Desert Gold Ventures Inc. Secures Rights to Strategic Property in Western Mali
Delta, July 2, 2020 - Desert Gold Ventures Inc. (TSXV: DAU) (FSE: QXR2) (OTC Pink: DAUGF) ("Desert Gold" or "the Company") is pleased to announce that it has acquired the rights to a 95% interest in the Sola West concession. The 16 km2 Sola West concession, fills a strategic, approximate 4 km property gap, on the Company's Senegal Mali Shear Zone ('SMSZ') Project between the northeast-trending Barani East Zone, with intercepts to 7.83 g/t gold over 13* metres, and the recently drilled Soa Prospect, which returned an intercept of 2.02 g/t gold over 30* metres (see Figure 1). There is no recorded drill testing at Sola West. Including the Sola West Concession, Desert Gold's SMSZ Project is now approximately 410 km2. The SMSZ Project is both named after and overlies a 38 km section of the Senegal Mali Shear Zone (see Figures 1. and 2.), which is related to 5 large mines located to the north and south, along strike, including B2 Gold's Fekola Mine, Barrick's Gounkoto and Loulo Mines and AngloGold Ashanti/Iamgold's Sadiola and Yatela Mines1. To the Company's knowledge, its SMSZ Project is the largest, contiguous, non-producer land package over this very prospective structural feature.
Desert Gold's CEO Jared Scharf commented "We're very pleased with the continued expansion of our SMSZ Project. Filling gaps like Sola West are important given the fact that the mineralized systems both to the northeast and southwest, along strike, likely continue onto the Sola West property package. The presence of significant artisanal mining and strong gold-in-soil anomalies further augment the perspectivity of Sola West. Weather and time permitting, we plan to drill test some of these targets during our current drill program.
SMSZ Project Exploration Update
Desert Gold's SMSZ exploration program is ongoing with one combination diamond/RC/AC drill and two auger drills, with a 3rd auger drill expected to arrive on the weekend. To date, 9 RC holes totaling 1,136 metres, were completed over the Gourbassi East and West Zones. Core drilling has now commenced at the Gourbassi Zones. Once drilling is completed at Gourbassi, the drill will begin testing the Barani East Zone and 30 air core targets in the Barani East area. The auger drilling is proceeding rapidly with 247 holes completed totaling 2,233 metres. Approximately 10,000 metres of auger drilling is planned. Results will be presented in late July or early August once assays have been received and interpreted.
About the Sola West Concession
The Sola West concession hosts the Kolon artisanal mining area (see Figure 2) and the southern extension of the Soa Prospect target area. The Kolon site covers a 350 metre by 150 metre area comprising 3 large open pits with 2 pits approximately 100 metres long by 10 to 20 metres wide and 5 to 10 metres deep (see photos below). This area is located along the same interpreted northeast-trending structural corridor that hosts the Barani East and Soa zones. Mapping and sampling of these and additional nearby workings has commenced. Artisanal mining has focused on narrow, north-east and northerly trending quartz veins. Time permitting, a line of air core holes is planned during the exploration program to cross over the location of the inferred northeast-trending structure and several high-quality soil anomalies.
A review of soil and artisanal mining sites on the concession has resulted in the delineation of 4 larger target areas. As well, there are 13 gold-in-soil anomalies, >200 ppb gold, to 1,368 ppb gold, that lie outside and the target areas, that could also represent exploration targets (Figure 2). The target areas represent clusters of gold-in-soil anomalies often associated with artisanal mining areas. Auger, air core and RC drilling are planned over all of the target areas. Auger drilling will be carried out over target areas with laterite and/or alluvial cover. RC and air core holes will test below artisanal mining areas and across select gold-in-soil anomalies where fresh rock is deemed close to surface.
Figure 1 - Property Compilation Map
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*All gold grades over width, with the exception of the Soa prospect, represent drill holes with the true widths, for most holes, ranging from 70 to 95%. **The Soa Prospect result is from a trench with true widths unknown. Estimated true widths for the Berola Prospect are unknown. True widths at the Gourbassi Zones range are estimated to range from 60% to 90%.
