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

Rockhaven Resources Ltd. Oct. 12 announced the completion of its 2022 exploration program at Klaza to upgrade as much inferred resource to indicated for the forthcoming prefeasibility study.

Utilizing two diamond drill rigs, Rockhaven completed 12,042 meters of drilling in 69 holes focused on advancing Klaza toward prefeasibility by achieving the following objectives:

• Further defining resources – 43 holes were completed to assist in upgrading inferred resources to the indicated category. These holes are the final phase of resource drilling that will be done before prefeasibility studies begin. Combined with the 2021 program, approximately 16,000 meters of infill drilling has been completed to upgrade the 2018 mineral resource.

• Test resource expansion targets – Eight holes tested the eastern portion of Central BRX Zone, which lies immediately adjacent to but outside of the existing mineral resource and the mine plan envisioned in a 2020 preliminary economic assessment. The drilling was designed to increase confidence in continuity of mineralization in the area, allowing it to potentially be added to future indicated resources. This drilling has extended the Central BRX Zone by 280 meters.

• Evaluate outside targets – Two holes tested the potential of the Western BRX Extension Zone, where one holed drilled in 2021 cut 0.54 meters averaging 1,160 grams per metric ton gold. In addition to drilling, 1,700 meters of excavator trenching was completed over two areas hosting multi-element soil geochemical anomalies and another 632 soil samples were collected in areas of interest across the property.

• Geotechnical drilling – 16 geotechnical drill holes were completed for open pit designs in the prefeasibility. Additionally, 280 meters of sonic drilling in 16 holes was carried out to map overburden layers underneath the proposed tailings and mill site areas. Both the geotechnical and sonic drilling data will be used to support advanced studies required to complete the prefeasibility study.

• Metallurgy, tailings, and permitting – More than 1,000 kilograms of core samples were collected for prefeasibility level metallurgical testing, including pre-concentration, flotation, and concentrate optimization. The amenability of tailings to filtration will also be studied to further evaluate the potential for dry stack tailings disposal methods. Permitting-related studies continue with quarterly, ground and surface water sampling and weather monitoring.

"The 2022 program was designed to upgrade as many of the remaining inferred mineral resources to the indicated category as possible for their inclusion in the upcoming pre-feasibility study," said Rockhaven Resources CEO Matt Turner. "Additionally, all of the required information from site-based work was collected, which included geotechnical, ground stability, environmental and metallurgical data.

The company further states that the final results from the 2022 program will be released once assays have been received, compiled, and evaluated.

"We anticipate the completion of the fully-funded pre-feasibility study by mid-2023," said Turner. "Thanks to the hard work of our crews and contractors, we were able to stay within budget and accommodate an extra 2,000 meters of drilling which should add to the overall project economics. Additionally, we carried out a 10-day work program on some of our most compelling regional targets and eagerly await assays."