Last checked at 17 Jan 2012 07:00
Noricum Gold Limited / EPIC: NMG / Sector: Natural Resources
17 January 2012
Noricum Gold Limited (`Noricum Gold' or `the Company')
Complete Assay Results from 2011 Rotg¼lden Drilling Programme
Noricum Gold Limited, the Austrian focussed gold exploration and development company, is pleased to announce continued significant mineralisation from its 2011 1,800m drilling programme at the historically producing Rotg¼lden mine, located on the Company's 100% owned, 51 sq km Rotg¼lden gold and precious metal project in Austria (`Rotg¼lden' or `the Project').
Highlights
* Highly encouraging results from four of five drill holes highlight the presence of significant gold and silver mineralisation up to 3.1m @ 11.69g/ t Au and 44.2g/t Ag from 173.7m from BL 03 * Other significant intersections include: * + BL 05 - 2.3m @ 2.69g/t Au, 2.28g/t Ag from 180.3m + BL 05 - 1.5m @ 2.78g/t Au, 2.80g/t Ag from 265.5m + BL 05 - 1.2m @ 3.08g/t Au, 21.53g/t Ag from 274.9m + BL 07 - 0.5m @ 6.68g/t Au, 21.6g/t Ag from 224.8m * Down hole electromagnetic surveys completed and results to be announced in due course * Planning for 2012 resource drilling programme at historically producing mine and the Altenberg Valley target currently underway and progressing well
Noricum Gold Managing Director Greg Kuenzel said, "We are pleased to report the final results from our 2011 drill programme which highlights the presence of significant high grade gold and silver mineralisation at the historic Rotg¼lden mine. These intersections, along with the bonanza grade results returned during 2011 from multiple targets located on the extensions to the Rotg¼lden mineralisation along 8km of strike, provide us with a very strong exploration foundation for 2012.
"Importantly, the development of this year's work programme is now underway and having just completed a further electromagnetic survey and reconnaissance work, the data is currently being worked on by our consultants to be taken into consideration as we look to work towards defining a maiden resource at the highly prospective Rotg¼lden project."
2011 Drilling Programme
Drilling at Rotg¼lden has now been completed with a total of five holes being drilled to depths of between 250 and 300m. Drill holes BL 05 and BL 02 both intersected massive sulphide mineralisation, and the most significant intercepts, along with those from the previously reported BL 03 and BL 07 drill holes, have been listed below in Table 1. One hole drilled during the campaign, BL 04, intersected a fault zone near surface which deviated it significantly from surface to miss its target.
The drilling at Rotg¼lden was planned around electromagnetic (`EM') targets delineated by a previous EM survey conducted in August 2011. The drill holes were planned to intersect the EM targets so as to prove this method as an exploration tool not only at the existing mine but also along the southerly 8km strike through the Altenberg Valley where the mineralisation is similar to that found at the existing mine. These holes were also designed to provide infrastructure for a further down hole survey. This follow-up EM survey has just been completed and the data is in the process of being interpreted by the Company's consultants.
Table 1: 2011 significant drilling intercepts
Drill Hole From (m) Width (m) Au (g/t) Ag (g/t) BL_3 173.7 3.1 11.69 44.2 BL_5 180.3 2.3 2.69 2.28 BL_5 265.5 1.5 2.78 2.8 BL_5 274.9 1.2 3.08 21.53 BL_7 224.8 0.5 6.68 21.6 BL_5 183.7 5.3 0.48 9.95 BL_7 196.5 1.5 0.65 30.0 BL_5 257.7 0.5 1.67 9.2 BL_3 250 0.5 1.03 1.2 BL_2 243 5 0.01 4.7 BL_2 202 2 0.01 7.35 BL_2 177.7 1.3 0.03 4.5 2012 Exploration Update
The Company has commenced preparations for the 2012 field season already and consultation between the Company's geologists and stakeholders has been initiated with a view to developing the 2012 field work programmes. Company geologists will be defining a resource drilling campaign based on the results from previous drilling and EM programmes.
