, and establishes a pipeline of quality royalty assets in numerous well-recognized mineral belts around the world. EMX has been working in Turkey for nearly 20 years and looks forward to building its relationship with both SSR Mining and Lidya. In Lidya, EMX sees a well funded and highly capable operator that is developing both the Gediktepe and Hod Maden mines in Turkey. The Gediktepe and Yenipazar royalty interests will bolster EMX’s existing royalty portfolio in Turkey, which includes an uncapped 4% NSR royalty on the Balya North polymetallic deposit and other royalty interests in Turkey. Balya North is being developed by Esan Eczacibaşi Endüstriyel Hammaddeler San. ve Tic. A.Ş. (“Esan”) and remains on schedule to commence commercial production in 2021.
This Royalty Portfolio acquisition is well aligned with EMX’s corporate growth strategy, whereby the Company leverages its in-region expertise in identifying opportunities in jurisdictions where EMX already has a strategic presence. Through the years this approach has led to continuous value creation for the Company and synergies with existing EMX initiatives around the world. Further, securing near term positive cash flow will represent an important step in the Company’s evolution.
Commercial Terms Overview. As stated above, upon closing of the transaction EMX will pay to SSR Mining U.S. $33 million in cash and U.S. $33 million in common shares of EMX. The number of common shares to be issued by EMX to SSR Mining will be based on the volume-weighted average price (“VWAP”) of the shares on the NYSE American stock exchange for the 20 days prior to the date of completion of the transaction (the “Closing Date”). All such shares will be subject to a hold period of 4 months and a day from the Closing Date. Upon closing, SSR Mining will own an approximate 12% undiluted equity interest in EMX, subject to final calculation at closing.
Additional deferred payments of up to U.S. $34 million will be made by EMX to SSR Mining in consideration for the Net Profits Interest (“NPI”) royalty on the Yenipazar property in Turkey. These will be payable as follows: (i) U.S. $2,000,000 in EMX common shares based on the 20-day VWAP prior to the date of commencement of construction of a mill on the Yenipazar property; (ii) U.S. $2,000,000 in EMX common shares based on the 20-day VWAP prior to the date of commencement of commercial production; (iii) U.S. $15,000,000 in cash, payable when EMX has received U.S. $10,000,000 in net profits interest payments under the Yenipazar NPI; and (iv) U.S. $15,000,000 in cash, payable when EMX has received a second U.S. $10,000,000 in net profits interest payments. All such shares will be subject to a hold period of 4 months and a day from the date of issue.
EMX intends to pay up to U.S. $10,000,000 of the cash payable at closing with the proceeds of a U.S. $10,000,000 senior secured credit facility (the “Credit Facility”) provided for in a non-binding term sheet EMX has entered into with Sprott Private Resource Lending II (Collector), LP (“Sprott”). The Credit Facility is to mature one year from the Closing Date, bear interest at a rate of 7% per annum, and be secured by general security agreements over the assets of EMX and certain of its subsidiaries, and pledges of the shares of certain of EMX’s subsidiaries, who will, at Sprott’s election, also be guarantors of the loan. In addition to interest payable, the U.S. $10,000,000 to be advanced under the Credit Facility will also be subject to an original issue discount equal to 5% of the amount of the advance. Under the term sheet, Sprott will subscribe for U.S. $300,000 of EMX common shares at closing, at a deemed price equal to U.S. $2.74 per share. All such shares will be subject to a hold period of 4 months and a day from the Closing Date.
If the Credit Facility is not ultimately entered into, the Royalty Purchase Agreement provides for vendor takeback financing by SSR Mining of up to U.S. $5,000,000 (the “VTB Note”), and EMX will pay the balance of the cash payable at closing from available working capital. The VTB Note will bear interest at 14% per annum and will mature 60 days from the Closing Date. If unpaid within such 60 day period, the VTB Note will bear additional interest at a rate of 2% per annum for each 60 day period past due.
Royalty Portfolio Overview. As summarized in Figure 1 and Table 1, the Royalty Portfolio spans over 69,000 hectares across seven countries on three continents. Summaries for Gediktepe, Yenipazar and Diablillos are provided here, and further information on the Royalty Portfolio and other EMX assets can be found at www.emxroyalty.com. Upon completion of the transaction, of the royalties purchased, only the royalty over the Gediktepe property in Turkey will be material to EMX at the present time. EMX is currently preparing a technical report on the Gediktepe property to be filed on SEDAR.
