Loch Tay Gold Project Results and Update
Prior to publication, the information contained within this announcement was deemed by the Company to constitute inside information as stipulated under the Market Abuse Regulations (EU) No. 596/2014 ("MAR"). With the publication of this announcement, this information is now considered to be in the public domain.
Erris Resources plc / EPIC: ERIS.L / Market: AIM / Sector: Mining
10 August 2020
Erris Resources plc
("Erris Resources" or the "Company")
Loch Tay Gold Project Results and Update
Erris Resources, the European focused mineral exploration company, is pleased to announce further results from the Loch Tay gold project (the "Loch Tay Project" or the "Project") in Scotland and give an update on activities.
Highlights
· Results for 53 rocks samples received with additional gold mineralisation identified at Lead Trial area
· Extensive mineralised quartz vein stockwork and breccia bolder train defined at Lead Trial (west)
· Soil sampling commenced at Lead Trial - Dunan in the east of the prospect where highest grade boulders located
· First metallic screen analysis at Lead Trial confirms coarse gold in 8.5kg mine waste sample - fine fraction assayed 5.35g/t Au and coarse fraction assayed 402g/t Au giving a weighted average of 7.22g/t Au
· Samples from western lower mine waste in Corrie Buidhe area returned up to 6.98g/t Au and high silver
Erris Resources CEO, David Hall commented "The fieldwork at the Loch Tay Project continues to upgrade the Lead Trial Prospect and other new targets including the Corrie Buidhe silver mine area where gold has been sampled in the lower dump west of the old mine. At Lead Trial, the mapping of outcrop and boulders along with sampling has outlined an extensive area of well-developed quartz vein stockworks and localised hydrothermal breccias over a distance of at least 400m. These observations and results point to a vigorous hydrothermal system in the area while the highest-grade samples are located 2km to the southeast at Lead Trial-Dunan, the area in between having poor exposure. A work programme including systematic soil sampling has commenced that will aim to link the two areas into a coherent major target area extending over 3 km.
"With the gold price currently beyond $2,000/oz we are pleased with the progress being made at the Loch Tay Project and look forward to updating shareholders on future developments."
Details
Results have been received for 53 rock chip samples and one standard submitted following start-up of fieldwork in July 2020 on the Company's Loch Tay Project in Central Scotland. The work was focussed on the Lead Trial prospect where 34 of the samples were taken. Six samples were taken in the area of the historic Corrie Buidhe Silver mine while the remainder of the samples were from other targets in the 237sq.km licence area.
Lead Trial
Sixteen samples were taken in the west of the Lead Trial area, the majority uphill from the main historic working associated with breaks in slope over an area of 200m by 170m. The samples consisted of well-developed quartz-vein stockworks in silicified felsite and quartz-rich boulders including hydrothermal breccias. Some of the breccias contained silicified clasts of felsite and schist along with sporadic blebs of galena and sphalerite. Separate crosscutting banded quartz, bands of saccharoidal quartz and later barite were observed in some boulders. Highlights include:
· Sample with 3.05g/t Au, 1.14% Pb and 0.46% Zn from quartz breccia with mica clasts,
· 2.27g/t Au in a boulder of quartz with small felsite clasts (7.83 g/t Au in aqua regia leach), and
· 1.71g/t Au in a quartz-stockwork breccia boulder.
Two other samples had 1.06g/t Au and 0.96g/t Au respectively while many have anomalous gold. This area is over 2km from the Lead Trial-Dunan area to the southeast but multiple float boulders and exposure of outcrops has allowed geologists to develop a better understanding of the mineralising system. Mineralisation appears to be focussed at the brecciated contacts of the felsite sill although a mineralised extensional joint set with northeast trend has also been observed and may also be important as a secondary control on the mineralisation. An additional 12 samples have been taken extending the boulder train 200m to the southeast. Result are pending.
