The project is located in northwest
Highlights
A 100 m southern step-out at the Mary porphyry deposit returned 0.43 g/t Au Eq over 438 m (0.26 g/t Au, 0.043% Cu, and 36 ppm Mo; hole M-23-006) and is the first-ever hole into barren cover rocks that significantly expands the prospective area.
A high-level setting, indicated by epithermal veins at Mary (3 m of 811 g/t Ag; M-23-006), suggest potential for an increase in disseminated porphyry copper grades at deeper levels.
A 1,000 m southeastern step-out from Mary delineated a large alteration body below the barren cover at the
Drilling at Cliff Porphyry is the first to test a sizeable 300 by 150 m quartz stockwork body separated from the Mary deposit by >1,400 m to south-southwest across a drape of barren cover rock. Initial test of stockwork returned 114 m of 0.2% Cu Eq. (0.114% Cu, 0.04 Au, 67 ppm Mo; hole M-23-001).
Summary
The Mary deposit is one of three advanced targets on the HWY 37 Project in addition to the Williams Cu-Au porphyry deposit and the Hank Au-Ag epithermal deposit. The Mary porphyry system is located 9 km from
Drilling at the Mary deposit in 2023 expanded the northerly strike length from 360 m to 450 m and increased the width to 240 m (Figs. 1 and 2). No previous programs have drilled beneath the cover rock (Fig. 2) to determine the economic potential of geological units, and these drill holes demonstrate that alteration projects under cover in a large region. The cover unit represents a significant untested target area that measures 1 x 1 km and is flanked by a significant stockwork body at Cliff to the south, a broad flanking-type porphyry alteration pattern to the east at
The Cliff stockwork body was tested by two holes - one to test the width extent and a second to test the depth extent. Compared to the Mary deposit, drilling intercepted a unique and more felsic phase of intrusion with a higher quartz vein abundance, a low gold to copper ratio, and high relative molybdenum to gold. The Cliff porphyry is interpreted as a relatively small, younger phase emplaced at the margin of a km-scale, zoned porphyry system represented in part by the Mary deposit and the
Mary Deposit Drilling
Hole M-23-006 successfully expanded both the strike-length and width of the Mary deposit with 0.43 Au Eq. over 438 m and also verified that significant exploration potential exists below the barren cover. Descriptions of the drill holes are available in a previous news release (
Drilling at the Mary deposit in 2023 expanded the northerly strike length from 360 m to 450 m and increased the width to 240 m. The Mary deposit dimensions are yet to be fully delineated, and significant potential exists under cover to the south and southeast.
Previous groups have been deterred from drilling below the barren cover unit due to the absence of geochemical anomalism. Holes M-23-005 and -006 are the first to collar in this geochemical 'dead zone' and demonstrate that this draped cover conceals a large porphyry alteration system.
The very high gold to copper ratios and presence of narrow high-grade silver at Mary, with 811 g/t Ag over 3 m,are unusual for a porphyry deposit. In the upper couple hundred meters of the deposit, the gold to copper ratio ranges 8:1 to 6:1 and at mid-levels the gold to copper ratio is slightly higher at around 2:1. The high-gold metal ratios and epithermal textures near surface at Mary reflect the highest reaches of a porphyry system. Such systems commonly grade vertically into copper-dominant domains at depth.
Significant exploration potential exists for vertical zonation down to a copper-rich body at Mary. There are many examples in the region where gold-rich or gold-only porphyry deposits were discovered at surface and copper-rich bodies were eventually drilled below those levels. Examples include the deeper levels of the Goldstorm deposit (
Two holes at the Mary Root Zone Target were drilled at a spacing of 170 m (Fig. 2). Broad anomalous gold and zinc were intercepted, such as 241.7 m of 0.16 g/t Au, and 0.13% Zn . A third hole was planned and a drill pad built to test the highest value chargeability anomaly, 260 m north of M-23-002, but slow drilling conditions at the Mary deposit (holes M-23-005 and -006) prevented the completion of the planned third hole during the 2023 program. For hole descriptions, see previous news release (
The area of drilling tests the margin of the barren cover rock and reflects a geochemical signature consistent with a flanking (alongside) or overlying domain to a gold-bearing porphyry. Broad zinc anomalism was intercepted throughout both holes (Fig. 8), such zinc anomalism is known both locally and regionally to be situated proximal to Cu-Au porphyry deposits. The width of the anomalous zinc intercepts (Fig. 8) at the
Copper values at the
The Company interprets the
Future Plans
The Company is currently evaluating the extensive database of historical exploration and geological information in addition to our 2023 exploration results at the HWY 37 Project. Kingfisher is working toward the first-ever geological and structural 3D model for both the Mary and Hank-Williams regions. In 2023, Kingfisher completed the first-ever project-scale 3D inversion of historical airborne magnetic data and the first-ever 3D IP inversion of the Mary area. These new valuable datasets are currently being integrated with new 2023 geological surface mapping at Mary and at Hank areas for target generation and refinement.
In the summer of 2023, Kingfisher applied for a 5-year multi-year area-based permit (MYAB) covering the Hank portion of the HWY 37 Project. Hank is host to the Hank epithermal Au-Ag deposit with intercepts including 11.63 g/t Au over 20 m (HNK-18-010) across a 6 km long trend of mineralization. The Hank area is also host to the 2017 discovery of the Williams porphyry deposit with intercepts including 0.34% Cu and 0.42 g/t Au over 318.73 m (HNK-18-013). The Company believes that there is significant discovery potential for both Brucejack-type intermediate sulfidation epithermal Au-Ag as well as Cu-Au porphyry deposits in the Hank portion of the project. It is anticipated that the Company will receive the 5-year drill permit in advance of the 2024 drill program and Kingfisher intends to focus on exploring both the Mary porphyry and Hank epithermal area targets with drilling in 2024.
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Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements
Mineralization hosted on adjacent and/or nearby properties is not necessarily indicative of mineralization hosted on the Company's property. This news release contains forward-looking statements, which relate to future events or future performance and reflect management's current expectations and assumptions. Such forward-looking statements reflect management's current beliefs and are based on assumptions made by and information currently available to the Company. All statements, other than statements of historical fact, are forward-looking statements or information. Forward-looking statements or information in this news release relate to, among other things: formulation of plans for drill testing and the success related to any future exploration or development programs.
These forward-looking statements and information reflect the Company's current views with respect to future events and are necessarily based upon a number of assumptions that, while considered reasonable by the Company, are inherently subject to significant operational, business, economic and regulatory uncertainties and contingencies. These assumptions include; success of the Company's projects; prices for gold remaining as estimated; currency exchange rates remaining as estimated; availability of funds for the Company's projects; capital, decommissioning and reclamation estimates; prices for energy inputs, labour, materials, supplies and services (including transportation); no labour- related disruptions; no unplanned delays or interruptions in scheduled construction and production; all necessary permits, licenses and regulatory approvals are received in a timely manner and the ability to comply with environmental, health and safety laws. The foregoing list of assumptions is not exhaustive.
The Company cautions the reader that forward-looking statements and information involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause actual results and developments to differ materially from those expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements or information contained in this news release and the Company has made assumptions and estimates based on or related to many of these factors. Such factors include, without limitation: risks related to fluctuations in gold prices; fluctuations in prices for energy inputs, labour, materials, supplies and services (including transportation); fluctuations in currency markets (such as the Canadian dollar versus the
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