Gediktepe VMS Deposit, Western Turkey: The Gediktepe VMS deposit was discovered by a Joint Venture (“JV”) initiative between Alacer Gold Corp. (“Alacer”) and Lidya in 2012-2013 and was quickly advanced to PEA (2014) and Prefeasibility stages (2016). The deposit is comprised of a polymetallic VMS system with precious metal, copper, and zinc rich domains. The upper portion of the deposit is oxidized, forming a precious metal-enriched gossanous cap that will be mined first, followed by production from the underlying polymetallic sulfide deposit. Operator Lidya has commenced development and construction of the project and is anticipating initial production in late 2021.
Alacer, the previous owner of the Gediktepe royalties, completed a merger with SSR Mining in September of 2020. The Gediktepe Royalties consist of: (i) a perpetual 10% NSR royalty over metals produced from the oxide zone (predominantly gold and silver) after cumulative production of 10,000 gold-equivalent oxide ounces; and (ii) a perpetual 2% NSR royalty over metals produced from the sulfide zone (predominantly copper, zinc, lead, silver and gold), payable after cumulative production of 25,000 gold-equivalent sulfide ounces.
The Gediktepe property is the subject of an NI 43-101 Prefeasibility study entitled “Gediktepe 2019 Prefeasibility Study” prepared by OreWin Pty Ltd. on behalf of Alacer with an effective date of Mar. 26, 2019 (the “Gediktepe Report”). The 2019 Gediktepe Report is filed on SEDAR and contains historical mining reserve and resource estimates (summarized in Tables 2.1 and 2.2).
Yenipazar VMS Deposit, Central Turkey: The Yenipazar polymetallic VMS deposit was discovered in the late 1990’s by YAMAS, a predecessor of Alacer and SSR Mining. Aldridge Minerals Inc. (“Aldridge”), a public Canadian corporation formerly listed on the TSX-V, formed a JV with Alacer in 2004 with the right to earn a majority interest in the project. Later modifications to the JV agreement in 2006 led to Aldridge acquiring a 100% project equity interest, with Alacer retaining an NPI royalty that is set at 6% until U.S. $165 million in revenues are received by the royalty holder, after which the NPI converts to a 10% interest.
Aldridge delivered a feasibility study in 2013 that was updated in 2014 before Aldridge encountered financial difficulties. Ultimately, Aldridge (and Yenipazar) were sold to a new private company (Virtus Madencilik) headed by Aldridge’s major shareholder, Ahmet Taçyildiz. Trafigura Ventures V B.V. also owns a 30% interest in Virtus. Virtus recently updated the feasibility study for Yenipazar and is currently seeking project financing for development of the project.
Diablillos Gold-Silver Epithermal deposit, Argentina. Diablillos is an extensive 7,900 hectare property located in the mining friendly Province of Salta in the Argentine Puna region. There are currently seven known mineralized zones on the Diablillos property, with the Oculto zone being the most important and the most explored. Oculto is a deeply oxidized, high-sulfidation epithermal silver-gold deposit.
Operator AbraSilver Resource Corp. (TSX-V: ABRA, “AbraSilver”) has an option to acquire 100% of the Diablillos property, with one outstanding payment due on the earlier of the date on which commercial production occurs at Diablillos or July 31, 2025. A 2018 PEA reported historical Indicated Resources at Oculto of 26.85 million tonnes grading 93g/t silver and 0.85g/t gold, for 80.3 million ounces of contained silver and 732 thousand ounces of contained gold[1]. Preliminary metallurgical tests indicate high recoveries from a crushing, grinding and agitated leach plant with a Merrill-Crowe circuit. High-grade copper intercepts have been discovered at depth and may suggest deeper porphyry-style potential.
AbraSilver continues to drill Oculto as well as advancing other targets on the property. An updated PEA is expected in Q3 2021, with a feasibility study slated for 2022.
Note: A qualified person has not performed sufficient work to classify the historical resource estimate for Diablillos as current, and EMX is not treating the historical estimate as current mineral resources. Significant data compilation, confirmation drilling, re-sampling and data verification by a qualified person may be required before the historical estimates can be classified as current mineral resources. The historical estimate is considered by EMX to be reliable and relevant, and is presented for the purpose of describing the extent and nature of mineralization as presently understood. The historical estimate should not be relied upon until verified.
