Troilus expands Southwest zone on strike and down-dip

Drilling at the Southwest zone, 2.5 km southwest of the main mineral corridor at Troilus Gold’s (TSX: TLG) project in Quebec has stepped out the 2019 discovery by over 400 metres along strike and by up to 450 metres down-dip. An updated resource and pre-feasibility study for the project are expected in the second half of this year.

The single-asset developer has released assay results for five drillholes that extend this area of mineralization to the northeast, towards an area known as the ‘Gap Zone’, towards the major mineralized area, and below the pit shell defined in the preliminary economic assessment released towards the end of the summer.

Drill highlights from strike extension intercepts include 4 metres of 2.23 grams gold-equivalent per tonne; 2 metres of 2.48 grams gold-equivalent per tonne; and 5.7 metres of 1.14 grams gold-equivalent per tonne.

Notable results from drilling down-dip of the PEA pit shell included 1 metre of 5.03 grams gold-equivalent; 1 metre of 3.16 grams gold-equivalent; and 1 metre of 2.78 grams gold-equivalent.

“The Southwest Zone continues to grow and exceed our expectations. With each step-out hole the system extends further to the northeast towards the current limits of Z87 South – an area we now identify as the ‘Gap Zone’,” Justin Reid, Troilus Gold’s CEO, said in a news release. “This recent drilling has intersected targeted down-dip extensions of historic shallow drilling…”

Reid added that the prior shallow drilling, completed by Inmet in 1986, was abandoned after the discovery of the Z87 deposit.

Two drills are now working in the Gap Zone with a third rig expected to start shortly.

Jacques Wortman of Laurentian Bank Securities considers the latest results “slightly positive” and expects the Southwest Zone to play a “more prominent” role in the pre-feasibility. The mining analyst has a ‘buy’ rating and $3.8 target on the shares.

Southwest zone mineralization is made up of higher-grade gold intercepts within a broader mineralized zone, similar to Z87 with discoveries of new parallel zones as the drilling is extended with depth. Gold occurs in both sulphides and along the boundaries of quartz carbonate veins.

With 8,500 metres of drilling included in the latest resource, this zone contributes 22.6 million inferred tonnes grading 0.8 gram gold-equivalent to the property-wide resource of 177.3 million indicated tonnes grading 0.75 gram gold, 0.08% copper and 1.17 grams silver, and 116.7 million inferred tonnes at 0.73 gram gold, 0.07% copper and 1.04 grams silver.  Existing resources are contained within the Southwest, Z87 South, Z87 and J zones.

The Troilus property includes a past-producing gold and copper mine, which generated over 2 million gold oz. and 70,000 tonnes of copper from open-pit operations between 1996 and 2010. The site lies within the Frotet-Evans greenstone belt and is 170 km by road northeast of Chibougamau.