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

Skeena Resources Ltd. Nov. 8 reported that its 2022 drilling has cut high-grade gold-silver mineralization to the south of and below the Eskay Creek open pit mine detailed in a feasibility study completed in September.

This operation is expected to produce 2.42 million ounces of gold and 66.7 million oz of silver over an initial nine years of mining based on the 46.5 million metric tons of open pit minable measured and indicated resources averaging 2.6 grams per metric ton (5.2 million oz) gold and 63.2 g/t (94.6 million oz) silver outlined at Eskay Creek prior to the study.

Further details on the feasibility study can be read at Study affirms robust Eskay Creek Mine in the September 9, 2022 edition of North of 60 Mining News.

With the goal of extending the longevity of the mine outlined in the feasibility study, Skeena's 2022 drill program is testing areas near the proposed open pit.

This includes drilling at 21A, a zone south of the planned open pit that was discovered toward the end of 2021. Highlights from the previously reported holes at 21A Zone include:

• 14.5 meters averaging 1.29 g/t gold and 36 g/t silver in hole SK-21-972.

• 11.7 meters averaging 1.77 g/t gold and 200 g/t silver in hole SK-21-983.

• 34 meters averaging 8.78 g/t gold and 13 g/t silver in hole SK-21-997.

• 46.8 meters averaging 1.74 g/t gold and 1.7 g/t silver in hole SK-22-1028.

• 12.2 meters averaging 47.5 g/t gold and 73.4 g/t silver in hole SK-22-1093.

The latest batch of results includes hole SK-22-1122, which cut 24 meters averaging 20.43 g/t gold and 175.2 g/t silver at 21A West.

Skeena says this hole, which is situated 15 meters below SK-22-1093, has expanded and predictably validated the geometry of the evolving 21A West Zone.

Skeena Resources Ltd.

As a result, to add additional resource to Eskay Creek, 21A Zone could improve the economics of the proposed mine by converting what was previously modeled as barren waste rock into ore.

In addition to 21A West, Skeena reports that new rhyolite-hosted gold-silver mineralization has also been intersected below the proposed Eskay Creek open pit.

Exploratory hole SK-22-1095 cut 20.6 meters averaging 5.39 g/t gold and 10.9 g/t silver about 25 meters below the planned 21A Zone pit floor. This discovery remains open for expansion.

Skeena's 2022 program at Eskay Creek included 55,652 meters of drilling in 215 holes. Results from this drilling will be incorporated into a resource update slated for completion in the second half of 2023.

Author Bio

Shane Lasley, Publisher

Over his more than 16 years of covering mining and mineral exploration, Shane has become renowned for his ability to report on the sector in a way that is technically sound enough to inform industry insiders while being easy to understand by a wider audience.

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