Motherlode brings Tonogold to Alaska

Vancouver — Tonogold Resources (TNGL-Q) has inked a deal to explore for lode gold on Calista Corp.’s Nyac property, some 450 km west of Anchorage, Alaska.

Nyac hosts a placer gold dredging operation and lies within the Kuskokwin gold belt, which is thought to be the southwestern extension of the prolific Tintina gold belt of south-central Yukon. About 150 km east of Nyac, Tintina is home to the Donlin Creek gold deposit being developed by Placer Dome (PDG-T).

Nyac comprises 230 sq. km situated roughly 95 km east of Bethel, Alaska, and 485 km west of Anchorage in the southwest. The project is accessible via two small airstrips and, in the summer months, by barge along the Kuskokwim River.

La Jolla, Calif.-based Tonogold was drawn to the project by the discovery of placer gold in four drainages running through the property. The company believes the lode source of the placer gold is nearby and hopes to test its theory with a summer exploration program.

Plans call for surface geochemical sampling, mapping and exploration later this year, followed by drilling in 2006.

Tonogold will pay Calista, a native corporation, a yearly royalty and perform a minimum (yet unspecified) amount of exploration work each year, as well as contribute annually to the Calista Scholarship Fund, an initiative designed to further educate Alaskan natives. A net smelter return royalty is payable if Nyac goes into production.