North of 60 Mining News - The mining newspaper for Alaska and Canada's North

Freegold Ventures Ltd. June 13 reported results from the first 11 holes of the oxide expansion drill program at its Golden Summit project about 25 miles north of Fairbanks, Alaska.

In 2016, Freegold published a preliminary economic assessment that evaluates a 20,000-metric-ton-per-day operation at Golden Summit - a 10,000 tpd heap leach facility to process the oxide material and 10,000 tpd bio-oxidation plant for the sulfide material.

The area being considered for mining hosts 61.5 million metric tons of indicated resource averaging 0.69 grams per metric ton (1.36 million oz) gold; and 71.5 million metric tons of inferred resource of averaging 0.69 g/t (1.58 million oz) gold.

The oxide portion of this deposit, which is found largely within the upper 60 meters of the overall resource, hosts 16.2 million metric tons of indicated resource averaging 0.66 g/t (345,000 oz) gold; and an inferred resource of 9.6 million metric tons averaging 0.59 g/t (183,000 oz) gold.

Using results from previous drilling, combined with ground resistivity and soil geochemistry, a series of vertical holes were drilled at 50-meter spacing to determine if the current oxide resource could be expanded to the north.

Freegold said the results from the first 11 holes show the potential for expanding the oxide resource.

The highest grade hole, GSDL 17-10, cut 39 meters of oxidized material averaging 0.72 g/t gold more than 100 meters beyond the previously drilled area.

GSDL 17-11, drilled closer to the resource, cut 56.5 meters averaging 0.51 g/t gold.

Freegold said the majority of the first 11 holes encountered mineralization above the cut-off grade used in the PEA, indicating the potential for resource expansion.

Results from another 24 oxide resource expansion holes drilled so far this year are pending.

-SHANE LASLEY