BEDFORD, NS,
May 24, 2013 /CNW/ - NSGold
Corporation (TSXV: NSX) is pleased to provide shareholders with
the following update.
Financial Update
In light of the continued challenging market
conditions that exist for junior exploration and mining companies,
the management of NSGold has recently enacted a number of measures
to enable the Company to be one of the "survivors" of this market
correction and to be able to participate in a meaningful way in the
next leg up in the Commodities Super-Cycle.
As press released on December 11, 2012 NSGold's founder and chairman,
Hans Van Hoof, provided the Company
with a $500,000 loan facility from
Van Hoof Industrial Holdings Ltd. ("VHIH loan"), a company
controlled by Mr. Van Hoof. A
simple loan facility agreement has been signed and an initial draw
down of $100,000 has been received
this month. The loan agreement provides for no fees, options or
warrants. These funds are earmarked for additional study work
for the Mooseland Gold Property, initial exploration of the Silver
Hill Property in Nevada,
evaluation of acquisition opportunities and general corporate
purposes.
NSGold management has recently completed a
comprehensive review of its operating budget and has enacted a
number of measures to reduce costs including the implementation of
a 40% reduction in contract administration and geological
services. The only compensation received by Mr. Van Hoof continues to be an annual salary of
$1.
Mooseland Gold Property, Nova Scotia
NSGold's core asset is the 100% owned Mooseland
Gold Property located in Halifax County, Nova Scotia. The Mooseland gold deposit occurs within a typical
Meguma structure with steeply dipping limbs. The gold bearing
quartz veins at Mooseland occur on
both limbs of the fold with similar widths and grades. Total
inferred mineral resources for the Mooseland Gold Project are estimated at
454,000 ounces of gold using a cut-off grade of 2.6 grams per tonne
(see NSGold news release dated June 5,
2012). This estimate is based on drill
core assay results from historic and recent drilling programs
totaling 45,382 meters in 183 drill holes. A summary of the
June 2012 resource estimate is
provided in the table below.
Mooseland Summary of
Non-Diluted Inferred Mineral Resources |
|
Cut-off
Grade
(g/tonne) |
Tonnes Above
Cut-off |
Average
Diluted
Grade (g/tonne) |
Ounces |
West Zone |
2.6 |
1,460,000 |
5.52 |
259,000 |
East Zone |
2.6 |
1,060,000 |
5.72 |
195,000 |
Total |
2.6 |
2,520,000 |
5.6 |
454,000 |
NSGold holds the Mooseland Property free and
clear subject only to a gross metal royalty payable to Globex
Mining equal to four percent of all metals produced from the
property. Globex also has the right to receive a five percent (5%)
interest in the issued and outstanding share capital of NSGold at
the time the Mooseland Property enters into production. The
Mooseland Property is comprised entirely of Crown owned land with
no privately owned portions.
The equity market is currently valuing the
Mooseland resource at less than
$5 per ounce (i.e. market
capitalization per ounce of gold). This represents a reduction in
value of 50% compared to one year ago. It is the view of NSGold
management that the underlying conditions that fueled the
commodities "super-cycle" in recent years continue today, and will
continue for the foreseeable future. Furthermore, there has been a
renewed interest in the Nova
Scotia goldfields where historic production exceeds one
million ounces. Resources Appalaches (APP:TSXV) recently secured a
$10 million financing for the
re-development of the Dufferin Gold Mine and in April 2013 the Supreme Court of Nova Scotia upheld the expropriation order
relating to one of the key land titles for the Touqouy Gold Project
being developed by Atlantic Gold (ATV:ASX) thus enabling that
project to move forward. Atlantic Gold has announced plans
for the development of an open pit gold mine at Touqouy with annual
gold production of 84,000 ounces. The Mooseland Property is located
approximately 13 kilometers from the Touquoy Project and 65
kilometers from the Dufferin Mine. A previous holder of the
Mooseland Property, in 2004,
trucked a 2,000 tonne bulk sample of ore taken from underground at
Mooseland to the Dufferin mill
facility for processing.
NSGold management will continue to closely
monitor the advancement of these and other nearby gold
projects.
