Pershing Gold intercepts 25.1 g/t gold over 1.52 m and 8.887 g/t gold over 3.048 m at Relief Canyon

Pershing Gold Corporation (NASDAQ: PGLC) (TSX: PGLC) (FWB: 7PG1), the emerging Nevada gold producer advancing the Relief Canyon mine, today announces the completion of Phase 1 of its 2016 Drilling Program. The Program included drilling to further offset RC16-462, previously reported.

“Phase 1 of our 2016 Drilling Program has successfully extended to the west the high-grade mineralization at Relief Canyon,” stated Stephen D. Alfers, Pershing Gold’s Chairman, President and CEO. “These additional offsets to RC16-462, along with recently reported RC16-473 and RC16-475, further extend the high-grade zone discovered in the North Target Area in 2015,” explained Alfers. “The 25.1 gpt (0.733 oz/ton) Au intercept in RC16-487 and the 8.887 gpt (0.260 oz/ton) Au intercept in RC16-489 indicate strong potential for future growth of the deposit, which the Company plans to explore in Phase 1a of the Drilling Program,” stated Alfers.

Phase 1 Drilling Program Results
Pershing Gold has received results from additional core drill holes from Phase 1 of its 2016 Drilling Program. Highlighted results are listed in Table 1 below.

Notable intercepts include:

• RC16-487
  • including: 5 ft (1.52 m), 25.1 gpt, 0.733 oz/ton Au
• RC16-489
  • including: 10 ft (3.048 m), 8.887 gpt, 0.260 oz/ton Au

A plan view of these drill holes is listed below in Figure 1.

The Company has completed Phase 1 of its 2016 Drilling Program, which included 22 core holes, totaling approximately 15,062 ft (4,591 m). The Phase 1 Drilling Program has been successful, following known mineralization at Relief Canyon down dip, with mineralization remaining open to the west. The Company believes there continues to be good potential for expansion of the open pit limit.

RC16-487 and RC16-489 are 300 ft (91.4 m) north-northwest and 350 ft (106.7 m) southwest offsets to RC16-462, respectively. The high-grade intercept in RC16-487 may represent a new high-grade lense in the Jasperoid Zone. The high-grade intercept in RC16-489 appears to be a continuation of high grades developed in drill holes RC16-462 and RC16-475. The Company plans a Phase 1a Drilling Program to follow this program. Phase 1a could include step out drilling to continue to follow the mineralization from Relief Canyon down dip to the west and southwest, but also would include infill drilling. This infill drilling would have the goal of expanding the current economic pit limit at Relief Canyon.

Phase 1 included geotechnical and condemnation drill holes plus several holes that did not reach target, which account for the gaps in sequence for the drill hole numbers.

All intercepts reported here are within the oxide or mixed zones of the deposit and have cyanide leach gold values that indicate leachable material. The deeper intercepts at Relief Canyon continue to show good leach-ability.

Table 1