ORM Orford Mining Corporation

TORONTO, Oct. 16, 2023 /CNW/ - Orford Mining Corporation (TSXV: ORM) (Orford) is pleased to report results of its 2023 exploration program on the Qiqavik gold belt property. The Qiqavik gold property (100% Orford) hosts multiple high-grade gold occurrences at surface with over ten distinct project areas that occur along its 40 km strike (Figure 1). The 2023 work focused on drilling, geophysics, and prospecting on the Gerfaut East, Central, Annick and Eric project areas of the belt. In total 34 Rotary Air Blast (RAB) holes were drilled for a total of 2,435 m and 32 line-km of ground Induced Polarization (IP) surveys were completed. 

HIGHLIGHTS

• New copper discoveries made in outcrop at Esperance located 200 m and 370 m to the south of the main Esperance Trend may represent opportunities for multiple parallel or fold-repeated zones in the Esperance area of the belt (Figure 3).
• Newly discovered grab samples (boulder & outcrop) associated with a structural complex consisting of a major NNE-trending fault (Ammaluttuq Fault) reported up to 50.8 g/t Au in surface grab sample. The Qiqavik property was expanded by 32km² to cover this new sector (Figure 1)
• Further evidence of underlying Annick structure with the intersection of 0.95 g/t Au over 1 m in QK-23-RAB015 at 65 m depth (Figure 2 and Table 1)
• New Intrusion-associated gold vein systems identified in outcrop at Central and Gerfaut

Note that all drilling intervals are down-hole lengths. True thicknesses cannot be estimated with available information. Note that grab samples may not be representative of mineralized zones.  

David Christie, President and CEO of Orford, commented "The Orford team had a successful summer 2023 exploration program, in that Orford discovered two new gold bearing vein systems in the Central Intrusion/Ammaluttuq Fault and Gerfaut East areas.  The high grade Annick Trend RAB drilling increased our team's understanding of the geology and potential at Annick. Orford's exploration team also has given the potential at the Esperance copper gold zone an entirely new level of prospectivity for size potential. We look forward to the 2024 program at Qiqavik to thoroughly test these new systems which are exposed in outcrop and have vast underexplored potential.  It is important to remember that before Orford started exploring the Qiqavik Belt there was almost no historic exploration on the belt and the prospect remains largely unexplored as we have not yet found the bedrock source for the high-grade gold mineralized boulders that occur extensively across the property."

Annick:
Previous exploration work identified the Annick Boulder Trend, an approximately 3.5 km long trend of angular quartz-carbonate boulders (up to several metres in size) containing pyrite +/- sulfosalts, galena, sphalerite, arsenopyrite and graphite grading up to 648 g/t Au (see Orford's news release dated December 8, 2021, Figure 1).  The possible Annick structure was intercepted in 3 holes 22-QK-002, 22-QK-011, QK-23-RAB015 (Figure 1). QK-23-RAB015 intercepted 0.95 g/t Au over 1 m, 400 m to the NE along trend from 22-QK-002 which reported 10.6 m at 0.9 g/t including 2.6 m @ 2.3 g/t Au (See Orford's news release November 8, 2022). This information along with the narrow dispersion (<30 m) of high grade boulders and gold grains in till suggest that there has been very little transport in the Annick Boulder Trend and the surface expression of the previously noted high grade boulders may be coincident with a structure(s), sub-parallel to the ice flow direction, which hosts pockets or "shoots" of quartz vein mineralization. Future programs will aim to increase drill density in the sector to obtain thicker higher grade intercepts along with detailed grid mapping and potential trenching.

Esperance:
The Esperance area of the Qiqavik belt property hosts a trend of copper and gold mineralization hosted in a basalt shear zone and is recognized for over 4 km in length. In 2023, prospecting and mapping identified two new zones of outcropping sheared basalt-hosted sulphides with up to 5% chalcopyrite.  New Outcrop #1 (0.44% Cu over 0.5m -channel sample, Figure 3) occurs as a series of discontinuous outcrops over 10 m by 25 m and is located 200 m to the south of the main Esperance trend and may represent secondary and tertiary (New Outcrop #2 370 metres to the south of the main Esperance trend) parallel mineralized zones. Airborne EM conductors suggest the mineralization may extend to the east and west of each outcrop. Similarly, there are at least 6 additional parallel conductive trends to the main Esperance copper-gold trend which may also host copper sulphide and gold mineralization.  These parallel conductive trends are planned to be a focus of a 2024 exploration program. 

Central/Gerfaut:
Two vein systems were discovered on the Qiqavik property in 2023, one at the Central Intrusion and one at Gerfaut East. The Gerfaut East vein system is found within a dominant NNE-trending structural corridor that is oblique to the EW Qiqavik Break and can be traced for an over 400 m strike length (previously covered by permanent snow). Gerfaut East is an intrusion-associated Au (+/- Ag, Pb, Cu, Zn) vein system. The area is overprinted by multiple phases of deformation. At surface, sulphide-bearing quartz veins are up to 15 m in length and may contain variable amount of quartz +/-galena, chalcopyrite and pyrite.   Assays received to date from surface grab samples have returned up to 32.3 g/t Au (Figure 4). All six RAB drillholes completed at Gerfaut East intersected quartz vein within the top 50m of drilling. Results from drilling are summarized in Table 2.

The Central Intrusive vein system is defined by a series of subparallel E-W-trending shears zones with ankerite alteration in granodiorite bedrock. Sulphide-bearing veins (+/- galena, pyrite, arsenopyrite) up to 2 cm thick are documented in granodiorite boulders spatially associated with shear zones. Grab samples of quartz veins collected in nearby areas during previous programs reported up to 30.8 g/t Au.  Three holes were drilled in this area (Figure 4) that intersected altered granodiorite containing minor sulphides.

