Novo Advances Toward Test Mining at Beatons Creek
VANCOUVER, BC / TheNewswire / March 16, 2016 - Novo Resources Corp. ("Novo" or the "Company") (TSX-V: NVO; OTCQX: NSRPF) is pleased to provide an update on activities at its flagship Beatons Creek gold project in Western Australia. With the completion of a recent private placement (please refer to the Company's news release dated March 8, 2016) and gold convertible debenture financing (please refer to the Company's news release dated March 10, 2016), Novo is in a strong position to undertake its planned trial mining program as well as continue to advance studies on a future commercial scale mine. As detailed in numerous news releases issued over the past eighteen months, Beatons Creek is host to sizeable shallow oxide gold resources that the Company plans to exploit in a cost effective free-digging, gravity recovery mine.
Trial Mining Program
Novo currently anticipates permitting for trial mining to be completed by mid-April 2016. Upon receipt of mining approvals, the Company plans to commence extraction of 30,000 tonnes of gold-bearing conglomerate from three test pits, each contributing approximately 10,000 tonnes. Processing of this material will be undertaken utilizing rock crushers and the Company's IGR3000 gold recovery plant.
Since the beginning of 2016, Novo has been commissioning its IGR3000 gold recovery plant at a gravel quarry near Perth (see Figure 1 below). Approximately 80 tonnes of conglomerate from Beatons Creek was shipped to the quarry in early January and crushed using a commercial horizontal impact crusher. Feeding the plant batches of crushed material has tested the IGR3000's operational parameters. Because the IGR3000 was designed for conventional alluvial gold processing, Novo has had to make several modifications so that the plant can process finely crushed Beatons Creek conglomerate material. A feeder conveyor has been added, hoppers redesigned, additional pumps installed and the Falcon feed system re-engineered. The plant's performance now appears well suited for the upcoming test-mining phase (see Figures 2 and 3 below). Novo has determined the IGR3000 operates at a rate of around 15-20 tonnes per hour when treating finely crushed material.
Over the next few weeks, Novo will focus on methods of crushing to optimize liberation of gold particles from rock matrix. While planned for a future commercial scale operation, finer grinding is impractical for the trial mining program. The Company anticipates potential recoveries of around +60% when rock is crushed to a targeted size of less than one millimeter. Another 80 tonne sample of Beatons Creek conglomerate is being shipped to Perth for further crushing test work next week. Novo plans to have the IGR3000, crushers and conveyance systems fully ready to move to site upon receipt of mining permits in April.
Commercial Scale Mine Study
In late 2015, Novo contracted West Perth-based DRA Pacific Pty Ltd to undertake an economic study on an approximately 500,000 tonne per year oxide mine at Beatons Creek. The main thrust of DRA's work is to produce detailed engineering for a gravity-only processing plant utilizing the following general scheme: 1) crushing to sub-millimeter, 2) gravity recovery of coarse gold 3) fine grinding to ~75 microns, and 4) gravity recovery of fine gold.
Over the past few months, Novo and DRA have identified various pieces of milling equipment and undertaken direct tests on them utilizing samples of Beatons Creek conglomerate. As an example, a high pressure grinding roll generated a crushed product 80% passing an 850 micron mesh screen (P80% -850 micron). A gravity recovery test on this product yielded 69% gold recovery. Tails from this gravity test were further ground to P65% -75 microns, and a further 18% of gold was recovered bringing overall gold recovery to 87%. While such test work has added to the timeline for completion of the upcoming economic study, Novo sees high value in performing such tests to ensure future success of the project. Novo anticipates completion of a preliminary economic assessment sometime within the next 6-8 weeks.
Once Novo's trial mine permit has been approved, the Company plans to advance permitting of a potential commercial scale mine. Submission of such permits is expected to commence over the next few months. The Company cautions that a reserve has not yet been defined on the project and there is no certainty that a reserve with demonstrated economic viability will be defined on the project.
Blue Spec Follow-Up Sampling
In a news release dated January 21, 2016, Novo announced high grade gold assays from surface rock chip samples collected at its Blue Spec gold-antimony project located approximately 20 km east of Beatons Creek. The Blue Spec project encompasses about 15 km of strike along the Blue Spec shear zone, an east-west trending corridor of steeply dipping structures cutting the 2.9 billion year old Mosquito Creek Formation and hosting high grade gold-antimony veins.
