i-80 Gold Corp has announced positive assay results from its ongoing underground drill program at the company's Granite Creek property in Humboldt County, in Nevada.
The well-financed Nevada-focused mining company said high-grade drill results from the 4790 Level targeting mineralization in the Otto, Adam Peak and Range Front fault horizons proximal to and below existing mine workings are designed to confirm continuity in one of the initial areas being defined for underground mining.
The Otto, Adam Peak, and Range Front fault horizons are three of multiple target areas being drilled with several holes intersecting gold mineralization in multiple horizons, said the company. The 2022 program has been upsized and is expected to comprise more than 30,000 metres (m) from surface and underground.
READ: i-80 Gold takes steps towards mid-tier producer goal with award of engineering study contract
i-80 Gold highlighted results from initial underground drilling which include 10 holes from Level 4790 which included the following:
- 20.3 grams per tonne (g/t) gold (Au) over 1.3m in hole iGU21-15
- 8.2 g/t Au over 5.6m in hole iGU21-17
- 14.5 g/t Au over 1.5m in hole iGU21-18
- 24.4 g/t Au over 1.2m in hole iGU21-22
- 14.5 g/t Au over 2.7m and 10.6 g/t over 1.5m and 9.9 g/t over 1.1 m in hole iGU21-23
- 10.7 g/t Au over 9.4m in hole iGU21-24
The company explained that as part of the program targeting development and mining at Granite Creek, definition drilling utilizing two underground Cubex drills has started in areas where encouraging assays results were received in 2021. The drilling is being completed to “define initial stoping areas” as the company advances towards a production decision, it added.
Clearly, the main goal of the 2022 drill program is to delineate and expand underground mineralization as the i-80 ramps up mining on the property. It is expected that refractory mineralization from the underground operation at Granite Creek will initially be trucked to Twin Creeks for processing, following the agreement struck with Nevada Gold Mines, until i-80’s own central Lone Tree processing facility that includes an autoclave is operational.
In a statement, i-80 Gold president and chief operating officer Matt Gili, said: "These results further confirm the high–grade opportunity that we are developing at Granite Creek. We are focused on bringing these near–mine areas into reserves and then into production."
High-grade mineralization at Granite Creek occurs in a near-identical geological setting as that at the multimillion-ounce Turquoise Ridge Mine immediately to the north of the property; proximal to a major regional fault (the Getchell or Range Front fault) on the eastern edge of the large Osgood Mountains intrusive complex.
The Granite Creek deposit remains open at depth and along strike from the existing underground workings with step-out drilling aimed at expanding resources currently underway with multiple surface drill rigs, said the company.
i-80 Gold hopes to achieve mid-tier gold producer status through the development of four new open pit and underground mining operations that will process ore at the Lone Tree complex. It aims to ultimately produce more than 500,000 ounces of gold annually.
Contact the author Uttara Choudhury at uttara@proactiveinvestors.com
Follow her on Twitter: @UttaraProactive