The majority of RAB samples collected from the target intervals gave poor recovery (30-70%; +/-wet samples) which suggests the complexity in the structural network below surface and may not be representative of prospectivity at depth.  RAB drilling was not likely the best methodology for the type of high-grade vein targets seen at Central and East Gerfaut. The drilling was also targeted before having the results of the surface sampling and therefore the RAB holes appear not to have been drilled in the optimal position with respect to the high-grade surface outcrop samples.  These areas would be a focus of detailed geological mapping and sampling along with diamond drilling in a 2024 exploration program.

Table 1: Summary of Anomalous RAB Assay Results over 0.25g/t Au

Table 2:  Grab sample results reporting greater than 10g/t gold. Note that grab samples may not be representative of mineralized zones.

The Qiqavik Property covers the 40-km long Qiqavik Break, part of the Cape Smith Belt event which is of Paleoproterozoic age (1.8-1.9 billion years). This geologic era is marked by its significant metal endowment as illustrated by the important gold districts that occur worldwide related to geological events of Paleoproterozoic age. These include the Flin Flon-Snow Lake Belt, the Ashanti Gold Fields of West Africa, the Tapajos-Parima Belt of Brazil, and the Tanami Region in Australia. The Cape Smith Belt is also home to Glencore's world class Raglan Mine. Early-stage exploration work completed to date on the Qiqavik Property shows that high-grade gold and copper occurrences are structurally controlled and associated with secondary splay structures located along the district-scale Qiqavik Break Shear Zone which extends the full 40 km length of the Qiqavik Property.

Orford Mining is a gold explorer focused on highly prospective and underexplored areas of Northern Quebec. Orford's principal assets are located in two areas: the Cape Smith Belt in the Nunavik region; and the Joutel region of the Abitibi district. The Qiqavik and West Raglan projects comprise a land package totaling over 105,000 hectares in the Cape Smith Belt of northern Quebec. The Qiqavik Project hosts several new high-grade gold discoveries along a mineralized trend in excess of 40 km. The West Raglan project hosts a number of high-grade Raglan-style nickel/copper/platinum group metal discoveries along a 50 km mineralized trend. Orford has acquired four property positions (Joutel – Eagle, McClure East, Joutel – South and Joutel – Omega) totaling 26,815 hectares in the Joutel region of the Abitibi district of northern Quebec, which hosts historical deposits such as the Eagle/Telbel, Joutel Copper, Poirier Copper, and Vezza deposits. Orford continually seeks new gold exploration opportunities in North America. Orford's common shares trade on the TSX Venture Exchange under the symbol ORM. This information from neighbouring properties is not necessarily indicative of the mineralization on Orford Mining's properties. To view further details about the Orford's projects please visit Orford's website, www.orfordmining.com.

The disclosure of scientific and technical information contained in this news release has been approved by Alger St-Jean, P.Geo., Chief Geoscientist of Orford, a Qualified Person under NI 43-101.

2023 Grab & Drill Core samples:

Sample shipments were sealed and shipped to AGAT Laboratories, Val-d'Or, Québec. All gold assays reported were obtained by standard fire-assaying on 50-gram for RAB chip samples and on 30-gram for grab samples nominal weight with an atomic absorption spectroscopy finish or by gravimetric finish in the case of overlimit and on request (methods 202551/202051 and 202564/202064) at AGAT Laboratories, Mississauga, Ontario. All grab samples were also analyzed for multi-elements, including copper and silver, using a four-acid method with an ICP-OES finish (method 201070) at AGAT Laboratories, Mississauga, Ontario.

Drill program design, Quality Assurance/Quality Control ("QA/QC") and interpretation of results is performed by qualified persons employing a QA/QC program consistent with NI 43-101 and industry best practices. Standards and blanks are inserted at a minimum rate of 5% for chip and grab samples for QA/QC purposes in addition to those inserted by the lab. A subset of samples has not yet been sent for a verification assay at another lab. AGAT Laboratories are accredited by the Standards Council of Canada and found to comply with the requirements of ISO/IEC 17025:2017.

Neither the TSXV nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSXV) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

This news release contains "forward-looking information" including without limitation statements relating to the liquidity and capital resources of Orford and potential of one or more of the Qiqavik, and West Raglan, properties.

Forward-looking statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors which may cause the actual results, performance or achievements of Orford to be materially different from any future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by the forward-looking statements. Factors that could affect the outcome include, among others: future prices and the supply of metals; the results of drilling; inability to raise the money necessary to incur the expenditures required to retain and advance the properties; environmental liabilities (known and unknown); general business, economic, competitive, political and social uncertainties; accidents, labour disputes and other risks of the mining industry; political instability, terrorism, insurrection or war; or delays in obtaining governmental approvals, failure to obtain regulatory or shareholder approvals. For a more detailed discussion of such risks and other factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements, refer to Orford's filings with Canadian securities regulators available on SEDAR at www.sedar.com.

Although Orford has attempted to identify important factors that could cause actual actions, events or results to differ materially from those described in forward-looking statements, there may be other factors that cause actions, events or results to differ from those anticipated, estimated or intended. Forward- looking statements contained herein are made as of the date of this news release and Orford disclaims any obligation to update any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or results or otherwise, except as required by applicable securities laws.

The TSXV has neither approved nor disapproved the contents of this news release.

SOURCE Orford Mining Corporation