Beginning in mid-April, Novo plans to undertake systematic rock chip sampling to follow up on results from: 1) West Gold Spec where rock chip samples returned grades of 22.5-143.8 gpt Au and 0.1-2.5% Sb, 2) Middle Creek where a lone rock chip sample returned a grade of 47.7 gpt Au and 2.4% Sb, 3) Orange Spec where outcropping vein samples returned grades of 4.2-15.7 gpt Au, 4) Green Spec where outcropping vein samples returned grades of 2.5-38.6 gpt Au and 0.03-1.4% Sb, and 5) 20 Mile where vein samples returned grades of 3.0-15.8 gpt Au.
The goal of follow-up sampling will be to evaluate the continuity and strike length of veins as well as help define future drill targets. Given the robust grades in these five areas, Novo thinks there is good potential to discover near surface high grade shoots that might add significant resources to the Blue Spec project.
Elsie Jane
In a news release dated August 12, 2015, Novo announced it optioned three groups of tenements from ASX-listed Talga Resources Pty Ltd. One of these groups of tenements falls within the Mosquito Creek area where ASX-listed gold miner Millennium Minerals Ltd is currently mining orogenic lode gold mineralization from a number of small pits.
One of the optioned tenements, Elsie Jane, is situated between Millennium's Bartons and All Nations pits. Novo recently examined this area and found several historic reverse circulation drill pads with intact bags of drill cuttings. All holes appear to be shallow, less than 40 meters deep, and range from vertical to inclined at 45 degrees. Novo thinks these holes may have been drilled about 7-8 years ago by a previous landholder.
Novo was able to collect samples of cuttings from several holes. Significant gold results include:
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--3 m @ 3.62 gpt Au from hole EJ01, 21-24 meters
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--3 m @ 1.37 gpt Au from hole EJ03, 20-23 meters
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--7 m @ 0.57 gpt Au from hole EJ04, 12-19 meters
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--4 m @ 3.56 gpt Au from hole EJ05, 15-19 meters
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--6 m @ 2.16 gpt Au from hole EJ06, 12-18 meters
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--2 m @ 1.93 gpt Au from hole EJ23, 16-18 meters
Given that these holes all fall within 100 meters of the northeast end of the Bartons pit, it is presumed these gold intercepts are strike extensions of lode gold zones currently mined by Millennium Minerals. Novo is considering follow-up work at Elsie Jane sometime in the next few months.
"With our financing in place, we are in a strong position to undertake our trial mining program," commented Dr. Quinton Hennigh, President, CEO and director of Novo Resources Corp. "After modifications, our IGR3000 plant appears to be operating well. Our focus is now on developing a suitable crushing scheme by the time approvals are granted. Our study of a commercial scale mine is steadily progressing with solid data returning from processing equipment we have identified and tested. Last but not least, exciting new exploration targets at Blue Spec and Elsie Jane will make for interesting follow-up work over the next few months."
Reverse circulation drill cutting samples reported in this news were collected by Novo staff and submitted to Genalysis Laboratory, Perth, Australia. Samples were prepped by drying, crushing to -2 mm and pulverizing to -100 microns. Gold was analyzed by fire assay with a mass spectrometry finish.
Quinton Hennigh (Ph.D., P.Geo.) is the Qualified Person pursuant to National Instrument 43-101 responsible for, and having reviewed and approved, the technical information contained in this news release. Dr. Hennigh is President, CEO and a Director of Novo Resources Corp..
About Novo Resources Corp.
Novo's focus is to evaluate, acquire and explore gold properties. Indirect subsidiaries of Novo hold a 100% interest in the core of the Beatons Creek gold project, a 70% interest in approximately 1,800 square kilometers surrounding Beatons Creek and at nearby Marble Bar, and a 100% interest in the Blue Spec gold-antimony project, all in the Pilbara region, Western Australia. For more information, please contact Leo Karabelas at (416) 543-3120 or e-mail leo@novoresources.com.
On Behalf of the Board of Directors,
"Quinton Hennigh"
Quinton Hennigh
CEO and President
Neither TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this news release.
Forward-looking information
Some statements in this news release contain forward-looking information (within the meaning of Canadian securities legislation) including, without limitation, statements as to the expected receipt of results from various exploration and testing activities, the anticipated timing of the receipt of permits and the commencement of the Company's trial mining program, the anticipated timing of the completion of a preliminary economic assessment, and the anticipated timing of systematic rock chip sampling. Forward-looking 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, customary risks of the mineral resource exploration industry as well as the speed of processing of Novo's permitting applications by the relevant government agency.
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(Figure 1: Novo's IGR3000 gold recovery plant being commissioned at a gravel quarry near Perth.)
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(Figure 2: Very fine to medium gold grains from concentrate produced during commissioning test work on the IGR3000 gold recovery plant. The coin is approximately 1.5 cm across.)
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