MIDAS GOLD'S 2012 EXPLORATION PROGRAM OUTLINES MULTIPLE TARGETS ON ITS GOLDEN MEADOWS PROPERTY
Several Multi-element, Multi-source Anomalies Defined Extending Known Mineralization & In New Areas
VANCOUVER, BRITISH COLUMBIA - Midas Gold Corp. (MAX:TSX) today announced that its 2012 geological, geochemical and geophysical programs completed across its Golden Meadows property in Idaho successfully confirmed and extended areas of known or suspected mineralization and outlined several new gold-silver-antimony targets. A number of these target areas exhibit coincident highly anomalous stream, soil and rock multi-element geochemical signatures and are associated with strong airborne electromagnetic (“EM”) and ground geophysical anomalies that show characteristics similar to those associated with the three known deposits. These results suggest potential for the discovery of further significant new gold-silver-antimony deposits at Golden Meadows, as well as extensions to known deposits. Highlights of the 2012 program include:
The 2km long trend between the already defined Hangar Flats and Yellow Pine deposits, which area encompasses three consistently highly anomalous areas in gold, silver and antimony in both stream and soil samples, each with associated Controlled Source Audio-frequency Magnetotelluric (“CSAMT”) and airborne EM anomalies consistent with the adjacent deposits. Limited drilling in this area, such as in the Monday tunnel area, has already intersected high grade sulphide mineralization; these results suggest there could be significant mineral potential in these areas.
The 1km long area extending from the north end of the West End mineral resource to the Sugar prospect, also with coincident multi-element soil, rock and silt anomalies, and associated CSAMT and airborne EM anomalies. This trend is coincident with the fault offset continuation of favourable host rocks that are associated with the majority of the West End mineral resource and suggests this significant mineralized system extends considerably further than has currently been tested by drilling.
The Rabbit prospect, a Midas Gold discovery in 2010 that has developed into an approximately 1km wide zone of coincident soil and silt multi-element anomalies with associated CSAMT and airborne EM anomalies. The results suggest potential for a significant scale but blind mineralized system in the Rabbit area.
The Mule prospect, also a Midas Gold discovery, with significant gold-silver values in soils, coincident multi-gram gold values in rock samples in altered intrusives and a strong airborne EM anomaly.
Expanded previously known trends, such as the Scout-Upper Garnet-Upper Midnight trend and the Garnet-Doris K trend, where soils, CSAMT and airborne EM outline two highly anomalous approximate 1km long trends with known multi-gram assays in rock samples and wide-spaced drill holes.
“Our 2012 geochemical and ground geophysical surveys were designed to identify and delineate potential extensions to known mineral trends and identify completely new mineralized areas,” said Stephen Quin, President and CEO of Midas Gold Corp. “The results of our 2012 regional exploration has exceeded our expectations and has generated a target-rich environment, with multiple, large scale, multi-element, multi-survey anomalies that suggest potential for substantial extensions to known mineralized systems as well as outlining some large scale new targets,” he said. “In 2013, we intend to evaluate the potential of the highest priority of these new opportunities through drilling.” Despite the long history of exploration in the district that extends back to the earliest 1900s, most mineralization is blind and the property has not been subject to systematic modern exploration that can detect such mineralization. By way of comparison, the Hangar Flats deposit was discovered based on a single outcrop a few metres across, the Yellow Pine deposit was completely blind and the West End-style sediment-hosted mineralization was unrecognized until the 1970s; each turned into a substantial gold deposit. The recently defined Scout prospect was discovered as a result of geochemical and geophysical surveys detecting a potential blind mineralized system where drilling has subsequently demonstrated significant gold-silver-antimony grades over considerable strike length and thicknesses.
2012 Stream Sediment Sampling Program
Midas Gold staff completed a high density stream silt sampling program to assist in evaluation of anomalies generated from its 2011 airborne geophysical program. The 2012 survey involved collection of 351 silts roughly every 300-500m along all the major drainages within the project area, testing extensive areas previously not sampled and/or newly staked by Midas Gold in 2011 as a result of the airborne geophysical survey. The average catchment area of sampled drainages is roughly 1.0-1.5km2, providing a high degree of localization for the source of the anomalies. The stream sediment survey covers a total area of approximately 110km2 and encompasses most of Midas Gold’s land holdings.
Over 80% of the silt samples reported anomalous gold and pathfinder elements, with a maximum value of 1.78 ppm (1.78 g/t) gold, 1.91 ppm (1.91g/t) silver, 458 ppm antimony, 340 ppm tungsten reported from the silts collected during the 2012 sampling program. The strongest gold and multi-element pathfinder anomalies outside of the known deposits occur in silt samples collected from streams draining from the northern extension of the Hangar Flats trend (toward Yellow Pine), as well as the Garnet, Rabbit, Cinnamid-Ridgetop, Upper Midnight, Doris K and Sugar prospects.
