BULGOLD INC. The Lutila exploration licence covers an area of 32.2km-2, hosts a significant amount of target areas, is prospective for epithermal gold mineralisation and has been granted for an initial 4-year period.
Highlights
Large (35km-2) volcanic rock-hosted, low-sulfidation, quartz-adularia epithermal system.
Rhyolite flow dome complexes define a series of topographic highs within the licence area which cumulatively extend for approximately 10km; these rhyolite ridges are in turn surrounded by a large (27km-2) sinter field.
Limited historic exploration diamond drilling focused on the northeast portion of the property (along strike from the Kremnica gold deposit) where the sinters have been removed by erosion to expose silicified rhyolite flow domes with chalcedonic quartz veins containing low-grade gold and elevated arsenic and antimony values.
The sinter field has not been drill tested for gold mineralisation; it has been extensively drill tested for bentonite (average hole depth 20m).
The Company believes that the current land surface is approximately 200-300m above the precious metal zone (i.e., the low-sulfidation epithermal system is preserved) and it is the Company's opinion that the historic drilling had not tested the true potential of this large epithermal system.
The Property is located 5km south, along strike and within the same volcanic depression that hosts the historic quartz-adularia Kremnica gold deposit (current JORC (2012) mineral resource estimate of 2.7Moz Au).
Quote from the President & CEO, Mr
Background
On
During the first quarter of 2023, the Company was informed by Green View s.r.o. that the Lutila exploration area (No. 14675/2023) had been granted by the
The Company's Slovak subsidiary, Stredne Slovensko s.r.o., was informed by the
The Company is permitted to perform exploration activity on the property immediately.
About the
EU and
Established mining industry, clearly defined mining legislation.
No restrictions on foreign ownership. 21% corporate tax rate. 5% NSR for gold and silver.
The use of cyanide for extractive purposes has been prohibited since 2014.
Low-cost profiles, skilled local workforce.
Exploration licences can be held for a 10-year period (4+4+2).
The property is located near the northern margin of the Central Slovak Volcanic Field within an area dominated by north to north-northeast trending faults and post-andesite resurgent rhyolite flow domes and dykes. The faults are normal, extensional, and form a series of horsts and grabens that are extensions of the Banska Stiavnica caldera complex that lies several kilometres to the south.
The Company was attracted to the property for the following reasons:
The extensive sinter field which reflects the position of the paleosurface and is a surface indication of boiling at depth within an epithermal system which, if present, is preserved from erosion.
The historic exploration diamond drilling within the northeast portion of the property indicated that the silicified rhyolite flow domes +/- chalcedonic quartz veins did in fact contain gold mineralisation, which is important when assessing the upper, lower temperature parts of low-sulfidation epithermal vein systems.
The proximity to the historic Kremnica gold deposit, which is located along strike, 5km to the north and within the same volcanic depression and effectively informs the Company's exploration model was a key factor in acquiring the property.
Review of public domain data relating to the Kremnica gold deposit indicated that rhyolite dykes were intimately associated with and often well mineralised where they are cross-cut, or run parallel to quartz-adularia veins, thus indicating that extrusive rhyolite volcanism was likely a pre-mineral event.
Taken together, the above points indicate to the Company that the Kremnica gold deposit most likely has been subjected to approximately 200-300m of erosion, including the removal of sinters and the silicified rhyolite flow dome complex so as to expose the quartz-adularia vein system within andesite volcanic rocks at surface and coincident with the precious metal zone, which most likely accounts for the exploitation of the deposit over such a long period of time.
Taken further, the Company believes that the
Historians estimate that mining of the Kremnica gold deposit may have started as early as the 8th century AD and the town of Kremnica was granted privileges of a free royal mining town in 1328. Finka, 1995, through a review of historical documentation, estimated that approximately 46t Au (1.6Mozs) had been produced from the deposit with the Company assuming that overall recovery rates were poor.
Currently an Australian company,
Finally, it is worth noting that a second vein system is associated with the Kremnica gold deposit, known locally as the Vein II system which, according to Bakos et al, 2017, had vein thicknesses ranging from 0.1 to 2m (but with converging veins, the width may be up to 5m with a strike length of up to 1.6km). They have formed in the hanging wall position to the main Kremnica vein system and are located 650m to the east under the town of Kremnica. The Vein II system never outcropped at surface and was discovered serendipitously when a dewatering adit intercepted the quartz-adularia veins. Bakos et al, 2017 report high gold grades from this vein system.
This is not a mineral reserve or mineral resource that has been prepared in compliance with the requirements of National Instrument 43-101.
Due Diligence
The BULGOLD team has visited the property in support of its due diligence activities.
Within the sinter field the team field checked 80% of the outcropping siliceous sinters and confirmed that they were sinters which exhibit horizontal layering (laminations) and contain abundant flora and fauna fossils in the form of moulds and as replacement by low temperature opaline silica which is now chalcedonic quartz. The BULGOLD team also noted that some of the sinter occurrences are quite thick, up to 25m in some locations and are found at various topographic levels.
Within the northeast portion of the property the BULGOLD team field checked the silicified rhyolite flow dome complexes +/- chalcedonic quartz veins within the Certov vrch area and cut and slabbed the following float samples in the field (500mRL): The rock samples were strongly silicified, brecciated and banded chalcedonic quartz (colloform-crustiform) in rhyolite rocks from the area of the Certov vrch; minor marcasite +/- pyrite recognised in non-oxidized portions of the rock. The gold results were in line with what the Company would expect from their location within the upper, lower temperature part of a low-sulfidation epithermal quartz-adularia vein system.
A significant portion of the due diligence process involved review of public domain information on the Kremnica gold deposit as it has been subjected to various study work over the past fifteen years by various companies. In particular, the Company was interested in the metallurgical response of the quartz-adularia veins given that the
The Company was encouraged by this test work in that it shows that unoptimised gravity-flotation test work at an unknown grind size and using
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