Liberty Gold sonic drills Black Pine heap leach pad, Idaho

Liberty Gold Corp. [TSX: LGD; OTC: LGDTF] reported results of the recently completed sonic drilling program on the legacy heap leach pad (L-HLP) at its flagship Black Pine oxide gold project in southeastern Idaho.

Drill hole assays confirm the presence of residual, cyanide-soluble gold in the legacy heap, consistent with internal expectations. This highlights a dual opportunity to recover additional gold ounces, while repurposing the legacy material for use in the construction of the new heap leach pad (N-HLP) at Black Pine.

The relocation of the legacy heap would also improve the Rangefront open pit design, which for the preliminary feasibility study (PFS) included a 50-metre (m) setback from the toe of the L-HLP. Removing this setback limit may provide mining access to an estimated approximately 250,000 ounces of oxide gold mineralization currently defined as resource, on the northern margin of the Rangefront deposit.

Furthermore, relocation of the L-HLP would generate an important near-pit exploration opportunity, where historic drilling results suggest oxide gold mineralization continues beneath the legacy heap. A resource estimate for the L-HLP is under way and samples are being prepared for metallurgical testing as part of the feasibility program.

Highlights: The 24-hole, 1,400-metre sonic drilling program was completed across the approximately 31-million-tonne legacy heap. Assay results indicate residual gold grades supportive of potential economic reprocessing, with individual samples ranging 0.06 to 1.18 g/t gold with the highest grades occurring near the surface.

Potential for reducing construction capital by reuse of the legacy heap material, located close to the site of the N-HLP, as over-liner. The relocation of this material provides an important opportunity for near-pit resource and reserve growth at the Rangefront deposit.

Jon Gilligan, president and CEO, stated: “The results confirm the opportunity to turn a legacy mining feature into a strategic win for Liberty Gold and the Black Pine project. Whilst the gold grades are naturally low due to previous processing, it appears there is sufficient recoverable gold to cover the costs of rehandling and reprocessing, which makes this a strong value proposition as we move the heap to unlock the resource and reserve potential below. Whether through incremental gold recovery, reduction in initial capital costs, expansion of our resource potential or the continuation of our co-operative agency relationships, this work exemplifies our commitment to responsible development and value creation.”

Next steps – Resource estimation: Preliminary work is under way for the L-HLP. Testwork: Metallurgical testing is under way to assess leach-recoverable gold from the L-HLP and access the material’s geotechnical suitability to act as an over-liner replacement.

Mine planning: Once the metallurgical testwork is completed, and if it confirms expected leach characteristics, the Rangefront open pit optimization will be updated to remove the 50-metre setback. Mine plans will be run for the L-HLP itself looking at a variety of mining and processing rates, costs and production. The objective will be to incorporate L-HLP material into overall feasibility production schedule to potentially add additional ounces into the reserves.

Permitting: Continuation of discussions with relevant state and federal agencies regarding both the continuing L-HLP evaluation and the potential to relocate and incorporate L-HLP material as part of the N-HLP for residual processing, and ultimately reclamation and closure following cessation of mining.

Liberty Gold is focused on exploring for and developing open pit oxide deposits in the Great basin of the United States. The company is advancing the Black Pine project in southeastern Idaho, a past-producing, Carlin-style gold system with a large, growing resource and strong economic potential.