Summary: By agreeing to acquire the Royalty Portfolio, EMX seeks to secure near term and sustained cash flow from a diverse collection of royalty interests and deferred consideration payments. Further, EMX welcomes SSR Mining as a strategic shareholder in EMX. EMX views this transaction as wholly accretive to its overall business, where royalties over multiple advanced and resource stage assets add significant value and diversity to EMX’s global portfolio.
Eric P. Jensen, CPG, a Qualified Person as defined by National Instrument 43-101 and an employee of the Company, has reviewed, verified, and approved the disclosure of the technical information contained in this news release.
[1] As reported in Technical Report on the Diablillos Project, Salta Province, Argentina, prepared by Roscoe Postle Associates (RPA) and filed on SEDAR by AbraPlata Resource Corporation with an effective date of April 16, 2018. Mineral Resources were reported to CIM guidelines and definitions. The resources were estimated using Ordinary Kriging within grade shell domains and reported within an optimized pit based upon metal prices of $1500/oz gold and $23/oz silver and variably calculated recoveries (refer to the technical report for details).
About EMX. EMX is a precious, base and battery metals royalty company. EMX’s investors are provided with discovery, development, and commodity price optionality, while limiting exposure to risks inherent to operating companies. The Company’s common shares are listed on the NYSE American Exchange and TSX Venture Exchange under the symbol EMX. Please see www.EMXroyalty.com for more information.
About SSR Mining. SSR Mining Inc. is a leading, free cash flow focused intermediate gold company with four producing assets located in the USA, Turkey, Canada, and Argentina, combined with a global pipeline of high-quality development and exploration assets in the USA, Turkey, Mexico, Peru, and Canada. SSR Mining is listed under the ticker symbol SSRM on the NASDAQ and the TSX, and SSR on the ASX. For further information contact: David M. ColePresident and Chief Executive OfficerPhone: (303) 979-6666Dave@EMXroyalty.com Scott CloseDirector of Investor RelationsPhone: (303) 973-8585SClose@EMXroyalty.com Isabel BelgerInvestor Relations (Europe)Phone: +49 178 4909039Ibelger@EMXroyalty.com Neither the TSX-V nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in policies of the TSX-V) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release. Forward-Looking Statements
This news release may contain “forward looking statements” that reflect the Company’s current expectations and projections about its future results. These forward-looking statements may include statements regarding completion of the transaction, perceived merits of properties, exploration results and budgets, mineral reserves and resource estimates, work programs, capital expenditures, timelines, strategic plans, market prices for precious and base metal, or other statements that are not statements of fact. When used in this news release, words such as “estimate,” “intend,” “expect,” “anticipate,” “will”, “believe”, “potential”, “upside” and similar expressions are intended to identify forward-looking statements, which, by their very nature, are not guarantees of the Company’s future operational or financial performance, and are subject to risks and uncertainties and other factors that could cause the Company’s actualresults, performance, prospects or opportunities to differ materially from those expressed in, or implied by, these forward-looking statements. These risks, uncertainties and factors may include, but are not limited to: unavailability of financing, failure to identify commercially viable mineral reserves, fluctuations in the market valuation for commodities, difficulties in obtaining required approvals for the development of a mineral project, increased regulatory compliance costs, expectations of project funding by joint venture partners and other factors.It is possible EMX may not complete the transaction, as a result of failure to fulfill conditions of closing, unavailability of financing or for other reasons EMX cannot anticipate at this time.
Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date of this news release or as of the date otherwise specifically indicated herein. Due to risks and uncertainties, including the risks and uncertainties identified in this news release, and other risk factors and forward-looking statements listed in the Company’s MD&A for the quarter ended March 31, 2021 and the year ended December 31, 2020 (the “MD&A”), and the most recently filedRevised Annual Information Form (the “AIF”) for the year ended December 31, 2020, actual events may differ materially from current expectations. More information about the Company, including the MD&A, the AIF and financial statements of the Company, is available on SEDAR at www.sedar.com and on the SEC’s EDGAR website at www.sec.gov.
