Skeena Resources Ltd. said the results from the first eight holes of the second phase of underground drilling program at Snip, is increasing the geological confidence of high-grade gold zones at this historical high-grade gold mine project in British Columbia's Golden Triangle region.

The historic underground mine at Snip, which Barrick Gold operated from 1991 to 1999, produced 1.1 million ounces of gold from 1.25 million metric tons of ore averaging 27.5 grams per metric ton gold.

Skeena optioned this project from Barrick early in 2016 and completed roughly 7,180 meters of surface drilling that year.

This drilling and other exploration work met the requirements for Skeena to gain full ownership of the property and begin exploring the historic mine from underground.

The company completed 8,650 meters of drilling in 62 holes during a phase-1 underground program carried out last year.

Building upon the data gathered from this initial phase of underground drilling, the 11,000-meter phase-2 program is designed to further delineate known mineralization in areas with low drill density, and to expand newly modelled zones via widely spaced exploratory step-out drill holes.

Eastern Twin Zone, an area beyond the eastern portion of the Snip Mine that was less densely drilled by the former operators and never developed, is among the first targets drilled this year.

UG18-072, drilled in this eastern expansion area of the Twin Zone, cut 4.05 meters averaging 14.49 grams per metric ton gold. Skeena said this intercept expands the Twin Zone at a vertical depth of 320 meters below surface and 100 meters from the 11.85 meters of 19.26 g/t gold and 5.95 meters of 11.21 g/t gold encountered in hole UG17-035 drilled last year.

The company said this new mineralization is further corroborated by 4.35 meters of 35.49 g/t gold in UG17-036, another hole drilled last year.

"There is high potential for further discovery here as historical drill hole pierce points are widely-spaced and the Twin Zone remains untested by drilling at-depth and along strike," according to the company.

Drills targeting the Eastern Twin Zone also cross the 412 Veining Corridor and are expanding upon and adding geological confidence in this area.

One such hole, UG18-064 cut 4.5 meters of 11.74 g/t gold. Skeena said this hole confirms the continuity of the 412 Veining, as the intercept is 25 meters west of UG-1723, a historical drill hole that cut one meter of 25.9 g/t gold.

As of May 16, 28 holes of the phase-11 underground program at Snip had been drilled in the Eastern Twin and 412 Veining corridor areas.

Skeena has relocated one drill to test the newly modelled 200 Footwall Corridor, a newly modelled zone about 200 meters below Twin.

Geologically and structurally similar to Twin, which historically produced 709,601 oz gold from ore averaging 28.95 g/t gold, the parallel 200 Footwall zone has been the target of limited underground drilling by previous operators.

One surface hole drilled by Skeena in 2016, S16-006, cut 13.5 meters of 16.24 g/t gold in a previously undrilled area of Twin.

Skeena said the geological similarities to Twin, coupled with the sparse drilling, make the 200 Footwall a substantial exploration target and a large portion of the 2018 program is designed to expand upon this newly modelled and largely untested area.

–SHANE LASLEY