Corvus uncovers high-grade zone at North Bullfrog

VANCOUVER — It’s been a bountiful year for explorer Corvus Gold (TSX: KOR) at its North Bullfrog project, 15 km north of Beatty, Nev. The company is in the midst of a 20,000-metre drill program at the site, and has kept a strong discovery rate while unveiling potential vein systems around its resource-stage Yellowjacket deposit, where mineralization occurs as native gold and silver sulphides in quartz veins. The Yellowjacket system is nearly a kilometre in strike length, 200 metres downdip and open in all directions.

On Sept. 4 Corvus reported that it had discovered a high-grade, gold–silver zone east of the main Josh vein, which it believes could represent another parallel system. The company intersected the Josh vein and its surrounding stockwork, and tested a parallel target to the east of the main vein zone called the Rhyolite zone, where discovery hole 14-392 cut 11.3 metres averaging 3.3 grams gold per tonne and 4 grams silver per tonne from 251 metres deep.

The announcement marked the second notable discovery for Corvus this year, with the first being the West vein, which was uncovered when drill hole 14-378 intersected a vein system with massive quartz veining enriched in native gold and silver sulphide, and located 50 metres west of Yellowjacket. The hole cut 9.2 metres at 17.9 grams gold and 260 grams silver starting from 83.4 metres depth.

Corvus has extended mineralization at Yellowjacket via drilling at the Josh and West veins. The vein zone within Yellowjacket is defined by the Josh vein–West vein structural zone to the west and the Liberator Fault to the east. Recent exploration has tested the southern limits of the West–Josh zone, as well as the northern extension of the Josh vein.

To the south, hole 14-387 returned 28 metres of 1 gram gold and 6 grams silver from 150 metres depth, which extends the continuity of the Josh vein 60 metres downdip and 50 metres south along strike. Meanwhile, stepout drilling to the north is highlighted by 18 metres of 8.5 grams gold and 34 grams silver from 117 metres depth in hole 14-391; and 9.3 metres at 1.9 grams gold and 12 grams silver from 212 metres depth in hole 14-392.

CEO Jeff Pontius says in the release that the results “illustrate the potential of the Yellowjacket system and its ability to grow … an important example of this growth potential is the high-grade mineralization within the new Rhyolite zone and its similarity to initial holes in the West vein discovery made earlier this year. The continued expansion of the Yellowjacket zone along strike and at depth highlights the so far unconstrained potential of this high-grade discovery.”

The inaugural estimate for Yellowjacket pegs resources at 4 million indicated tonnes grading 0.97 gram gold and 5.15 grams silver, as well as 35.6 million inferred tonnes at 0.7 gram gold and 3.86 grams silver, for a contained 925,000 oz. gold and 5.1 million oz. silver, based on a 0.3-gram-gold cut-off grade.

The company has also outlined a large, lower-grade oxide resource across five deposits at Bullfrog, namely: Sierra Blanca, Air Track West, Jolly Jane, Mayflower and Connection. The oxide resource totals 242 million inferred tonnes at 0.18 gram gold and 0.63 gram silver for 1.4 million contained oz. gold and 4.9 million contained oz. silver.

Corvus began the second phase of its 2014 program at Bullfrog in early September, with a second core rig mobilized to site. The company will keep chasing the downdip extention at Josh, and intends to pursue other parallel vein discoveries similar to West vein and Rhyolite.

In late Augsut the company closed a $6.2-million private placement wherein it issued 5.2 million shares at a price of $1.20 per share, with the proceeds to fund drilling through year-end. Corvus intends to incorporate its 2014 drill results in an updated preliminary economic assessment.

Corvus shares have traded within a 52-week range of 97¢ to $2.18, and closed at $1.42 at press time. The company has 76 million shares outstanding for a $108-million market capitalization.