Maple Gold Mines drilling 10,000 metres at Douay Project, Quebec

Maple Gold Mines Ltd. [TSXV: MGM; OTCQB: MGMLF; FSE: M3G] provided an exploration update and 2025 outlook for its 100%-owned Douay Gold Project and Joutel Gold Project located along the Casa Berardi-Douay Gold Trend, Québec, Canada.

A 10,000-metre Phase I diamond drilling program has now beghun at Douay with an expected duration of three to four months. Key objectives of the Program include:

Targeting poorly drilled areas within Inferred Resources for conversion to Indicated Resources within the pit-constrained and underground resource domains.

Step-out drilling along strike, down-dip, and down-plunge to expand Inferred Resources. Step-out drilling from zones of high-grade gold mineralization within the underground Inferred Resources to demonstrate lateral and vertical continuity.

Targeting areas between modeled mineralized zones with geological continuity; and testing new targets developed during the compilation exercise of geological, geochemical and geophysical data.

Concurrent development initiatives are anticipated throughout 2025 to advance and de-risk the Douay deposit, including a review of the current Douay mineral resource estimate (MRE) and an evaluation of potential scenarios to optimize higher grade mineral resources that could be accessible via underground mining methods. An additional 3,000 metres of diamond drilling is planned at Joutel in H2 2025 to extend the known high-grade gold mineralization along the past-producing Eagle-Telbel mine trend.

“We are excited to be drilling again at Douay with refocused attention on the higher-grade core of the deposit and its possible extensions both within and beyond our current drill pattern up to 500 metres vertical depth,” stated Kiran Patankar, President and CEO. “Maple Gold’s technical team has accomplished a monumental task in compiling over 50 years of exploration data to generate new geological/structural/geochemical 3D models that have vastly improved our drill targeting. This work highlights the excellent exploration potential of Douay/Joutel, the importance of its location along the deep-seated Casa Berardi break, and the opportunity for the Property to host multiple gold deposits within a variety of geological settings. Our focus in 2025 will be executing a comprehensive exploration and development program that is aimed at delivering shareholder value through the drill bit and via project de-risking, while maintaining strict cost discipline across the company.”

A total exploration budget of approximately $6.3 million has been established for 2025, including permitting, drilling, assaying, personnel, camp and site support costs. The 2025 work program will be fully funded from Maple Gold’s existing treasury.

The company is currently planning a minimum of 10,000 metres of diamond drilling at Douay in 2025. Phase I drilling has now commenced with an expected duration of approximately three to four months. The breakdown of the drilling metreage will be approximately 70% dedicated to de-risking and expanding the Douay MRE through strategic infill and step-out holes (along strike and at depth); and 30% for the testing of new regional geological and geophysical targets along strike from the Douay MRE and north into the Taibi Group sediments along favourable structural breaks and lithologic contacts.

The company plans to complete infill drilling throughout the Douay MRE to convert Inferred Resources to Indicated Resources, potentially add new Inferred Resources within poorly drilled 100-200 metre gaps between modeled mineral domains and target the down-plunge extensions of higher-grade zones outside the Douay MRE.

The initial focus of Phase I drilling will be on the central portions of the Douay MRE targeting higher grade areas within the Porphyry Zone (comprised of West/Central/East portions), which is hosted within the Douay Intrusive Complex and includes some of the highest-grade assays returned on the Property (up to 2,888 g/t gold over 0.5 m in historical drill hole DO-05-04).

Other targets include: the 531 Zone which is hosted within mafic volcanic and folded interflow sedimentary rocks and includes one of highest-grade gold intersections reported by the Company in drill hole DO-21-310 which returned  (see Company news release dated September 9, 8.8 g/t Au over 28.5 metres, including 12.7 g/t Au over 10.0 metre and 31.1 g/t Au over 0.5 m 2021); and the Main Zone which lies along the northern edge of the Douay Deformation Zone (DDZ) with gold mineralization hosted along the sheared graphitic contact between the Taibi Group volcaniclastic and sedimentary rocks to the north and Cartwright Hills Group mafic volcanic rocks to the south. Taibi Group sediments represent a promising new target area for the company with the potential for sediment-hosted gold deposits along a major lithotectonic boundary similar to the Casa Berardi and Canadian Malartic deposits.

The company plans to review the current Douay MRE for the project which currently contains both pit-constrained and underground Inferred and Indicated mineral resources to optimize higher grade resources that could be accessible via an underground mining scenario. Initial focus would include the Douay West zone which currently hosts Indicated mineral resources totaling 4.2 million tonnes (Mt) grading 2.13 g/t Au (containing 286,000 ounces of Au) and Inferred mineral resources totaling 3.7 Mt grading 1.39 g/t Au (containing 169,000 ounces of Au). Douay West also includes existing surface infrastructure constructed in 1995 including a headframe and mine hoist.

In Q2 2024, the company completed a 525 line-km airborne drone-magnetic geophysical survey over a detailed grid on the western portion of the Joutel gold project to assist in the development of new drill targets along the western strike extent of the Eagle-Telbel stratigraphy.

In Q3 2024, the Company completed a lithogeochemical sampling program over its Morris volcanogenic massive sulphide (VMS) project 29 km east of Matagami, Québec. The program focused on the felsic volcanic rocks of the key Watson Lake formation which is present on the Morris project and is known to host the major VMS deposits within the Matagami mining camp. The Summer 2024 sampling program highlighted several areas of highly altered rhyolite, and the Company is developing plans for follow-up work in 2025.

The Douay/Joutel Gold Project is located adjacent to Highway 109 in the heart of the Abitibi greenstone belt, Canada’s premier gold mining jurisdiction (see Figure 1). This large, 100%-owned land package includes the multi-million ounce Douay Gold Project and the past-producing, high-grade Joutel Gold Mine Complex.

Maple Gold Mines is focused on advancing its 100%-owned, district-scale Douay and Joutel gold projects in Québec’s Abitibi Greenstone Gold Belt. In addition, the company holds an exclusive option to acquire 100% of the Eagle Mine Property, a key part of the historical Joutel Mining Complex.

Maple Gold’s property package also hosts a significant number of regional exploration targets along a 55-km strike length of the Casa Berardi Deformation Zone that have yet to be tested through drilling, making the property ripe for new gold and polymetallic discoveries.