VANCOUVER, British Columbia, Jan. 09, 2023 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Prosper Gold Corp. ("Prosper Gold" or the "Company") (TSXV:PGX) reports results from its initial drilling program at Skinner North at the Golden Sidewalk Project in Red Lake, Ontario. The program was successful in intersecting several paralleling shear zones exhibiting strong deformation, hydrothermal alteration, and gold mineralization under cover in an unexplored region. The geological and mineralogical features in the recent drilling have reaffirmed the exploration concept in this part of the Project. Given the disseminated nature of the mineralization the Company will soon be commencing an Induced Polarization (“IP”) survey covering the 2 by 3-kilometre Skinner Target area.
“The Fall 2022 drill program represents the only diamond drilling at the Skinner North Prospect to date,” commented Peter Bernier, CEO. “We are excited that the exploration concept has been validated and confirmed the presence of multiple gold hosting, highly deformed, parallel west-northwest trending shear zones. The Skinner Target Area presents a sizeable, highly prospective, exploration opportunity in a completely new and unexplored region of the project.”
Fall 2022 Skinner Diamond Drilling
A diamond drilling program totaling 1,252 metres in 8 drill holes was completed in November of 2022 at the newly outlined Skinner North Prospect, situated within the 2 by 3-kilometre Skinner Target Area. The drilling program was designed to test for gold mineralization and structure at depth beneath the Skinner #1 trench that was exposed and sampled in the summer of 2022 (see the Company's Sept. 7, 2022 news release for details) and to test additional structural targets interpreted from the summer 2022 ground magnetic survey data.
Table 1. Significant assays from initial Skinner North diamond drilling.
| Hole ID | From (m) | To (m) | Interval (m) | Au (g/t) |
| DD22SK001 | 35 | 54.5 | 19.5 | 0.49 |
| Incl. | 35 | 41 | 6 | 0.98 |
| DD22SK002 | 16.15 | 18.5 | 2.35 | 3.08 |
| Incl. | 16.15 | 25 | 8.85 | 1.00 |
| DD22SK003 | 33.0 | 34.0 | 1.0 | 1.18 |
| DD22SK004 | 18.65 | 26.0 | 7.35 | 1.15 |
| DD22SK005 | 77.0 | 78.5 | 1.5 | 1.60 |
| and | 132.5 | 134.0 | 1.5 | 3.10 |
| DD22SK007 | 218.0 | 218.75 | 0.75 | 0.654 |
| DD22SK008 | 8.0 | 9.5 | 1.5 | 0.686 |
** true widths are unknown
Drill holes DD22SK001 through DD22SK004 were completed in the immediate area of the Skinner #1 trench. The four holes intersected strongly sheared mafic volcanics cut by felsic to ultramafic dikes with all lithologies encountered locally exhibiting moderate to strong ankerite-silica-biotite-chlorite ± sericite alteration and gold mineralization associated with a pyrrhotite-pyrite ± chalcopyrite sulphide assemblage.
Drill hole DD22SK005 was a 100-metre step-back from DD22SK002 designed to test for gold mineralization roughly 80 metres down-dip of that encountered in the surface sampling. Two discrete gold-bearing intervals were encountered, associated with moderately to strongly sheared mafic volcanics exhibiting moderate silica-ankerite ± biotite alteration.
Figure 1. Plan map showing Fall 2022 drill collars relative to greater Skinner Target Area.
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Figure 2. Plan map showing November 2022 diamond drill hole locations with interpreted 2022 ground magnetics.
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Table 2. Drill collar details of specified drill holes (coordinates provided in UTM NAD83, zone 15).
| Hole ID | Easting (m) | Northing (m) | Azimuth (°) | Dip (°) | Length (m) |
| DD22SK001 | 506202 | 5676584 | 125 | -75 | 131 |
| DD22SK002 | 506226 | 5676588 | 185 | -45 | 56 |
| DD22SK003 | 506226 | 5676588 | 145 | -45 | 86 |
| DD22SK004 | 506226 | 5676588 | 225 | -45 | 95 |
| DD22SK005 | 506253 | 5676663 | 200 | -45 | 221 |
| DD22SK006 | 506114 | 5676715 | 200 | -45 | 221 |
| DD22SK007 | 506063 | 5676731 | 125 | -60 | 221 |
| DD22SK008 | 506042 | 5676270 | 200 | -45 | 221 |
Drill hole DD22SK006 was designed to test for gold mineralization 150 metres to the west-northwest of DD22SK002 as well as to test several subparallel structural features interpreted from the magnetic data. Several intervals of strongly sheared and altered (ankerite-chlorite-silica ± biotite ± sericite) mafic volcanics were encountered, some with felsic to ultramafic dikes and all with variable amounts of pyrite-pyrrhotite ± chalcopyrite, with anomalous gold values. The textural and compositional features of the shear zones intersected in drill hole DD22SK006 bear similarities with gold-bearing, deformed and altered intervals encountered in the drilling underneath the Skinner #1 trench (refer to Figure 3).
Drill holes DD22SK007 & 008 were completed roughly 400 metres to the southwest of the Skinner #1 trench to test for gold mineralization within sheared mafic volcanics that were exposed historically through stripping and washing. Both holes encountered sheared mafic volcanics comprising a structural zone 50 – 60 metres wide, highly deformed and variably silica-carbonate ± biotite altered (Figure 4).
