TREK-31 gold project optioned to Pacific
Imperial Mines for a net smelter return royalty, cash, and
exploration expenses
VANCOUVER, BC, Oct. 13, 2020 /CNW/ - (TSXV: OGN) Orogen
Royalties Inc. ("Orogen" or the "Company") is pleased to announce
that it has optioned the TREK-31 gold property in the Nechako
Plateau of British Columbia to
Pacific Imperial Mines Inc. (TSX:PPM) ("Pacific Imperial").
Pacific Imperial can earn up to a 100% interest in the TREK-31
project making cash payments totaling $1.3
million and spending $3.0
million in exploration expenditures over a five-year
period. Once Pacific Imperial has obtained a 100% interest,
Orogen will retain a 3% net smelter return royalty ("NSR") on the
TREK-31 claims of which 1% can be purchased for $3.0 million.
"Orogen's generative exploration programs utilize government
funded exploration including those from Geoscience BC to identify
projects like TREK-31," commented Orogen CEO Paddy Nicol. "The Nechako region is an
underexplored area of British
Columbia that has been validated by Artemis Gold's
Blackwater gold-silver deposit with reserves of 8.0 million ounces
of gold and 62.3 million ounces silver1. We are
pleased to have Pacific Imperial Mines advance exploration at the
TREK-31 project."
About the TREK-31 Property
TREK 31 is a gold-in-till anomaly located 30 kilometres
northeast (Figure 1) of Artemis Gold's Blackwater gold-silver
deposit. The property covers 'Target 31' from Geoscience BC's
$4.0 million TREK initiative that
identified a strong, continuous area of anomalism with no specific
mineral association (porphyry versus epithermal) and no known
source. Property highlights include:
- TREK 31 covers one of the largest and strongest geochemical
anomalies identified in Geoscience BC's $4.0
million TREK initiative
- Early exploration by Orogen has outlined a 2.3 kilometre by 900
metre gold-in-till anomaly situated down ice of a major structural
break between rocks of the Stikine Terrane and magnetic rocks
interpreted to be volcanic and intrusive rocks of Eocene age
- Potential for a Blackwater-like exploration target marked by
extensive quartz-sericite-pyrite alteration with identifiable
geochemical and geophysical footprints
The Nechako plateau is a region known to host porphyry and
epithermal mineral systems within rocks of the Stikine Terrane, an
accreted island arc composed of volcanic and sedimentary rocks from
Devonian to Jurassic age. In the Nechako Plateau, rocks of the
Stikine Terrane include black shale and siltstone of Triassic age,
overlain unconformably by the Hazelton Group which consists of
pyroxene-phyric basalt flows, volcanic sandstone and conglomerate
and tuffaceous conglomerate. Rocks of the Stikine terrane
are, in turn, intruded and unconformably overlain by alkaline
intrusive and volcanic rocks from Late Cretaceous to Eocene in
age.
Figure 1: TREK 31 Location Map
The geology of the TREK 31 claims includes limited exposures of
Lower and Middle Jurassic Hazelton Group basaltic to andesitic lava
flows that are interlayered with tuff, volcanic breccia and
sedimentary rocks. The center of the property is dominated by Ootsa
Lake andesite and rhyolite of Eocene age and Neogene Chilcotin Lake
basaltic flows (Figure 2). Most of the TREK 31 property is
covered by basal till, and the geology has largely been interpreted
from high-resolution aeromagnetic surveys.
Figure 2. Bedrock Geology of TREK 31 (after Angen
2017)
The Nechako Plateau remains underexplored due to extensive till
cover. Discovery of the Blackwater-Davidson deposit, a disseminated gold-silver
deposit containing 8.0M ounces of
gold and 62.3M ounces of silver in
proven and probable reserves1 confirms the endowment of
a class of porphyry/intermediate-sulphidation metal systems
associated with rhyolitic epicenters in the region.
Blackwater-Davidson and the
similar Capoose and Newton deposits are large exploration targets
marked by extensive quartz-sericite alteration (which can be mapped
with IP geophysical surveys) and polymetallic geochemical
signatures.
Orogen conducted two campaigns of field work on the TREK 31
property to constrain the source of the gold-in-till anomalism and
to provide a vector towards a bedrock source.
Orogen Sampling Program
Orogen completed a tight grid of basal till sampling in 2018 to
confirm a highly anomalous TREK sample that included 7 gold grains
with anomalous silver, arsenic, mercury, copper and zinc.
Additional sampling in 2019 consisted of till samples at nominal
250 metre spacing on three lines normal to ice direction and spaced
roughly 1.5 to 2 kilometres apart.
ICP-MS analysis of the clay fraction and gold grain separations
identify a roughly 2.3 by 0.9 kilometre gold-silver-arsenic-copper
anomaly down ice of a pronounced geophysical break and magnetic
high (Figure 3). Ultrafine gold values to 33 parts per
billion (ppb) are markedly anomalous in the context of the larger
TREK till study where the median ultrafine gold value was 2 ppb and
the 99th percentile was 10 ppb gold (van Geffen
2017)2. Anomalous gold values in the clay fraction are
supported by anomalous silver, arsenic, mercury, copper and
zinc. The sample with the 33 ppb gold value in the clay
fraction returned a gold grain count of 25 that includes 7 pristine
gold grains. Cinnabar is also present in abundance in several
of the gold grain separations. Sampling this season also
identified a second gold-in-till anomaly approximately four
kilometres east of the original TREK anomaly.
Figure 3. Gold in basal till over Reduced to Pole Total
Magnetic Intensity. Black circle highlights till anomaly and arrow
represents till transport direction.
