Tocvan Ventures Corp (CSE:TOC) has told investors that over 1,200 tonnes of material from its first bulk sample at the Pilar Gold-Silver Project in Sonora, Mexico, have now been stockpiled, with the first shipments of material completed.
In a progress update, the company said its crushing, screening circuit and laboratory setup are completed and material crushing and screening have started. Foundation and drainage system for leach pad installation is ongoing, the company added.
"We are extremely pleased with the bulk sample progress so far and how quickly we are learning more about the robust mineralized system at Pilar,” Tocvan CEO Brodie Sutherland said in a statement. “All the material we need for the sample is now stockpiled.”
READ: Tocvan updates on progress at Pilar project; announces two-year drill permit extension
Separate to the bulk sample, Tocvan said head-grade results from the precious metal diagnostic leach tests have returned high-grade results with the five samples averaging 6.2 grams per tonne (g/t) gold (Au), 7.6 g/t Au, 1.3 g/t Au, 11.1 g/t Au and 7.6 g/t Au respectively.
Diagnostic leach tests are ongoing and were collected from four trench areas and one select drill core coarse reject sample.
The company said preliminary results from the study suggest free gold is present in the samples and has been confirmed visually by testing sieved (less than 3/8 inch) material. A gravity concentrator unit will be utilized to conduct formal testing for the presence and abundance of free gold in the finer-grained fraction.
At Pilar, it said trenching related to the bulk sample has unearthed several buried underground working entrances along quartz vein structures, another indicator of the robust mineralized system and a useful tool for mapping new high-grade structures.
Highlights include:
- Precious metal diagnostic leach head grade results return high-grade gold;
- Bulk sampling and plant conditioning completed;
- Coarse-free gold identified in screened material; and
- Gravity recovery circuit added for testing.
“Through trenching and excavation for the sample we have unearthed historic workings that clearly were focused on higher-grade mineralization; this will provide us with key information to aid in future targeting,” Sutherland continued.
“The new exposures are also giving us excellent structural data to enhance our modelling. We are also seeing free gold visible in the finer fraction of sample material which we will evaluate further. In addition, the first results highlighting the head grade for samples collected for diagnostic leach have returned very encouraging results. We look forward to updating shareholders as we progress.”
About the bulk sample
Tocvan said up to 1,000 tonnes of oxide-gold material will be extracted from select areas exposed at surface across the project area, focusing on the Main Zone and 4-T Trends where preliminary column leach studies have returned promising head-grade and recovery results.
Bulk Sample material will be extracted and prepared for processing by the heap-leach method at a private mining operation less than 25 kilometers (km) to the west of Pilar. Information from the sample will aim to provide a more detailed account of the expected head-grade and recovery percentage of gold along with providing key information to optimize future production facilities.
It said information provided from the sample will be used for planning in coordination for permitting of full-scale mine and process facilities on-site at Pilar.
About the Pilar property
Tocvan noted that the Pilar gold-silver property has recently returned some of the region's best drill results. Coupled with encouraging gold and silver recovery results from metallurgical test work, it said Pilar is primed to be a potential near-term producer.
Pilar is interpreted as a structurally controlled low-sulphidation epithermal system hosted in andesite rocks. Three primary zones of mineralization have been identified in the northwest part of the property from historic surface work and drilling and are referred to as the Main Zone, North Hill and 4-T. The Main Zone and 4-T trends are open to the southeast and new parallel zones have been recently discovered.
Structural features and zones of mineralization within the structures follow an overall northwest-southeast trend of mineralization. Mineralization extends along a 1.2-km trend, and only half of that trend has been drill tested so far. To date, the company said over 23,000m of drilling has been completed.
2022 Phase III Diamond Drilling Highlights include (all lengths are drilled thicknesses):
- 116.9 metres (m) at 1.2 g/t Au, including 10.2m at 12 g/t Au and 23 g/t silver (Ag);
- 108.9m at 0.8 g/t Au, including 9.4m at 7.6 g/t Au and 5 g/t Ag; and
- 63.4m at 0.6 g/t Au and 11 g/t Ag, including 29.9m at 0.9 g/t Au and 18 g/t Ag.
2021 Phase II RC Drilling Highlights include (all lengths are drilled thicknesses):
- 39.7m at 1.0 g/t Au, including 1.5m at 14.6 g/t Au;
- 47.7m at 0.7 g/t Au including 3m at 5.6 g/t Au and 22 g/t Ag;
- 29m at 0.7 g/t Au; and
- 35.1m at 0.7 g/t Au.
2020 Phase I RC Drilling Highlights include (all lengths are drilled thicknesses):
- 94.6m at 1.6 g/t Au, including 9.2m at 10.8 g/t Au and 38 g/t Ag;
- 41.2m at 1.1 g/t Au, including 3.1m at 6.0 g/t Au and 12 g/t Ag; and
- 24.4m at 2.5 g/t Au and 73 g/t Ag, including 1.5m at 33.4 g/t Au and 1,090 g/t Ag.
Highlights of 15,000m of historic core RC drilling include:
- 61.0m at 0.8 g/t Au;
- 16.5m at 53.5 g/t Au and 53 g/t Ag;
- 13.0m at 9.6 g/t Au; and
- 9.0m at 10.2 g/t Au and 46 g/t Ag
About the El Picacho property
The company said its El Picacho Gold-Silver property is interpreted as an orogenic gold system within the regional Caborca Orogenic Gold Belt known for producing gold mines that include La Herradura (greater than 10 million ounces) and San Francisco (greater than 3 million ounces).
The project is 140 km north of Hermosillo and only 18 km southwest of the producing San Francisco Mine and totals 24 square kilometers of area showing similarities in geology and structure to the San Francisco Mine.
Five primary zones of mineralization have been identified across the property totalling over 6 km of prospective trends. Surface sampling and historic workings have identified high-grade gold and silver values.
Recently, Tocvan said it completed its first drill program at El Picacho, confirming its model and hitting significant gold mineralization in a step-out to historic workings. Drill hole SRA-22-010 intersected 44.2m of 0.6 g/t Au, including 12.2m of 2.0 g/t Au and 7 g/t Ag. As exploration and drilling continue, Tocvan said it believes this provides an excellent opportunity for the discovery of a multi-million ounce district.
Private placement
The company also announced it has executed a term sheet in connection with a C$600,000 private placement with an institutional investor. The private placement will consist of 1,102,941 units of the company at $0.544 per unit and will be issued under the terms of an escrow agreement.
Tocvan said it will receive $50,000 per month from the closing date of the offering over the next 12 months, noting that the offering structure is an extension of the private placement structure previously disclosed in June 2022.
Each unit will consist of one common share and half of a share purchase warrant, with each whole unit warrant entitling the holder to purchase one additional share for $0.68 for 36 months from the date of issue. It said the investor will receive a corporate finance fee of $36,000, payable via the issuance of 66,177 common shares and 33,088 warrants on the same terms.
Tocvan was created to take advantage of the prolonged downturn in the junior mining exploration sector, by identifying and negotiating interest in opportunities where management feels they can build upon previous success.
The company is earning 100% into two exciting opportunities in Sonora, Mexico: the Pilar Gold-Silver project and the El Picacho Gold-Silver project.
Contact the author at stephen.gunnion@proactiveinvestors.com