2012 Soil Sediment Sampling Program
Midas Gold staff and contractors established several large soil grids and completed a fill-in soil sampling program designed to assist in the evaluation of airborne geophysical anomalies generated from its 2011 airborne geophysical program. This was done to confirm and further expand on anomalies outlined in various historic datasets from past operators and to expand those anomalies defined during Midas Gold’s soil surveys completed between 2009 and 2011. The soil surveys involved collection of 3,429 B-horizon soil samples covering approximately 25km2 of the Company’s 110 square kilometer property position. These new grids complement data from historic grids that cover another 13 km2 of the project area.
Multi-element pathfinder and gold-in-soil anomalies were outlined in several areas including: (1) anomalies at the Mule prospect, coincident with strong gold-in-rock and airborne geophysical anomalies; (2) at the Sugar Prospect, coincident with airborne EM, aeromagnetics and CSAMT anomalies; and, (3) at various other prospects. Over 80% of the soil samples reported anomalous gold and pathfinder elements with a maximum value of 1.9 ppm (1.9g/t) gold, 6.8 ppm (6.8g/t) silver, 2,580 ppm (0.26%) antimony and 510 ppm tungsten reported from the soils collected during the 2012 sampling program, illustrating the pervasive nature of the mineralization in the areas sampled.
2012 CSAMT Ground Geophysical Survey Program
Geophysical survey crews from Zonge Engineering, a Tucson-based contractor, completed a total of 51.5 line-km of ground geophysical surveys using CSAMT along twelve, east-west oriented, 4.3km long lines. The surveys covered approximately 21km2, with lines spaced 400m apart and stations every 25m along the lines. The survey coverage extends from north of the Yellow Pine deposit south to the DMEA area of the Hangar Flats Deposit. Preliminary results received from the contractor indicate all three of the known deposits covered by the CSAMT surveys show a response and a significant number of new anomalies were generated this year that appear to be of an appropriate size and character to warrant additional follow-up. Additional details of results from the CSAMT survey will be released when the final data is received and integrated with the other exploration datasets.
CSAMT is a low-impact, non-intrusive, commonly-used, surface-based geophysical method which provides resistivity information in the subsurface. The CSAMT method involves transmitting a controlled signal over a range of frequencies into the ground from one location (transmitter site) and measuring the received electric and magnetic fields in the area of interest (receiver site). The measured field magnitudes are used to calculate the apparent resistivity of the area underlying the receiver site. Calculated resistivity values from CSAMT data relate to geology and can be attributed to effects of rock type, porosity, pore fluids, faults and the presence of certain mineral assemblages, and in this case minerals associated with gold mineralization within the district. Areas of low resistivity may be caused by a number of factors, but can often be attributed to areas of mineralization and combined with other data can yield valuable 3-dimensional information on subsurface structures, geology and mineralization prior to drill testing.
Illustrations
To view the locations of geochemical anomalies, please click here.
Sampling Procedures and Quality Assurance
The technical information in this news release has been prepared in accordance with Canadian regulatory requirements set out in National Instrument 43-101 (“NI43-101”) and reviewed and approved by Stephen P. Quin, P. Geo., President and CEO of Midas Gold Corp., and a Qualified Person. The exploration activities at Golden Meadows were carried out under the supervision of Christopher Dail, C.P.G., Qualified Person and Exploration Manager for the Golden Meadows Project.
Stream silt samples were collected in the field from small stream catchments using stainless steel implements and wet sieved in the field to -20 mesh and then later dried and sieved in the laboratory to -80 mesh. Soil samples were collected in the field using stainless steel implements and then later dried and sieved in the laboratory to -80 mesh. Field duplicates were collected every 20th sample for quality control purposes for both silts and soils. Both soils and silt samples were digested with a 4-acid hot leach followed by analysis for gold and 41 trace elements via atomic absorption and mass spectrometry at ALS Chemex laboratories in Reno, Nevada and Vancouver, B.C. using method ME-MS41L. Blank and standard samples are used for quality assurance and quality control and a review of the results of analyses of the blanks, standards and duplicates by the Corporation’s Qualified Person indicates values are within normal and acceptable ranges.
