Aston Bay drills 2.08% copper over 19 metres at Storm, Nunavut

Aston Bay Holdings Ltd. [BAY-TSXV; ATBHF-OTCQB] reported final assay results from the 2022 drill season, confirming significant near surface high-grade copper at the Storm Copper Project on Somerset Island, Nunavut, Canada. This is the maiden drilling program for American West Metals Limited [AW1-ASX], which is project operator, since entering an option agreement with Aston Bay in March 2021.

Highlights: Diamond drilling continues to define near surface high-grade copper at Storm, more than doubling the mineralized envelope at the 2750N Zone and substantially enhancing the resource potential.

New significant intersections include 19 metres of 2.08% copper (Cu) from 58 metres downhole, including 2 metres of 15.98% Cu from 70 metres downhole (ST22-06); 10 metres of 2.36% Cu from 53 metres downhole; 7 metres of 1.08% Cu from 79 metres downhole (ST22-04); 2 metres of 1.81% Cu from 36 metres downhole; 7 metres of 1.00% Cu from 40 metres downhole; and 1 metre of 5.75% Cu from 13 metres downhole (ST22-07).

A high volume of near-surface high-grade copper at the 2750N Zone has now been confirmed with mineralization open to the west along a 1km prospective strike length.

Potential to further define near-surface high-grade copper deposits, with future drilling of the 2200N and 4100N Zones where multiple intersections of massive copper sulfides have been discovered by historical drilling.

“These drill results confirm the near-surface high grade copper mineralization at the 2750N Zone, likely doubling the volume of mineralization, once again demonstrating the enormous potential of the Storm Project,” stated Thomas Ullrich, CEO of Aston Bay. “We look forward to next season’s drill campaign, which aims to define further resources at the 2750N Zone as well at other areas of near-surface high-grade copper mineralization, such as the 2200N and 4100N Zones.

“Samples are enroute for the next phase of beneficiation test work to be conducted over the winter, with the objective of developing a definitive flowsheet for a potential direct shipping product mining operation. We are excited by the very successful efforts of our partner American West to so rapidly advance the project.”

All drill holes completed at the 2750N Zone were designed to test the continuity and extensions to the copper mineralization encountered in historical drilling and to confirm the potential for potentially mineable volumes of copper mineralization.

Thick intervals of copper mineralization in these recent drill holes located in the western portion of the 2750N Zone give strong indications that the mineralization may continue across a large north-south oriented gully (interpreted to be a fault).

Further diamond drilling is planned to expand the shallow, high-grade 2750N Zone, and to define initial resources at the 4100N and 2200N Zones where shallow high-grade copper mineralization has been intersected in historical drilling.

Exploration activities including drilling and geophysics are also planned to follow-up the significant new discovery of sediment hosted style copper mineralization, which is associated with a large EM anomaly to the west of the previously recognized and highly mineralized 4100N Zone.

The Nunavut property consists of 117 contiguous mining claims and six prospecting permits covering an area of approximately 302,725 hectares. The Storm Project comprises both the Storm Copper Project, a high-grade sediment hosted copper discovery (intersections including 110 metres of 2.45% Cu from surface and 56.3 metres of 3.07% Cu from 12.2 metres) as well as the Seal Zinc Deposit (intersections including 14.4 metres of 10.58% Zn, 28.7 g/t Ag from 51.8 metres and 22.3 metres of 23% Zn, 5.1 g/t Ag from 101.5 metres). Additionally, there are numerous underexplored targets within the 120-km strike length of the mineralized trend, including the Tornado copper prospect where 10 grab samples yielded >1% Cu up to 32% Cu in gossans.

Drill hole intersections are all core length, and true width is expected to be 60-95% of core length.

Aston Bay is 100% owner of the Storm Project property, which hosts the Storm Copper Project and the Seal Zinc Deposit and has been optioned to American West Metals Limited.