The 2012 field season will commence with an airborne EM survey over the entire Rotg¼lden licence area. This survey will include the highly prospective Altenberg, Schurfspitze and Kalte Seite targets. Sampling during 2011 returned gold results of up to 86.4g/t and multi-element results up to 1,011g/t silver and 4.49% copper from 92 samples taken from the Altenberg Valley.
As the 2011 drilling campaign was completed at surface, the mineralisation that was intersected from the historically producing Rotg¼lden mine is around and adjacent to the existing underground workings. Following the interpretation of the down hole EM results, it is likely that the 2012 drill programme will be conducted from within the existing mine workings to delineate this mineralisation by drilling underground to reduce metres and make target definition more accurate. This will make the definition of a maiden resource easier and the results more robust.
Just prior to the end of the field season, a reconnaissance field trip was conducted at the Altenberg Valley target, located within the 8km of prospective strike, which runs through Rotg¼lden. This field trip was conducted to design locations for camp infrastructure and drilling positions for the 2012 drill season.
Competent Person
The information in this report that relates to Exploration Results, Mineral Resources or Ore Reserves is based on information compiled by Jeremy Whybrow, who is a Member of The Australasian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy.
Jeremy Whybrow is a director of the company.
Jeremy Whybrow has sufficient experience, relevant to the style of mineralisation and type of deposit under consideration and to the activity which he is undertaking, to qualify as a Competent Person as defined in the 2004 Edition of the `Australasian Code for Reporting of Exploration Results, Mineral Resources and Ore Reserves'. Jeremy Whybrow consents to the inclusion in the report of the matters based on his information in the form and context in which it appears.
Glossary
Adit A type of entrance to an underground mine which is horizontal or nearly horizontal
Arsenopyrite An iron arsenic sulphide, FeAsS, often associated with gold mineralisation
Mineralised Containing ore minerals
Mineralisation The process by which minerals are introduced into a rock. More generally, a term applied to accumulations of economic or related minerals in quantities ranging from weakly anomalous to economically recoverable.
Geophysical
Survey A prospecting technique which measures the physical properties (magnetism, conductivity, density) of rocks and defines anomalies for further testing
Pyrite An iron sulphide mineral, FeS2
Pyrrhotite An unusual iron sulphide mineral with a variable iron content
Quartz A very common mineral in sedimentary, magmatic, metamorphic, and hydrothermal environments : SiO2
Sulphide a compound of sulphur and some other element that is more electropositive
Strike A geological term which describes a horizontal line on the surface of a dipping stratum. The strike is 90° to the dip of the stratum.
Vein/veinlet A fracture which has been filled by minerals which have crystallised from mineralised fluids.
**ENDS**
For further information please visit www.noricumgold.com or contact:
Greg Kuenzel Noricum Gold Limited Company Tel: 020 3326 1726 Roland Cornish Beaumont Cornish Limited Nomad Tel: 020 7628 3396 James Biddle Beaumont Cornish Limited Nomad Tel: 020 7628 3396 Michael Parnes Old Park Lane Capital plc Broker Tel: 020 7493 8188 Luca Tenuta Old Park Lane Capital plc Broker Tel: 020 7493 8188 Hugo de Salis St Brides Media & Finance Ltd PR Tel: 020 7236 1177 Elisabeth Cowell St Brides Media & Finance Ltd PR Tel: 020 7236 1177 Notes to Editors
Noricum Gold Limited is an AIM listed gold and precious metal exploration and development company focussed on south-central Austria, an historic gold producing region. Its portfolio spans five areas across 165 sq km of highly prospective land with work currently focussed on the 51 sq km Rotg¼lden gold and precious metals project, which consists of 15 underground mines including the previously operating gold/copper/silver Rotg¼lden mine, and the 49 sq km Kliening gold and precious metals project. The Company is actively conducting exploration programmes to advance these licences through the resource development cycle. Bonanza high grade gold, silver and copper results to date underpin the expanding and exciting potential of the projects and regional continuations.