Joining us for a conversation is Greg Johnson, the CEO of Metallic Minerals (TSX.V: MMG | OTCQB: MMNGF). Sir, we are thrilled to have you back as Metallic Minerals has several exciting developments to provide shareholders. Before we begin, Mr. Johnson, please introduce us to Metallic Minerals and the opportunity the company presents to shareholders.
Greg Johnson:
Metallic Minerals is a silver-focused exploration and development stage company. We are a member of the Metallic Group of Companies. Many of us were part of the original founding of NovaGold. The group is backed by renowned resource investors, such as Eric Sprott. We started putting together the Metallic Group at the bottom of the metal price cycle. Our focus was on brownfields, past-producing, high-potential districts with MMG being focused on silver. Over the past five years, we’ve acquired and explored three exceptional assets, including our flagship Keno Silver Project, the La Plata Project, and our Klondike Royalty Portfolio.
Maurice Jackson:
Speaking of Colorado, sir, take us onsite to the La Plata Silver-Gold-Copper Project located just outside of Durango, as Metallic Minerals has just announced the commencement of its initial drill campaign on the La Plata, which is the first significant exploration in over 50 years in the historic high-grade La Plata Mining District. Before we get into the press release, Mr. Johnson, please acquaint us more with the La Plata Project and the value proposition before us.
Greg Johnson:
So we’re pretty excited about this. We see this as an amazing opportunity. The La Plata Project is a high-grade silver and gold district originally discovered in the 1700s with over 90 different mines and prospects that were developed from the 1800s to about the 1940s, all of these producing bonanza-grade silver and gold. Major miners such as, Rio Tinto and Freeport, have come into the district in the 1950s, recognizing the bulk-tonnage potential in the central part of this precious metals-rich porphyry system. This system is a lot like the Galore Creek Project that was operated by NovaGold and our team was part of driving the success, that was recently sold to Teck and Newmont. Our team is particularly excited about applying our new modern toolkit to this opportunity in this historic high-grade district.
Maurice Jackson:
Metallic Minerals is embarking on Phase One of your 2021 drill program on the La Plata, which will be 2,000 meters of diamond drilling on the central porphyry, which hosts the historic resource. What is the goal for this campaign? And can you talk about the historical resource and what it looks like?
How will Metallic Minerals measure success for this drill program and when can the market expect results?
Greg Johnson:
What we’re looking for here is to confirm the past work, which was done by really high-quality players like Rio Tinto and Freeport, with the potential to be able to not only show what they did, but to build on that and show significant expansion. We should start to see results coming out over the next couple of months with continued 3D modeling going into the fall with an objective, ultimately, of delivering an inaugural 43-101 resource on this project.
Maurice Jackson:
Leaving Colorado, let’s visit Metallic Minerals’ flagship Keno Silver Project, which is adjacent to Alexco Resources, located in the historic silver-rich Keno Silver District of the Yukon in Canada. Back in April, Metallic Minerals announced a high-grade silver intersect with 4.1 meters resulting in 2,536 grams per tonnes silver equivalent. That has now been followed up with a 10,000-meter drill program. How are things coming along and are there any updates that you can pass along to us?
Greg Johnson:
This is an exciting program. Our exploration program kicked off this year in June with the first drill. We’re looking to add a second here. This is going to be one of our largest programs to date on the Keno Silver Project with 10,000 meters planned on multiple targets and following up on the success from last year. In addition, we’re running a deep IP geophysical survey across the large targets on the eastern part of the district, which could start to give us a sense of scale and potential on those discoveries from last year’s program.
That historic resource indicates that we have the potential for a multi-billion pound copper system with tens of millions of ounces of silver. And that historic resource doesn’t include any of the work surrounding the area in the high-grade epithermal silver-gold structures that were the focus of historic mining.
Maurice Jackson:
When can we expect results from the drill program and what will determine success?
Greg Johnson:
Results should start coming out any time and continue over the next several months and well into the fall. What we’re hoping to do here is to build and expand on the areas we’ve already identified mineralization, both in terms of the high-grade systems and the bulk tonnage, and to continue to build towards that inaugural resource estimate for the project.
Maurice Jackson:
Finally, let’s discuss the highly innovative Klondike alluvial gold properties in the Yukon. Do you have any updates there?
