MacDonald Mines Completes Trenching and Drilling Program of the Oxide Sands, Wawa-Holdsworth Gold Project
TORONTO, Nov. 09, 2017 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- MacDonald Mines Exploration Ltd. (TSX-V:BMK) ("MacDonald Mines", the "Company", or “BMK”) announces that it has completed its Trenching and Sonic Drilling Programs that were designed to assess the extend of the Oxide Sands trend at its Holdsworth Gold Project.
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Quentin Yarie, President and Chief Executive Officer of MacDonald Mines stated, "Our Trenching Program has demonstrated the extensive length of the Oxide Sands which remain open along strike. The program also enabled us to identify key visual and chemical attributes of the precious metal-rich units in the soil formation. We expect pending assay results from the remaining trenches and drill holes to corroborate the visual cues from the material sampled.”
The Company is currently awaiting results on 228 trench samples.
Figure 1. Plan map of trenching locations with gold AuEq values
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Trenching Result Highlights to Date:
| Trench ID | SampleID | From Depth(cm) | To Depth(cm) | Sample Length (cm) | Au_Equ |
| TR750-6 | 18182 | 18 | 71 | 53 | 5.64 |
| TR750-6 | 18181 | 0 | 18 | 18 | 4.49 |
| TR775-0 | 18202 | 0 | 28 | 28 | 6.53 |
| TR775-7 | 18218 | 0 | 30 | 30 | 5.71 |
| TR775S-9 | 260121 | 20 | 103 | 83 | 4.62 |
| TR1000-2 | 260895 | 80 | 115 | 35 | 5.07 |
| TR1025S-3 | 260072 | 0 | 75 | 75 | 5.25 |
| TR1025S-4 | 260074 | 50 | 120 | 70 | 5.30 |
| TR1050S-2 | 260085 | 10 | 75 | 65 | 7.65 |
| TR1050S-3 | 260086 | 20 | 110 | 90 | 8.94 |
Completion of Sonic Drilling Program
The 2,000 metres sonic drilling program at the Wawa-Holdsworth Project announced on September 20, 2017 has been completed. The program was undertaken to assess the vertical distribution of the precious metals within the Oxide Sands. Assays are pending for all 401 holes drilled.
Trenching and Channel Sampling at the Reed-Booth Showing
The Reed-Booth Showing is an exploration target on the Wawa-Holdsworth Project (Figure 2). In addition to the Oxide Sands, the Company continues to explore the area for lode gold targets. On July 17, 2017 MacDonald announced that a grab sample* containing 13.7 g/t gold was collected adjacent to the Reed-Booth Showing, and grab samples* from float at the main Reed-Booth Showing (considered representative of the main style of mineralization at the showing) contained 4.77 g/t and 6.0 g/t gold.
*Grab samples are selective and may not represent the true mineralization of the prospect.
Figure 2. Location of Reed-Booth Showing
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The Company has mobilized an excavator and is conducting a trenching and channel sampling program in the area to sample and assess the potential of the Showing and the associated historical Reed Booth Mine.
Plans for Holdsworth Gold Project
The Company intends to have an inferred resource calculated on the Oxide Sands once all of the assay results have been received. In addition to the Oxide Sands, MacDonald Mines will also continue investigating the lode gold potential on the property. The current channel sampling of the Reed Booth Showing will be used to identify diamond drill targets. These targets will be drilled this winter.
The Company is currently sufficiently financed to complete these activities.
Overview of the Wawa-Holdsworth Project
- Neighbouring Alamos' Island Gold Mine, Argonaut's Magino Gold Project and Goldcorp’s Borden project
- Numerous gold showings with diversified mineralization styles occurring in a 500 metres-wide deformation corridor
- Year-long road access and easy access to rail, road, electrical power, labour force and suppliers
Historic work by previous operators defined three gold targets on the Wawa-Holdsworth Project:
- Greenstone-hosted quartz-carbonate vein deposit (Soocana Vein System and Reed-Booth Showing);
- BIF-hosted gold deposits (gold-bearing pyrite zones in an Algoma-type iron formation);
- Gold-bearing Oxide Sands developed from the weathering of the auriferous pyrite zones.
MacDonald Mines is focusing its near-term exploration program on the Oxide Sands. These appear to extend for more than 2 km on the property as corroborated by MacDonald’s airborne magnetics results (see June 1, 2017 News Release) and reach a depth of at least 8 metres.
Positive preliminary metallurgical results (see July 11, 2017);
- The concentration ratio of gold in rougher flotation averaged 6.0:1
- The concentration ratio of silver in rougher flotation averaged 5.2:1
- Reduction of feed volume in rougher flotation by approximately 85-90%
- The Oxide Sands can be processed by a simple crushing/flotation process
- No caustic treatments are necessary
- The processing will require low power requirements
- The waste material is inert (>70 percent silica/quartz)
The soft and relatively unconsolidated Oxide Sands material can be extracted like an aggregate. The Company is working to better define the Oxide Sands in preparation for their potential extraction.
On-site Quality Assurance/Quality Control (“QA/QC”) Measures
Sand samples were transported in security-sealed bags for analyses to Activation Laboratories Ltd. in Ancaster, Ontario. Individual samples are labeled, placed in plastic sample bags and sealed. Groups of samples are then placed into durable rice bags and then shipped. The remaining coarse reject portions of the samples remain in storage if further work or verification is needed.
MacDonald Mines has implemented a quality-control program to comply with best practices in the sampling and analysis of both the Oxide Sands and drill core. As part of its QA/QC program, MacDonald Mines inserts external gold, silver, platinum and palladium standards (low to high grade) and blanks every 20 samples in addition to random standards, blanks, and duplicates.
Qualified Person
Quentin Yarie, P Geo. is the qualified person responsible for preparing, supervising and approving the scientific and technical content of this news release.
About MacDonald Mines Exploration Ltd.
MacDonald Mines Exploration Ltd. is a mineral exploration company headquartered in Toronto, Ontario focused on gold exploration in Canada. The Company has built a portfolio of safe-jurisdiction, infrastructure-rich projects that demonstrate the greatest market potential for return. The Company is aggressively advancing its highly prospective Wawa-Holdsworth Gold Project.
The Company's common shares trade on the TSX Venture Exchange under the symbol "BMK".
To learn more about MacDonald Mines, please visit www.macdonaldmines.com
For more information, please contact:
Quentin Yarie, President & CEO, (416) 364-4986, qyarie@macdonaldmines.com
Or Mia Boiridy, Investor Relations, (416) 364-4986, mboiridy@macdonaldmines.com
Cautionary Statement:
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 release.
No stock exchange, securities commission or other regulatory authority has approved or disapproved the information contained herein. The foregoing information may contain forward-looking statements relating to the future performance of the Company. Forward-looking statements, specifically those concerning future performance, are subject to certain risks and uncertainties, and actual results may differ materially from the Company’s plans and expectations. These plans, expectations, risks and uncertainties are detailed herein and from time to time in the filings made by the Company with the TSX Venture Exchange and securities regulators. MacDonald Mines does not assume any obligation to update or revise its forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.