During Q1 2013 NSGold engaged GPX Gold Royalty
Corp. to complete a metallurgical scoping study for the Mooseland
Gold Project. GPX Gold provides metallurgical studies as a
service to gold mine owners-operators who have completed
preliminary investigation and are in need of detailed metallurgical
information to proceed with a final evaluation or project
implementation. The study is being undertaken by GPX Gold's
affiliate company, Resources Mining Technologies. The scoping
study entails the completion of ore analysis including sample
preparation, work index, head grades, and fractional analysis by
size. Major gold processing routes will be evaluated; including
gravity, flotation and cyanidation recovery, and a preliminary gold
extraction flow sheet will be developed. Basic reagent consumptions
will also be determined. All analysis and assays are being
conducted by McLelland Laboratories in Sparks, Nevada, a well-respected independent
laboratory. This scoping study is a logical preliminary step for
advancing the Mooseland Gold Project. Ultimately NSGold hopes
to undertake a more advanced definitive metallurgical study and
mining study which could support a mining production plan.
NSGold has recently submitted an application for
matching funding under a Provincial government incentive program
for the completion of an evaluation of open-pit mining of the West
Zone at Mooseland. The
West Zone comprises 57% (259,000 ounces) of the total inferred
mineral resources for the Mooseland Gold Project. Of particular
significance from a potential open-pit mining perspective is the
relatively shallow depth (generally 0.5-1.5 meters) of overburden
covering the West Zone deposit and the geometry of the near surface
saddle veins. A shallow-hole drill program at the West Zone was
carried out in Q4 2012 and the results confirmed the near surface
gold mineralization. Thirteen of fifteen drill holes encountered
the expected, relatively sulphide rich, quartz bearing argillite
zones. The other two holes encountered old workings near the
surface and were discontinued. Significant gold values returned are
listed below;
- 9.93 gpt over 1.0 meter in Hole NSG-1-12 starting
at 25.2 meters
- 7.10 gpt over 1.0 meter in Hole NSG-3-12 starting
at 67.2 meters
- 36.80 gpt over 0.6 meters in Hole NSG-8-12 starting at 30.9
meters
- 6.25 gpt over 1.0 meter in Hole NSG-8-12 starting
at 74.3 meters
- 15.21 gpt over 1.7 meters in Hole NSG-8-12 starting at 77.7
meters
- 11.49 gpt over 1.0 meter in Hole NSG-10-12 starting at 51.8
meters
- 8.44 gpt over 1.0 meter in Hole NSG-10-12 starting at 54.8
meters
- 9.44 gpt over 1.0 meter in Hole NSG-13-12 starting at 48.0
meters
- 18.76 gpt over 1.0 meter in Hole NSG-15-12 starting at 22.9
meters
All holes were drilled at angles between 45 and
47 degrees and core angles were generally in excess of 60 degrees,
averaging between 65 and 70 degrees, resulting in true widths being
seven to nine percent less than core lengths.
Silver Hill Property, Nevada
NSGold holds an option to acquire a 100%
interest in the Silver Hill Property located along the prolific
Getchell Trend in Nevada (see
NSGold news release dated January 9,
2013). The Getchell Trend is a major linear structure
that has provided structural preparation for the introduction of
gold and silver mineralization related to Cretaceous intrusive
rocks that are found along the trend. Barrick Gold's Getchell deposit (approximately
25 miles to the NNE) and Atna Resource's Pinson deposit
(approximately 20 miles to the NNE) are both multi-million ounce
gold deposits with Getchell exceeding 10 million ounces. The
Adelaide deposit (Wolfpack Gold
Corp) located approximately 3.5 miles to the SSW has reported
historic gold and silver production.
The Silver Hill property is comprised of 36
unpatented claims encompassing a 2,500 to 3,000 foot long shear
zone that transects the western flank of Edna Mountain. The presence of silver, copper,
arsenic and tungsten in the mineralized shear zone, which is
thought to be part of the Golconda Thrust, suggests potential for
sediment-hosted and/or skarn-related gold mineralization, similar
to the Adelaide and McCoy deposits
to the southeast, or possibly related to adjacent intrusive
activity and gold-silver mineralization found near skarns at the
Chimney Creek, Getchell, Pinson and Preble mines to the north.
Silver Hill has seen very little if any
exploration activity since the 1980's. A previous owner is reported
to have hand-sorted and shipped high grade silver ore to smelters
in Tacoma and El Paso in the late 1970's and early 1980's. Silver
Hills Mining Corporation, a small privately owned company, is
reported to have leached coarse run-of-mine material from a small
pit in the 1980's. A limited sampling program was carried out in
1988 with seventeen rock samples collected at the Silver Hill
property and its extension to the north. The highest grade silver
assays received were in the area of the main Silver Hill prospect,
with silver values ranging from 18.9 ppm to 207.5 ppm. Anomalous
gold and arsenic values were also reported in most of these
samples.
