Northgate buoyed by drill results at Young-Davidson

Vancouver – The initial holes drilled by Northgate Minerals (NGX-T, NXG-X) have intersected significant gold mineralization at the Young-Davidson property near Matachewan, Ont., with the best hole returning 8.38 grams gold per tonne over 7.62 metres.

Northgate describes Hole YD06-1A as “one of the best ever drilled on the property, when ranked by grade times thickness.” In addition to the 7.62-metre interval, the hole returned a second interval averaging 5.65 grams gold over 31.7 metres, which includes 10.35 grams over 12.2 metres. Another drill-hole intersected 22 metres grading 1.94 grams gold in footwall sediments previously not thought to be significantly mineralized. The company notes that this discovery “opens up additional exploration potential on the property.”

Northgate purchased the past-producing property last year and is a carrying out an exploration program to delineate resources primarily within an intrusive syenite host rock dipping at about 70 degrees. The US$3.8-million work program is focused on prospective zones surrounding and beneath known zones containing inferred resources.

Assuming ongoing positive results, the next step would be to upgrade resources to the measured and indicated categories, which would require drilling 600-metre to 1,500-metre holes aimed at intersecting the syenite host rocks at depths ranging from 300 metres to 1,220 metres.

In light of positive results to date, Northgate is considering ways to accelerate work on the property, where three drill rigs are presently turning. A fourth rig capable of drilling deeper holes is expected to be on site in May. The long-term objective is to outline resources with potential to be mined by low-cost underground methods.

Northgate notes that the property has a “demonstrated history of low-cost bulk underground mining, simple proven metallurgy, environmentally benign tailings and excellent infrastructure.”