Greg Johnson:
We were pleased actually to see significant progress on the Alluvial Gold Portfolio. This is in the historic Klondike Gold Fields, which produced over 20 million ounces historically. And today that production is from these large-scale, modern open-pit operations. We’ve had major drill campaigns completed by a couple of our operators this spring and going into the summer. The next steps here are the initiation of bulk-sample processing, which is like test mining of the ground. And from that work, we could potentially see two or three of the blocks advance quickly to commercial gold production, including the potential for the first significant production royalties to Metallic Minerals this year from gold produced on those projects.
Maurice Jackson:
Oh, that sounds exciting. All right. Leaving the project sites, what is the next significant milestone for Metallic Minerals?
Greg Johnson:
With three active programs, we’ve got a lot of activity that I would expect to see strong news flow coming from each of the projects. Each one of them has kind of its milestones, but drilling, geophysical results, and then, ultimately, culminating in initial resource estimates and potentially gold production from the Alluvial Portfolio.
Maurice Jackson:
Let’s look at some numbers. Sir, please provide us the capital structure for Metallic Minerals.
Greg Johnson:
The company is well structured. 126 million shares outstanding. No debt. Got about 6 million in cash and significant in-the-money warrants that could bring in as much as another $12 million for the next year. We’re well-positioned to carry out this year’s program and we’re well-positioned into 2022 for follow-up programs.
Maurice Jackson:
In closing, Mr. Johnson, what would you like to say to shareholders?
Greg Johnson:
I think it’s worth talking about the current markets for precious metals and particularly how it fits in with the historic seasonality for the sector. We believe that a major bottom in the commodity and precious metal sector was put in, in that 2016 to 2020 period and that we’re now in the very early stages of a multi-year commodity cycle. I believe it has the potential to eclipse the last cycle that ran from 2001 to 2011. Typically, during these decade-long cycles, we’re going to get extended, healthy consolidations that can take significant periods to resolve. Gold and silver equities have been consolidating since August of last year. On top of that, we’re currently in what’s typically the weakest seasonal period for silver and gold with the strongest period generally starting in the fall.
The next steps here are the initiation of bulk-sample processing, which is like test mining of the ground. And from that work, we could potentially see two or three of the blocks advance quickly to commercial gold production, including the potential for the first significant production royalties to Metallic Minerals this year from gold produced on those projects.
Greg Johnson:
I think this presents an opportunity for astute investors to be picking up shares of high-quality, precious-metal companies at terrific values. With such long recent consolidations, but such very bullish fundamentals, I think we’re winding the spring here for a very bullish period ahead with likely another five to ten years of bull markets still to come. I should mention that with over 30,000 meters of drilling underway in the three Metallic Group of Companies, this gives investors exceptional exposure to silver, battery metals, and copper in what is looking to be an exceptional time in the marketplace for people to be picking up value in our group.
Maurice Jackson:
Mr. Johnson, last question and that is, what did I forget to ask?
Greg Johnson:
I think this has been an amazingly comprehensive coverage and interview. I would recommend that if investors have questions that they go to our website, which is mmgsilver.com, or give us a call and the numbers listed on that website. We’re happy always to talk with investors and to answer questions.
Maurice Jackson:
Mr. Johnson, it has been a pleasure speaking with you. Wishing you and Metallic Minerals the absolute best, sir.
Greg Johnson:
Thanks a lot. Been a pleasure to be back with you.
Maurice Jackson:
And as a reminder, I am a licensed representative to buy and sell precious metals through Miles Franklin Precious Metals Investments, where we have several options to expand your precious metals portfolio, from physical delivery of gold, silver, platinum, palladium, and rhodium, to offshore depositories, and precious metals IRA’s. Give me a call at 855.505.1900 or you may email: Maurice@MilesFranklin.com. Finally, please subscribe to www.provenandprobable.com, where we provide: Mining Insights and Bullion Sales, subscription is free.
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Highlights Include 437.13 g/t Au over 0.60m and 55.44 g/t Au over 2.30m
North Vancouver, British Columbia–(Newsfile Corp. – July 26, 2021) – Lion One Metals Limited (TSXV: LIO) (OTCQX: LOMLF) (ASX: LLO) (“Lion One” or the “Company”) is pleased to announce assay results from ongoing deep step-out drilling at the Company’s 100% owned Tuvatu gold project in Fiji.