NSGold intends to commence an initial
exploration program at Silver Hill in June
2013. The program will entail geological mapping and
sampling with the objective of identifying drill targets.
Investment in NSX Silver
NSGold owns 1,875,804 shares of NSX Silver Inc.
(NSY:TSXV) which was "spun out" of NSGold in 2012. The
management of NSGold is extremely encouraged with the results
generated from the continued exploration by NSX Silver of its 6,000
plus hectare land position situated in the Sierra Madre Occidental
and near the well-known Mulatos, Ocampo and Delores mining
districts. NSX Silver's systematic exploration has recently
generated two new discoveries - the Santa Rosalita and La Prieta
zones (see NSX Silver news release dated May
16, 2013). Additionally, the 2012 and 2013 drill
campaigns carried out at the Dios Padre Silver Project returned
very encouraging results, with the most significant results from
the 2013 campaign listed below;
- 107.4 gpt silver over 26.6 meters in hole DP-21-2013
- 234.6 gpt silver over 18.9 meters in hole DP-21A-2013
- 288.2 gpt silver over 41.0 meters in hole DP-26-2013
- 443.0 gpt silver over 8.6 meters in hole DP-29-2013
- 208.2 gpt silver over 12.0 meters in hole DP-30-2013
The management of NSGold believes that the NSX
silver shares will be an important asset for the Company in the mid
to long term. The NSX Silver shares are presently pledged as
collateral for the VHIH loan.
Other
NSGold also announces that its Board of
Directors has approved an increase in the maximum number of shares
that may be issued under the 2010 Stock Option Plan from 2 million
shares to 4 million shares, subject to approval of the TSX Venture
Exchange. Furthermore, the Board of Directors has granted
stock options under the 2010 Stock Option Plan to four of NSGold's
directors and officers in respect of an aggregate of 1 million
common shares, and to four employees and consultants in respect of
an aggregate of 280,000 common shares. The exercise price of
the stock options is $0.10, and the
stock options expire ten years from the date of grant. None
of the stock options may be exercised until such time as the
amendment to the 2010 Stock Option Plan is approved by the TSX
Venture Exchange.
Qualified Person
Perry MacKinnon P.
Geo., Chief Geologist, for NSGold, a qualified person as
defined by National Instrument 43-101 has reviewed the information
provided in this news release.
About NSGold
NSGold Corporation is a mineral exploration
company actively exploring for gold in Nova Scotia, Canada. NSGold's principal
property is the Mooseland Gold Property. NSGold's shares are listed
on the TSX Venture Exchange under the symbol NSX.
Forward-Looking Statements
This news release contains statements that
may constitute "forward-looking information" or "forward-looking
statements" within the meaning of applicable Canadian securities
legislation. Forward-looking information and
statements may include, among others, statements regarding the
future plans, costs, objectives or performance of NSGold
Corporation ("NSGold"), or the assumptions underlying any of the
foregoing. In this news release, words such as "may",
"would", "could", "will", "likely", "believe", "expect",
"anticipate", "intend", "plan", "estimate" and similar words and
the negative form thereof are used to identify forward-looking
statements. Forward-looking statements should not be read as
guarantees of future performance or results, and will not
necessarily be accurate indications of whether, or the times at or
by which, such future performance will be achieved. No
assurance can be given that any events anticipated by the
forward-looking information will transpire or occur, or if any of
them do so, what benefits that NSGold or its shareholders will
derive. Forward-looking statements and information are based
on information available at the time and/or management's good-faith
belief with respect to future events and are subject to known or
unknown risks, uncertainties, assumptions and other unpredictable
factors, many of which are beyond NSGold's control. These
risks, uncertainties and assumptions include, but are not limited
to, those described under "Risks and Uncertainties" in NSGold's
Management Discussion and Analysis for the Year ended December 31, 2012, which is available on
SEDAR at www.sedar.com, and could cause actual events or results to
differ materially from those projected in any forward-looking
statements. NSGold does not intend, nor does NSGold undertake
any obligation, to update or revise any forward-looking information
or statements contained in this news release to reflect subsequent
information, events or circumstances or otherwise, except if
required by applicable laws.
Neither TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation
Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the
TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or
accuracy of this release.
SOURCE NSGOLD CORPORATION