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

Skeena Resources Ltd. Sept. 25 said assay results from the initial phase of 2019 drilling at Eskay Creek indicate the potential to upgrade and expand the near surface resource at 21 A, one of three zones being tested this year.

Over a 14-year span ending in 2008, Barrick Gold Corp. produced roughly 3.3 million ounces of gold and 160 million oz of silver at average grades of 45 grams per metric ton gold and 2,224 g/t silver from an underground mine at Eskay Creek.

Skeena, which acquired Eskay Creek from Barrick in 2017, has focused exploration on the potential of developing an open pit mine there.

According to a resource calculated early in 2019, Eskay Creek hosts 12.71 million metric tons of surface mineable indicated resource averaging 4.5 g/t (1.82 million oz) gold and 117 g/t (47.79 million oz) silver; plus 13.57 metric tons of surface mineable inferred resource averaging 2.2 g/t (984,000 oz) gold and 42 g/t (18.46 million oz) silver.

With the goal of upgrading the inferred resources to the higher confidence indicated category, the company has two surface drill rigs targeting the 21A, 21E and 22 zones with roughly 200 shallow holes during the 2019 phase 1 program.

Highlights from the latest batch of assay results from drilling in Eskay Creek 21A Zone include:

• 9.4 meters averaging 27.37 g/t gold, 18 g/t silver from a depth of 55.1 meters in hole SK-19-053;

• 28.5 meters of 9.86 g/t gold and 157 g/t silver from a depth of 74 meters in hole SK-19-060; and

• 27.5 meters of 6.75 g/t gold and 285 g/t silver from a depth of 70 meters in hole SK-19-061.

Skeena Resources said existing hole spacings in this portion of the 21A Zone exceeded 30 meters prior to this year's drilling and the resource here is classified in the resource estimate released in February.

With the goal of upgrading the resource to the indicated category, the company has laid out the holes to tighten the spacing to 15 meters.

Skeena Resources Ltd.

In addition to upgrading the resource, the latest batch of drill results has extended the gold-silver mineralization at 21A Zone toward the surface. This includes the intercepts in holes 60 and 61, as well as SK-19-059, which cut 28 meters averaging 2.18 g/t gold and 36 g/t silver from a depth of 80 meters.

In addition to the open-pit resource being upgraded and expanded with the 2019 phase 1 program, Eskay Creek also hosts 819,000 metric tons of underground indicated resource averaging 6.4 g/t (169,000 oz) gold and 139 g/t (3.66 million oz) silver; plus 295,000 metric tons of underground inferred resource averaging 7.1 g/t (78,000 oz) gold and 82 g/t (778,000 oz) silver.

–SHANE LASLEY