Figure 2 - Sola West Compilation Map
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Kolon - Pit 1
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Kolon - Pit 2
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Kolon - Pit 3
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QAQC
All AC, and RC samples were geologically logged following Desert Gold's established standard operating procedures. For AC and RC drilling, all individual samples represent approximately one-meter in length of rock chips homogenized and riffle-split to an approximately 2kg sub-samples which were sent by truck from the project site, for preparation and gold assaying at the SGS laboratories in Bamako, Mali.
Each sample (AC, and RC) is fire-assayed for gold by SGS laboratories in Bamako using Au-FAA505 method, which is a 50g fire assay fusion with AAS instrument finish. In addition to SGS's own QA/QC (Quality Assurance/Quality Control) program, Desert Gold's internal quality control and quality assurance procedures included the use of certified standards (1 :20), sample duplicates (1 :20) and blanks (1 :20). Sample batches that fail QAQC review, especially those with significant gold intercepts, are re-assayed with the insertion of new standards.
Ashanti Gold Drill Results QAQC Procedures for the Gourbassi Zones
Certified Reference Materials and Blanks were inserted into the sample stream at the rate of 1:20 samples. Field duplicates are collected at the rate of 1:50 samples. All samples have been analyzed by SGS Laboratories in Bamako with standard preparation methods and 50g fire assay with atomic absorption finish. SGS adds their own QA/QC samples into the sample stream and had reported them to Ashanti for double checking. Higher grade samples were reanalyzed from pulp or reject material or both.
This press release contains certain scientific and technical information. The Company is solely responsible for the contents and accuracy of any scientific and technical information related to it. Don Dudek, P.Geo a director of Desert Gold and a Qualified Person under National Instrument 43-101, has reviewed and approved the scientific and technical information contained in this press release.
About Desert Gold
Desert Gold Ventures Inc. is a gold exploration and development company that holds 3 gold exploration projects in Western Mali (SMSZ, Segala West and Djimbala) and its Rutare gold project in central Rwanda. The Company's current focus is its 407 km2 SMSZ Project that spans approximately 38 km of the prolific Senegal Mali Shear Zone.
On Behalf of the Board of Directors
"Sonny Janda"
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Sonny Janda
Chairman
Contact:
Jared Scharf, President & CEO
Email: jared.scharf@desertgold.ca
For further information please visit our website www.desertgold.ca or information available on www.SEDAR.com under the company's profile.
Certain statements contained in this release may constitute "forward-looking statements" or "forward-looking information" (collectively "forward-looking information") as those terms are used in the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 and similar Canadian laws. These statements relate to future events or future performance. The use of any of the words "could", "intend", "expect", "believe", "will", "projected", "estimated", "anticipates" and similar expressions and statements relating to matters that are not historical facts are intended to identify forward-looking information and are based on the Company's current belief or assumptions as to the outcome and timing of such future events. Actual future results may differ materially. In particular, this release contains forward-looking information relating to the business of the Company, the Property, financing and certain corporate changes. The forward-looking information contained in this release is made as of the date hereof and the Company is not obligated to update or revise any forward-looking information, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as required by applicable securities laws. Because of the risks, uncertainties and assumptions contained herein, investors should not place undue reliance on forward-looking information. The foregoing statements expressly qualify any forward-looking information contained herein.
Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its regulation services provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.
This news release does not constitute an offer to sell or a solicitation of an offer to buy the securities described herein in the united states. The securities described herein have not been and will not be registered under the united states securities act of 1933, as amended, and may not be offered or sold in the united states or to the account or benefit of a U.S. person absent an exemption from the registration requirements of such act.
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1 Mineralization hosted on adjacent and/or nearby properties is not necessarily representative of mineralization hosted on the Company's SMSZ Property.