Multiple high-grade gold intercepts have been encountered in TUDDH533. The deepest intercept of 55.44 g/t Au over 2.30m (including 221.60 g/t over 0.40m) from a downhole depth of 575.70m, is believed to be a continuation of the same structure that encountered 55.44 g/t over 12.70m in TUDDH500, 40m to the SW, in July 2020 (see July 24, 2020 News Release). Evidence is growing that this deep NE-oriented structure is nearly vertical, with a strike length of at least 360m, and vertical extent of at least 720m from surface. It is believed to be an extension of the high grade UR4 lode, open both at depth and along strike where it projects from the Tuvatu resource area to the Banana Creek target 3.5km to the NE.
Highlights include:
18.96 g/t Au over 0.65m beginning at a down hole depth of 13.00m
437.13 g/t Au over 0.60m beginning at a down hole depth of 266.80m
16.14 g/t Au over 1.45m beginning at a down hole depth of 309.35m
55.44 g/t Au over 2.30m including 221.60 g/t Au over 0.40m from 575.70m
Lion One interprets this deep intercept from TUDDH533 to be part of the same important structure as TUDDH500 with both intercepts displaying strong visual similarities including coarse pyrite and visible gold in gray silica within centimetric-scale veins with distinct light gray potassium feldspar alteration halos around the veins (see Figure 1).
Several shallower high-grade intercepts in hole TUDDH533 are also very important, especially 473.13 g/t Au over 0.60m occurring at 266.80m down hole depth. Veining in this area appears almost perpendicular to core suggesting this high-grade intercept possibly represents a flat lode. Such flat lodes, known as the SKL group, are common higher up at Tuvatu. If this intercept is indeed from a flat lode, it would be the deepest known flat lode at Tuvatu. Lion One believes that the ore-forming fluids that generated the high-grade feeder discussed above may have found their way into nearby fractures thus forming lodes similar to those seen in the SKL group.
Figure 1: Comparison of drill core from TUDDH 500 (L) and TUDDH533 (R)
Note: true width of intersections has yet to be accurately determined for the numerous lodes intersected to date.
“The deep high-grade intercept encountered in hole TUDDH533 is almost certainly from the same high-grade structure encountered in hole TUDDH500 late last July,” commented Dr. Quinton Hennigh, technical advisor to Lion One. “Visual appearances of these two intercepts are strikingly similar. We are now growing comfortable with the idea that this is a northeast-trending, near vertical lode, likely the down-dip and strike continuation of the UR4 lode. This is very exciting, because this lode remains open to the northeast and at depth. In fact, this lode projects toward the Banana Creek target approximately 3.5km to the northeast from Tuvatu. It is intriguing to think that the UR4 structure might be a main mineralizing conduit that could tie together the bigger gold system within the Navilawa caldera. Lion One has several deep drill holes planned at Banana Creek this drill season.”
The Company is currently undertaking three tiers of drilling: 1) shallow resource infill drilling from surface, 2) resource infill drilling from underground and 3) deep exploration drilling looking for lode extensions under the Tuvatu resource and soon, other target areas within the Navilawa caldera such as Banana Creek, 3.5 km NE of Tuvatu (Figure 2).
Figure 2: Navilawa Caldera and Lion One Mining Lease and Exploration License Areas
Survey details of diamond drill holes discussed in this release
Hole No
coordinates
RL
final depth
dip
azimuth
N
E
(TN)
TUDDH533
3920795
1876351
209.4
In progress
-60
130
Figure 3: Longitudinal Section of the UR4 Lode Showing Block Model and 2020 and 2021 Drill Intercepts. The grid is 100m, the bright yellow is indicated and the darker yellow is inferred.
The Company is utilizing its own diamond drill rig, using PQ, HQ and ultimately NQ sized drill core rods. Drill core is logged by Company geologists and then is sawn in half and sampled by Lion One staff.