About Midas Gold and the Golden Meadows Project
Midas Gold Corp., through its wholly owned subsidiaries Midas Gold Inc., and Idaho Gold Resources, LLC, is focused on the exploration and, if warranted, development of the Golden Meadows Project in the Stibnite‐Yellow Pine district of central Idaho. The principal gold deposits identified to date within the Golden Meadows Project are the Hangar Flats, West End and Yellow Pine deposits, all of which are associated with important structural corridors. Independent mineral resource estimates were reported for all three deposits in a news release dated June 27, 2012 and are detailed in a consolidated technical report entitled “Preliminary Economic Assessment Technical Report for the Golden Meadows Project, Idaho” dated August 15, 2012, (the “Technical Report”) is available on Midas Gold’s website at www.midasgoldcorp.com or under Midas Gold’s profile on SEDAR at www.sedar.com. This Preliminary Economic Assessment outlines a concept for the development of a large scale, long life, low cost open pit gold mining operation producing gold and by-product antimony based on the estimated mineral resource, as well as outlining a number of opportunities for potential enhancement of the conceptual project.
Forward-Looking Statements
Statements contained in this news release that are not historical facts are “forward-looking information” or “forward-looking statements” (collectively, “Forward-Looking Information”) within the meaning of applicable Canadian securities legislation and the United States Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Forward Looking Information includes, but is not limited to, disclosure regarding possible events, conditions or financial performance that is based on assumptions about future economic conditions and courses of action; the timing and costs of future exploration activities on the Corporation’s properties; success of exploration activities; permitting time lines and requirements, requirements for additional capital, requirements for additional water rights and the potential effect of proposed notices of environmental conditions relating to mineral claims; planned exploration and development of properties and the results thereof; planned expenditures and budgets and the execution thereof. In certain cases, Forward-Looking Information can be identified by the use of words and phrases such as “plans”, “expects” or “does not expect”, “is expected”, “budget”, “scheduled”, “estimates”, “forecasts”, “intends”, “anticipates”, “potential” or “does not anticipate”, “believes”, “anomalous” or variations of such words and phrases or statements that certain actions, events or results “may”, “could”, “would”, “might” or “will be taken”, “occur” or “be achieved”. Statements concerning mineral resource estimates may also be deemed to constitute forward-looking statements to the extent that they involve estimates of the mineralization that may be encountered if the Golden Meadows Project is developed. In making the forward-looking statements in this news release, the Corporation has applied several material assumptions, including, but not limited to, that the current exploration and other objectives concerning the Golden Meadows Project can be achieved and that its other corporate activities will proceed as expected; that the current price and demand for gold will be sustained or will improve; that general business and economic conditions will not change in a materially adverse manner and that all necessary governmental approvals for the planned exploration on the Golden Meadows Project will be obtained in a timely manner and on acceptable terms; the continuity of the price of gold and other metals, economic and political conditions and operations. Forward-Looking Information involves known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors which may cause the actual results, performance or achievements of the Corporation to be materially different from any future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by the Forward-Looking Information. Such risks and other factors include, among others, risks related to the availability of financing on commercially reasonable terms and the expected use of proceeds; operations and contractual obligations; changes in exploration programs based upon results of exploration; changes in estimated mineral resources; future prices of metals; availability of third party contractors; availability of equipment; failure of equipment to operate as anticipated; accidents, effects of weather and other natural phenomena and other risks associated with the mineral exploration industry; environmental risks, including environmental matters under U.S. federal and Idaho rules and regulations; impact of environmental remediation requirements and the terms of existing and potential consent decrees on the Corporation’s planned exploration on the Golden Meadows Project; certainty of mineral title; community relations; delays in obtaining governmental approvals or financing; fluctuations in mineral prices; the Corporation’s dependence on one mineral project; the nature of mineral exploration and mining and the uncertain commercial viability of certain mineral deposits; the Corporation’s lack of operating revenues; governmental regulations and the ability to obtain necessary licences and permits; risks related to mineral properties being subject to prior unregistered agreements, transfers or claims and other defects in title; currency fluctuations; changes in environmental laws and regulations and changes in the application of standards pursuant to existing laws and regulations which may increase costs of doing business and restrict operations; risks related to dependence on key personnel; and estimates used in financial statements proving to be incorrect; as well as those factors discussed in the Corporation’s public disclosure record. Although the Corporation has attempted to identify important factors that could affect the Corporation and may cause actual actions, events or results to differ materially from those described in Forward-Looking Information, there may be other factors that cause actions, events or results not to be as anticipated, estimated or intended. There can be no assurance that Forward-Looking Information will prove to be accurate, as actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated in such statements. Accordingly, readers should not place undue reliance on Forward-Looking Information.
Except as required by law, the Corporation does not assume any obligation to release publicly any revisions to Forward-Looking Information contained in this news release to reflect events or circumstances after the date hereof or to reflect the occurrence of unanticipated events.