Apollo Gold advancing Black Fox development

Vancouver – Drilling by Apollo Gold (APG-T) on its wholly owned Black Fox gold project, located near Matheson in northeastern Ontario, has met with ongoing success.

The company continues its aggressive program of surface and underground drilling since acquiring the advanced stage gold project in mid-2002. Present drilling is being conducted by three surface rigs and four underground rigs. To date, almost 390 surface core holes totaling close to 122,000 metres have been drilled by the company. Additionally, a program of over 100 underground holes totaling almost 26,000 metres has been conducted.

The latest round of underground drilling has further confirmed the continuity of the main zone of gold mineralization. Results include:

• Hole 235-4 The underground hole intersected 13.9 metres (from 86 metres) averaging 20.46 grams gold per tonne;
• Hole 235-12 An intercept of 7.2 metres (from 98.5 metres) graded 15.96 grams gold;
• Hole 235-39 The hole cut 2.3 metres (from 176 metres) of high-grade mineralization assayed at 46.16 grams gold; further down hole (from 181 metres), a 5.8 metre interval returned 4.25 grams;
• Hole 235-46 A very high grade intersection of 2.2 metres (from 106.5 metres) returned 305.47 grams gold.

Underground drilling is being conducted at 12.5-metre spacing for utilization in a planned underground reserve calculation.

Additionally, the latest surface drill program has tied into a new area of gold and base metal mineralization, outside of the main zone and north of the Destor-Porcupine fault. The results include:

• Hole 04BF368 An interval of 3.9 metres (from 105 metres) graded 339 grams silver per tonne, 15.65% lead and 16.53% zinc;
• Hole 04BF368 The hole cut 3.6 metres (from 98 metres) averaging 105 grams silver, 3.12% lead and 3.17% zinc; further downhole, an intercept of 3.3 metres returned 16.5 grams gold and 11.2 grams silver; still further downhole, a 2 metre interval assayed 9.5 grams gold, 6.1 grams silver, 0.2% lead and 1.08% zinc.

This newly identified zone of lead-zinc mineralization shows aspects of a gold over print episode.

The Black Fox project is located in the Abitibi Greenstone Belt, on the 200 km. long, east-west trending Destor-Porcupine fault. This mineralized belt hosts a score of mines that have produced in excess of 70 million ounces of gold.

The main gold mineralized zone is hosted in moderate-to-steeply dipping ultramafic (komatiites) and mafic units transected by the Destor-Porcupine fault. Gold is associated with a 20-100 metre wide zone of ankerite (an iron rich dolomite) alteration. The alteration zone is cut by numerous felsic dikes and sills. Within the altered ultramafics, gold occurs predominantly as free gold in quartz veins and stockworks, and is associated with pyrite in the altered mafic volcanics.

Mineralized zones remain open to depth and along strike.

Production at the Glimmer mine was suspended in mid-2001 due to depressed gold prices. The underground mine was operational from 1997 through to May 2001, producing an average of almost 50,000 oz. of gold annually.

In its feasibility study, currently underway, Apollo Gold envisions a combined open pit and underground operation at Black Fox. The study, being undertaken in conjunction with permitting, is expected to be completed by mid-2005.

The project has a proven and probable reserve of 2.95 million tonnes grading 4.81 grams gold per tonne (457,100 oz gold).

There is an additional measured and indicated resource of 1.44 million tonnes grading 4.78 grams gold (221,500 oz gold) on the project, plus inferred resources of 2.14 million tonnes of 4.8 grams (330,300 oz gold).

As of the latest figures, the company reports 79.6 million shares outstanding, with the issue trading in the range of 90-$1.00 per share, near its 52-week low.