Pacific Imperial plans to complete an Induced Polarization (IP)
geophysical survey across the source area of the till anomaly to
identify areas of anomalous chargeability and resistivity for
testing with a drilling program from existing logging
roads.
About the TREK 31 Option Agreement
Under the terms of the Agreement, Pacific Imperial can earn a
100% interest in the TREK 31 project by completing the
following:
|
Aggregate
Exploration Expenditures (CDN)
|
Cash Payments
(CDN)
|
|
Within 6 months of
Effective Date (October 6)
|
-
|
$20,000*
|
|
1st
Anniversary of Effective Date
|
$300,000
|
$30,000
|
|
2nd
Anniversary of Effective Date
|
$1,000,000
|
$50,000
|
|
3rd
Anniversary of Effective Date
|
$1,500,000
|
$100,000
|
|
4th
Anniversary of Effective Date
|
$2,000,000
|
$100,000
|
|
5th
Anniversary of Effective Date
|
$3,000,000
|
$1,000,000
|
|
TOTAL
|
$3,000,000
|
$1,300,000
|
* Firm commitment, all other payments are at the option of
Pacific Imperial.
Upon earning a 100% interest in the TREK-31 project, Pacific
Imperial will grant to Orogen a 3% NSR whereby 1% of the NSR can be
purchased for $3.0 million.
Pacific Imperial will also make annual advance cash payments
of $50,000 to Orogen to be set off
against the 1% royalty buy back.
QA/QC Procedures
Samples were delivered to ALS Global in Terrace, BC for sample preparation and to the
ALS laboratory in North Vancouver
for analysis. The ALS facilities have ISO/IE 17025:2005
certification. Two blank samples and two standards (OREAS
45E) were inserted into the ALS sample stream.
Qualified Person Statement
Orogen's disclosure of technical and scientific information in
this news release has been reviewed by Dave
Groves, Vice President, Exploration for Orogen. Mr.
Groves is a Certified Professional Geologist (#11456) with the
American Institute of Professional Geologists and a Qualified
Person under the definition of National Instrument 43-101.
About Orogen Royalties
Orogen Royalties Inc. is engaged in project generation for
precious and base metal discoveries in western North America with a focus on organic royalty
creation and royalty acquisitions. Orogen's royalty portfolio
includes the Ermitaño West gold deposit in Sonora, Mexico (2% NSR) being developed by
First Majestic Silver Corp. and the Silicon gold project (1% NSR)
in Nevada, USA, being developed by
AngloGold Ashanti N.A. The Company is well financed with several
projects actively being developed by joint venture partners.
On Behalf of the Board
OROGEN ROYALTIES
INC.
Paddy Nicol
President & CEO
Orogen Royalties Inc.
1201 - 510 West Hastings Street
Vancouver, BC
Canada V6B 1L8
info@orogenroyalties.com
Notes
- Artemis Gold Inc. Reserves and Resources.
https://www.artemisgoldinc.com/projects/blackwater-gold-project-bc-canad/reserves-and-resources/
- Van Geffen, P. (2017):
Enhanced Geochemical Signal in the Ultra-Fine Fraction of Tills
from the Trek Project. Presentation at the BC Geoscience TREK
workshop, October 17, 2017.
Forward Looking Information
This news release
includes certain statements that may be deemed "forward looking
statements". All statements in this presentation, other than
statements of historical facts, that address events or
developments that Orogen Royalties Inc. (the "Company") expect to
occur, are forward looking statements. Forward looking statements
are statements that are not historical facts and are generally, but
not always, identified by the words "expects", "plans",
"anticipates", "believes", "intends", "estimates", "projects",
"potential" and similar expressions, or that events or conditions
"will", "would", "may", "could" or "should" occur.
Forward looking information relates to statements concerning the
Company's future outlook and anticipated events or results, as well
as the Company's management expectations with respect to the
proposed business combination (the "Transaction"). This document
also contains forward-looking statements regarding the anticipated
completion of the Transaction and timing thereof. Forward-looking
statements in this document are based on certain key expectations
and assumptions made by the Company, including expectations and
assumptions concerning the receipt, in a timely manner, of
regulatory and stock exchange approvals in respect of the
Transaction.
Although the Company believe the expectations expressed in such
forward looking statements are based on reasonable assumptions,
such statements are not guarantees of future performance and actual
results may differ materially from those in the forward looking
statements. Factors that could cause the actual results to differ
materially from those in forward looking statements include market
prices, exploitation and exploration successes, and continued
availability of capital and financing, and general economic, market
or business conditions. Furthermore, the extent to which
COVID-19 may impact the Company's business will depend on future
developments such as the geographic spread of the disease, the
duration of the outbreak, travel restrictions, physical distancing,
business closures or business disruptions, and the effectiveness of
actions taken in Canada and other
countries to contain and treat the disease. Although it is not
possible to reliably estimate the length or severity of these
developments and their financial impact as of the date of approval
of these condensed interim consolidated financial statements,
continuation of the prevailing conditions could have a significant
adverse impact on the Company's financial position and results of
operations for future periods.
Investors are cautioned that any such statements are not
guarantees of future performance and actual results or developments
may differ materially from those projected in the forward looking
statements. Forward looking statements are based on the beliefs,
estimates and opinions of the Company's management on the date the
statements are made. Except as required by securities laws, the
Company undertakes no obligation to update these forward looking
statements in the event that management's beliefs, estimates or
opinions, or other factors, should change.
SOURCE Orogen Royalties Inc.