Samples are analyzed at the Company’s own geochemical laboratory in Fiji, whilst pulp duplicates of samples with results >0.5g/t Au are sent to ALS Global Laboratories in Australia for check assay determinations. Assays reported here will be sent to ALS Global Laboratories for check assays shortly. All samples are pulverized to 80% passing through 75 microns. Gold analysis is carried out using fire assay with an AA finish. Samples that have returned grades greater than 10g/t Au are then re-analyzed by gravimetric method. Lion One’s laboratory can also assay for a range of 71 other elements through Inductively Coupled Plasma Optical Emission Spectrometry (ICP-OES), but currently focuses on a suite of 9 important pathfinder elements. All duplicate anomalous samples sent to ALS Townsville, Queensland, Australia are analyzed by the same methods (Au-AA26, and also Au-GRA22 where applicable). ALS also analyze for 33 pathfinder elements by HF-HNO3-HClO4 acid digestion, HCl leach and ICP-AES. (method ME-ICP61).
Qualified Person
The scientific and technical content of this news release has been reviewed, prepared, and approved by Mr. Stephen Mann, P. Geo, and a Director of Lion One, who is a qualified person pursuant to National Instrument 43-101 – Standards of disclosure for Mineral Projects (“NI-43-101).
About Tuvatu
The Tuvatu gold deposit is located on the island of Viti Levu in the South Pacific island nation of Fiji. The mineral resource for Tuvatu as disclosed in the technical report “Tuvatu Gold Project PEA”, dated June 1, 2015, and prepared by Mining Associates Pty Ltd of Brisbane Qld, comprises 1,120,000 tonnes indicated at 8.17 g/t Au (294,000 oz. Au) and 1,300,000 tonnes inferred at 10.60 g/t Au (445,000 oz. Au) at a cut-off grade of 3 g/t Au. The technical report is available on the Lion One website at www.liononemetals.com and on the SEDAR website at www.sedar.com.
About Lion One Metals Limited
Lion One’s flagship asset is 100% owned, fully permitted high grade Tuvatu Alkaline Gold Project, located on the island of Viti Levu in Fiji. Lion One envisions a low-cost high-grade underground gold mining operation at Tuvatu coupled with exciting exploration upside inside its tenements covering the entire Navilawa Caldera, an underexplored yet highly prospective 7km diameter alkaline gold system. Lion One’s CEO Walter Berukoff leads an experienced team of explorers and mine builders and has owned or operated over 20 mines in 7 countries. As the founder and former CEO of Miramar Mines, Northern Orion, and La Mancha Resources, Walter is credited with building over $3 billion of value for shareholders.
On behalf of the Board of Directors of Lion One Metals Limited “Walter Berukoff“ Chairman and CEO
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This press release may contain statements that may be deemed to be “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of applicable Canadian securities legislation. All statements, other than statements of historical fact, included herein are forward-looking information. Generally, forward-looking information may be identified by the use of forward-looking terminology such as “plans”, “expects” or “does not expect”, “proposed”, “is expected”, “budget”, “scheduled”, “estimates”, “forecasts”, “intends”, “anticipates” or “does not anticipate”, or “believes”, or variations of such words and phrases, or by the use of words or phrases which state that certain actions, events or results may, could, would, or might occur or be achieved. This forward-looking information reflects Lion One Metals Limited’s current beliefs and is based on information currently available to Lion One Metals Limited and on assumptions Lion One Metals Limited believes are reasonable. These assumptions include, but are not limited to, the actual results of exploration projects being equivalent to or better than estimated results in technical reports, assessment reports, and other geological reports or prior exploration results. Forward-looking information is subject to known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause the actual results, level of activity, performance or achievements of Lion One Metals Limited or its subsidiaries to be materially different from those expressed or implied by such forward-looking information. Such risks and other factors may include, but are not limited to: the stage development of Lion One Metals Limited, general business, economic, competitive, political and social uncertainties; the actual results of current research and development or operational activities; competition; uncertainty as to patent applications and intellectual property rights; product liability and lack of insurance; delay or failure to receive board or regulatory approvals; changes in legislation, including environmental legislation, affecting mining, timing and availability of external financing on acceptable terms; not realizing on the potential benefits of technology; conclusions of economic evaluations; and lack of qualified, skilled labour or loss of key individuals. Although Lion One Metals Limited has attempted to identify important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those contained in forward-looking information, there may be other factors that cause results not to be as anticipated, estimated or intended. Accordingly, readers should not place undue reliance on forward-looking information. Lion One Metals Limited does not undertake to update any forward-looking information, except in accordance with applicable securities laws.
