Ascot advances Premier BC gold assets

Ascot Resources Ltd. June 27 reported that it is making significant headway towards its goal of resuming operations at its past producing Premier gold mine and developing new mines on its other properties near Stewart, a historic mining town at the southern gate of British Columbia's Golden Triangle.

Ascot's landholdings in the Stewart area include Premier, a 100-square-kilometer (39 square miles) land package that hosts the past producing Premier and Big Missouri mines; Silver Coin, an adjacent property that also provided ore to the mill at Premier; and Red Mountain, another gold-silver asset gained through the acquisition of IDM Mining.

Premier, which still hosts the mill and other infrastructure from past mining, is central to Ascot's plans to resume and start mining at all of these properties around Stewart. As such, this property is a primary focus of the company's activities this year.

These activities include drilling aimed at upgrading and expanding the high-grade gold resources across three deposit areas on the expanded Premier property – Northern Lights, Big Missouri Ridge and Silver Coin.

"The 2019 drill program is off to a very good start and excellent progress is being made on a number of parallel development activities at the site," said Ascot Resources President and CEO Derek White. "The company commenced drilling in April at Northern Lights and once the snow cleared in mid-May, moved to the Big Missouri Ridge where to date approximately 13,500 meters of drilling have been completed."

The company has received assay results from the first 18 holes of this drill program.

This first batch of assays include results from 12 holes (2,375 meters) drilled in two fans to the southwest of the historical S1 pit at Big Missouri, a resource area about six kilometers (four miles) north of the Premier mill.

The best hole is P19-1891, which cut three zones of high-grade gold mineralization.

P19-1891 cut one meter averaging 66.3 grams per metric ton gold and 23 g/t silver from a depth of 4.3 meters; 7.85 meters of 5.05 g/t gold and 4.18 g/t silver at 153.05 meters, including 1.9 meters of 16.2 g/t gold and 11 g/t silver; and 13.5 meters of 4.48 g/t gold and 4.61 g/t silver from 181.5 meters, including 1.2 meters of 33.2 g/t gold and 15 g/t silver.

The Big Missouri zone coincides with the bottom of the S1 pit that was mined by Westmin Resources Ltd. in the 1990s.

The three layers of mineralization encountered in P19-1891 are well established by numerous drill holes and have been modeled for a resource estimate completed in December.

According to this latest resource calculation, Big Missouri hosts 539,000 metric tons of indicated resource averaging 8.19 g/t (142,000 oz) gold and 20.5 g/t (355,000 oz) silver; and 2.25 million metric tons of inferred resource averaging 8.25 g/t (596,000 oz) gold and 18.4 g/t (1.33 million oz) silver.

This early 2019 drilling at Big Missouri is largely focused on upgrading this resource.

Silver Coin property, which is south of Big Missouri, is the next drill target for the 2019 program.

In addition to the drilling at Big Missouri, six holes were completed at the western edge of Northern Lights, a high-grade gold zone very close to the Premier mill building.

The Premier-Northern Lights deposit hosts 1.25 million metric tons of indicated resource averaging 6.97 g/t (281,000 oz) of gold and 30.2 g/t (1.22 million oz) silver; and 1.74 million metric tons of inferred resource averaging 5.95 g/t (333,000 oz) gold and 24.2 g/t (1.35 million oz) silver.

The Northern Lights zone remains poorly defined at its western end and is open to upgrade and expansion in this area.

Hole P19-1876, drilled in this western area, cut 15.55 meters averaging 2.47 g/t gold and 24.69 g/t silver, including 4.5 meters of 6.49 g/t gold and 73.89 g/t silver.

The other five holes are step-out holes testing the presence of mineralization towards the contact with the overlying Betty Creek formation. Four holes intercepted anomalous gold, but mineralization appears to be weakening in the direction of the contact to the overlying formation.

While the drills are turning, Ascot is completing engineering and other studies needed for developing a mine at Premier and its other properties in the Stewart area.

With the acquisition of IDM Mining, the company owns four key resource areas on two properties near the northwest B.C. mining town, all with substantial historical underground workings.

IDM published a feasibility study for Red Mountain that needs to be updated with the results of successful drilling carried out on the property last year.

An updated resource calculation that includes this drilling, which discovered multiple new zones, is currently underway. The resulting resource will be the base of an updated feasibility study for Red Mountain.

In addition, Ascot is carrying out advanced engineering studies needed to re-activate the Premier mining permits to active status.

"Ascot has also progressed a significant amount of engineering and environmental studies as we continue to advance our Mines Act Permit Amendment application at Premier and engineering studies both at Red Mountain and Premier," said White. "This is a very busy and exciting year for Ascot, and I look forward to more promising results as we continue to progress the development and exploration of this part of the Golden Triangle."

–SHANE LASLEY