Figure 3. Photographs showing textural and composition similarities between gold-bearing core and weakly anomalous core from drill hole DD22SK006. A) Silica-ankerite-biotite-chlorite-sericite altered and sheared mafic volcanics with pyrrhotite-pyrite ± chalcopyrite mineralization. B) Silica-ankerite-chlorite-biotite altered and sheared mafic volcanics with pyrrhotite-pyrite-chalcopyrite mineralization.
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Figure 4. Representative photograph of drill core from large, west-northwest trending shear zone encountered in drill holes DD22SK007 & 008 (interval shown is from 138.7 m to 156.3 m in DD22SK007).
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Next phase of Exploration at Skinner Target Area
The mineralization encountered in the maiden drill program at the Skinner North Prospect is comprised predominantly of disseminated sulphides, the nature of which is conducive to identification through the implementation of Induced Polarization (“IP”) geophysical surveys. As such, the Company will commence an IP survey in the coming weeks that will cover the 2 by 3-kilometre Skinner Target Area and provide the Company with drill targets to evaluate in conjunction with existing geophysical, geochemical and geological data sets.
About the Golden Sidewalk
The Golden Sidewalk is a district-scale gold exploration project covering over 160 square kilometres of contiguous mineral claims and mining leases in the western Birch-Uchi Greenstone Belt, approximately 60 km east of Red Lake, Ontario and 60 km northeast of Kinross Gold’s Dixie Project, acquired from Great Bear Resources in 2022. The vehicle-accessible project straddles 12 kilometres of the Balmer Assemblage – Narrow Lake Assemblage unconformity, a regional-scale feature that has been the Red Lake exploration guide, but which has seen limited exploration in the project area. The “Golden Corridor” lies immediately north of the unconformity and is characterized as a highly prospective trend of coincident favourable magnetic and resistivity lineaments supported by highly anomalous gold-in-till samples covering 7.0 by 0.5 kilometres. An additional highly prospective target area was defined in 2021, termed the Skinner North Target Area, where 2022 channel sampling results include 9.69 gpt gold over 3.0 metres and 13.13 gpt gold over 1.8 metres and till samples containing up to 1,014 gold grains, was drilled for the first time in November of 2022. Historical drilling by previous operators at the Bathurst Mine, Joe Vein, KT vein, Dunkin and Vihonen prospects reported high-grade gold intercepts which have yet to be followed up by Prosper Gold.
QA/QC Procedures
Quality assurance and quality control measures implemented by the Company include the insertion of certified reference materials in the sample sequence at a rate of 1 in 20 for both blank material and certified reference standards. Analytical results for reference standard and blank samples are scrutinized internally to ensure adequate analytical precision and accuracy in both sample preparation and instrumental procedures. A chain of custody from drilling to laboratory is strictly monitored to ensure sample and analytical integrity and reliability. Half-split core samples are sent to AGAT Laboratories in Thunder Bay, Ontario, where they are analyzed in 50-gram aliquots using Fire-Assay with ICP-OES finish. Any overlimit analyses (>10 g/t Au) are re-analyzed with a pulp metallic screen method designed to give the most accurate representation of gold concentration in each sample. AGAT Laboratories in Thunder Bay, ON, is an accredited testing laboratory having been assessed by the Standards Council of Canada (SCC) and found to conform with the requirements of ISO/IEC 17025:2017.
Qualified Person
The scientific and technical information in this news release has been reviewed by Rory Ritchie, P.Geo., Vice-President of Exploration for Prosper Gold and a Qualified Person under National Instrument 43-101.
For a detailed overview of Prosper Gold please visit www.ProsperGoldCorp.com.
ON BEHALF OF THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS
Per: “Peter Bernier”
Peter Bernier
President & CEO
For further information, please contact:
Peter Bernier
President & CEO
Prosper Gold Corp.
Cell: (250) 316-6644
Email: Pete@ProsperGoldCorp.com
Information set forth in this news release may involve forward-looking statements under applicable securities laws. Forward-looking statements are statements that relate to future, not past, events. In this context, forward-looking statements often address expected future business and financial performance, and often contain words such as "anticipate", "believe", "plan", "estimate", "expect", and "intend", statements that an action or event "may", "might", "could", "should", or "will" be taken or occur, or other similar expressions. All statements, other than statements of historical fact, included herein including, without limitation, statements about the planned exploration of the Golden Sidewalk project, are forward-looking statements. By their nature, forward-looking statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors which may cause our actual results, performance or achievements, or other future events, to be materially different from any future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. Such factors include, among others, the following risks: the need for additional financing; operational risks associated with mineral exploration; fluctuations in commodity prices; title matters; environmental liability claims and insurance; reliance on key personnel; the potential for conflicts of interest among certain officers, directors or promoters with certain other projects; the absence of dividends; competition; dilution; the volatility of our common share price and volume and the additional risks identified the management discussion and analysis section of our interim and most recent annual financial statement or other reports and filings with the TSX Venture Exchange and applicable Canadian securities regulations. Forward-looking statements are made based on management's beliefs, estimates and opinions on the date that statements are made and the Company undertakes no obligation to update forward-looking statements if these beliefs, estimates and opinions or other circumstances should change, except as required by applicable securities laws. Investors are cautioned against attributing undue certainty to forward-looking statements.
Neither the 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.