At the Lead Trial-Dunan area 14 float samples were taken. The best sample from a boulder measuring up to 90cm across returned 2.12g/t Au, 22.3g/t Ag, 4.31% Pb and 1.1% Zn. This sample was taken 140m downhill from the large boulder or subcrop that gave 17.15g/t Au. A sample from a quartz-barite cobble taken 97m to the west of the former sample returned 0.73g/t Au, 0.52% Pb and 1.98% Zn. The results give further confidence that there is a proximal source to mineralisation in this area, however, exposure is poor. In order to better define the target, a soil sampling survey has commenced with sample spacing of 100 x 50m centred on the high-grade boulder area.
A large representative chip sample weighing 8.49kg taken from dumps at the historic working at Lead Trial was analysed for coarse gold by the metallic screen method (Au-SCR24C) at the ALS laboratory in Loughrea, Ireland. The analysis used a 2-3kg pulp screened to 100 microns with duplicate 50g assays on the screen undersize fraction and an assay of the entire oversize fraction. The result for the undersize fraction was 5.35g/t Au while the oversize fraction was 402g/t Au giving a weighted total value of 7.22g/t Au for the sample. The result confirms the presence of coarse gold in samples at Lead Trial, which was expected based on the presence of alluvial gold grains and variability between fire assays for gold and multi-element analyses including gold using an aqua regia leach.
This confirmation of the presence of coarse gold means that the soil sampling analysis has been chosen specifically to analyse for gold with multi-element using a larger 25g sample, which should give a more representative gold analysis. The analysis used will be the AuMe-ST43 package at ALS in Loughrea, Ireland.
Corrie Buidhe
A waste dump of white quartz vein material located 1.6km west north west and downhill of the historic Corrie Buidhe silver mine was sampled by the Company for the first time and yielded low to medium-grade gold. A selective sample containing arsenopyrite in quartz returned 6.98g/t Au, 10.55g/t Ag and 862ppm As, a sample with galena in quartz had 0.44g/t Au, 47.9g/t Ag, 1.18% Pb and 0.25% Cu and a representative chip sample from the dump returned 0.88g/t Au, 61.7 g/t Ag, 0.16% Cu, 0.25% Pb and 10.35ppm Te. The results are significant as this occurrence is 225m below the Corrie Buidhe mine workings and suggests that the historic mine, where up to 18 high-grade silver-bearing quartz veins were worked, may grade into more auriferous mineralisation with depth or along strike. To date, a total of 14 samples taken by both Erris Resources and GreenOre Gold from quartz veins and quartz mine dumps at Corrie Buidhe have returned an average of 149g/t (4.77 oz/t) Ag, 308pm Bi and 1.6% Pb with anomalous Te. The distinctive high Ag-Bi-Pb-Te signature over a large area with 1.7km extent warrants further investigation especially given the high silver grades and new gold result to the west and downhill. Silver grades up to 424g/t have been sampled by GreenOre at Corrie Buidhe while an in-situ vein sample in the mine portal yielded 300 g/t Ag. The dump material is believed to have been hand sorted so that galena-bearing higher-grade material has been removed during operations in the 18th Century. Veins are reported to be from 20cm to up to 1m wide. The Company will continue to investigate how this prospect is related to the historic Tomnadashen copper mine located a further 250m downhill and 3.1km to the north of the new samples. At Tomnadashen, mineralisation is structurally controlled, and sulphide-rich samples have yielded high Cu, Ag, Mo and Bi along with some anomalous gold up to a maximum of 1.58g/t Au and 200g/t Ag. The Tomnadashen-Corrie Buidhe mineralisation may be part of a single gold-silver-lead-zinc-copper system. The Company will review and consider its findings in relation to this prospect.
