ATAC CEO encouraged by Yukon gold drilling
ATAC Resources Ltd. [ATC-TSXV] has released additional results from the Sunrise and Conrad deposit expansion program within the Osiris Project located at its Rackla gold property in the Yukon.
It has been widely reported that companies like Barrick Gold Corp. [ABX-TSX, NYSE] and Newmont Mining Corp. [NEM-NYSE] have been attracted by the geological similarities between parts of the Yukon, and the fabled Carlin gold trend in Nevada.
It is why Barrick has acquired a 19.9% stake in ATAC and formed a strategic partnership with the junior on another section of its Rackla gold property known as the Orion Project.
Orion is one of three separate projects located on Rackla. The other two are the Osiris and Rau.
An inferred resource of 1.68 million ounces (grading 4.23 g/t gold) has already been outlined on the Osiris Project. Orion is subject to an earn-in agreement worth $55 million with Barrick Gold.
The Osiris inferred resource includes a pit constrained mineral resource containing just over 1 million ounces of gold at 4.08 g/t.
Osiris was discovered in 2010 through follow-up stream sediment sampling of highly anomalous arsenic values from the Yukon Government database. The discovery holes intersected 65.20 metres of 4.65 g/t gold. Four zones make up the 12 km2 Osiris cluster. They include Conrad, Osiris, Sunrise, and Ibis. Of the four, Conrad is the most advanced.
This year, ATAC budgeted $13 million for a 20,000-metre diamond drilling program. The aim was to identify and expand high-grade gold mineralization at existing zones within the Osiris and Orion projects, while advancing 2017 prospecting discoveries on the Rau Project.
On Thursday, ATAC said highlights from the Sunrise and Conrad deposit expansion program are as follows:
Drilling at Sunrise has returned one of the highest-grade intervals to date, grading 26.70 metres of 12.95 g/t gold in Hole OS-18-273 and extending mineralization 70 metres at depth.
Step-out drilling at Conrad intersected 52.91 metres of 2.83 g/t gold within the resource open pit.
All 2018 drilling completed to date at Conrad has expanded the near-surface mineralization within the highly prospective 650-850 fault corridor.
“The 2018 expansion drilling program at Sunrise and Conrad deposits continues to be very successful as highlighted by the impressive intersection in Hole OS-18-273,” said ATAC CEO Graham Downs. “Mineralization identified this season clearly demonstrates the potential to increase near-surface gold resources at the Osiris deposit, which hosts one of North America’s highest-grade, pit constrained gold deposits of over one million ounces.”
On Thursday, ATAC shares rose 1.02% or $0.005 to 49.5 cents. The 52-week range is 78 cents and 45.5 cents.