Workplan
Mapping and sampling will continue at Lead Trial in parallel with the soil survey which is now underway. The results will be reviewed as received and the work plan amended as required in order to expand or close off anomalies and mineralised boulder trains and rapidly identify drill targets. The Company plans to trial a ground magnetic survey across the Lead Trial prospect to determine if the contacts of the felsite sills and structures can be mapped. If the results are positive, then the survey can be expanded to cover the entire +3km trend. The combination of geophysics, detailed mapping and soil and rock geochemistry will be used to identify future drill targets at Lead Trial. Other targets within the large licence area such as the Corrie Buidhe area will be investigated to determine if they have economic potential. The field team have secured a base in the area for fieldwork and the Company looks forward to advancing these prospective targets.
Erris Resources has produced an updated audio-visual presentation to accompany this announcement at the following link https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C7iO9BSVmJA&t=3s . This presentation, and future updates, can be found on the Company's website media page, www.errisresources.com/media , as well as its YouTube channel, and on its Twitter page, https://twitter.com/ErrisResources .
Outlook
At the end of June 2020, the Company held approximately €1.3 million in cash and maintains a disciplined approach to expenditure on its 100%-owned projects. The Board and Management continue to review projects in low risk jurisdictions internationally that fit its investment criteria in order to identify potential new assets for the Company. The recent rise of the price of gold to currently in excess of $2000/oz benefits any new defined gold prospects. The Board and management have taken the decision to surrender the early stage Galway Zinc Project in Ireland and focus on the gold portfolio and other opportunities that are more likely to create value for shareholders.
Like many companies, Erris Resources has been impacted by the Covid-19 pandemic and has taken all necessary steps to protect the well-being of its staff, stakeholders and local communities while reducing costs . The Company continues to work under recommended guidelines to maximise the safety of its staff, stakeholders, and local communities from the threat of Covid-19.
This announcement with maps showing sample and prospect locations will be available on the website at https://www.errisresources.com/technical-reports
The technical information in this announcement has been compiled on behalf of Erris Resources by Aiden Lavelle. Aiden Lavelle (BSc (Hons), MSc, MIGI, P.Geo) is Erris' chief operating officer. Mr Lavelle has sufficient experience relevant to the style of mineralisation and type of deposit under consideration, and to the activity which he is undertaking to qualify as a Competent Person in accordance with the guidance note for Mining, Oil & Gas Companies issued by the London Stock Exchange in respect of AIM Companies, which outlines standards of disclosure for mineral projects. Mr Lavelle consents to the inclusion in this announcement of the matters based on his information in the form and context in which it appears.
*ENDS*
For further information visit www.errisresources.com or contact:
|
David Hall/Aiden Lavelle |
Erris Resources plc |
+353 (0) 94 902 8481 |
|
David Hart/Liz Kirchner |
Allenby Capital (Nominated Adviser) |
+44 (0) 20 3328 5656 |
|
Zoe Alexander/Andy Thacker |
Turner Pope Investments (TPI) Ltd (Broker) |
+44 (0) 20 3657 0050 |
|
Isabel de Salis/Beth Melluish |
St Brides Partners (Financial PR) |
+44 (0) 20 7236 1177 |
Notes
Erris Resources plc (EPIC: ERIS.L) is an AIM quoted, European focused, discovery driven consulting and exploration company, supported by the Canadian mining major, Osisko Gold Royalties, which has a 15.13% interest in the Company. The Company has a portfolio of gold projects in Scotland, Sweden and Norway and zinc and base metals assets in Ireland, which it is looking to further build on. Led by a highly qualified team with extensive corporate and sector experience, Erris's strategy is to create shareholder value through commercial discovery of base or precious metal assets in proven mineral districts and in favourable European jurisdictions.
This information is provided by RNS, the news service of the London Stock Exchange. RNS is approved by the Financial Conduct Authority to act as a Primary Information Provider in the United Kingdom. Terms and conditions relating to the use and distribution of this information may apply. For further information, please contact rns@lseg.com or visit www.rns.com.
Latest directors dealings
- 1 hour ago Frasers Group
- 1 hour ago Cavendish Financial
- 1 hour ago Diaceutics
- 1 hour ago AB Dynamics
- 14 hours ago Johnson Matthey