Antler Gold Provides Corporate Update on 2022 Work Program
Halifax, May 25, 2022 - Antler Gold Inc. (TSXV: ANTL) ("Antler" or the "Company") is pleased to provide an update on acitivites on its projects in Namibia and Zambia.
Onkoshi Project, Namibia
The Company anonuced on April 13, 2022 that it and its wholly owned subsdiary, Antler Gold Namibia (Pty) Ltd. ("Antler Namibia") had entered into a binding agreement dated April 13, 2022 to acquire 90% of the Onkoshi Gold Project (the "Project") in Namibia (the "Agreement") from an arm's length vendor. The Project will be held in Antler's project generation vehicle ("Project Generator") owned 87.5% by Antler and 12.5% by Sherpa Resource Holdings Ltd. (see Antler Press Release dated March 24, 2022 for details). The Onkoshi Gold Project, previously known by the Erindi and Vredelus Projects, is considered to rank as one of the best gold targets in Namibia, arguably alongside the B2Gold's Otjikoto deposit (2004, Robertson, M.).
The Project is located approximately 140km northwest of Windhoek and covers highly prospective areas of the Damara Mobile Belt for gold and shares significant similarities to B2Gold's Otjikoto deposits. The project has had a significant amount of historical work performed over it which has successfully delineated open-ended mineralization with an interpreted combined strike length in the order of 5.5 km. A desktop review of all historic data has commenced by Project Generator. In addition, the Company has begun the environmental work which will form part of the Environmental Compliance Certificate ("ECC") application. The company has also commenced negotiations with the various surface right owners encompased by the EPL to secure access for exploration activites.
Figure 1 below shows the combined 5.5 km remanent magnetic anomaly associated with the Project. This remanent magnetic anomaly has a footprint similar in size to that of B2 Gold's Otjikoto deposit.
2004, Robertson, M., QUALIFYING REPORT AND VALUATION OF EXPLORATION PROPERTIES IN NORTH-CENTRAL AND NORTHWESTERN NAMIBIA HELD BY BAFEX EXPLORATION (PTY) LTD. Report prepared for Helio Capital Corporation, NI 43-101 Technical Report, Steffen, Robertson and Kirsten (South Africa) (Pty) Ltd.
Figure 1: Remanent magnetic anomaly defined from historical magnetic surveys have an interpreted combined strike length in the order of 5.5 km. For comparison purposes, the footprint of B2 Gold's Otjikoto deposit remanent anomaly is illustrated (note that this is a size comparison only and does not represent the actual locatity of the Otjikoto deposit).
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Table 1 below contains previous drill holes reported in a NI 43-101 report completed in 2004 by Michael Robertson for Helio Capital Corporation (2004, Robertson, M) ("Helio Technical Report"). Note that the results below are historic and have not been verified by Antler.
Table 1: Summary of Rossing Uranium Ltd. best RC drill and diamond drill intersections calculated at a cut-off of 0.5 g/t Au.
Drillhole | Depth (m) | Intersection |
ERRC 18 | 12-23 | 9.53 g/t Au over 11 m |
ERRC 23 | 51-56 | 3.04 g/t Au over 5 m |
and | 60-67 | 4.88 g/t Au over 7 m |
ERRC 25 | 26-38 | 3.09 g/t Au over 12 m |
ERD 2 | 11.18-23.53 | 5.54 g/t Au over 12.35 m |
ERD 3 | 5.92-12.34 | 3.27 g/t Au over 6.42 m |
and | 70.64-75.64 | 12.85 g/t Au over 5 m |
Significant exploration potential exists on the Project, as outlined in the Helio Technical Report and based on the initial review of the Project data by Remote Exploration Services (Pty) Ltd. ("RES") on behalf of the Project Generator, and includes:
- Limited historical work over the strike extents of both the historical Erindi and Vredelus Prospects and offers immediate exploration targets;
- Numerous significant gold in rock and gold in soil anomalies discovered during historical sampling campaigns were not followed up with any additional exploration work;
- Historical analytical lower limits of detection for gold were in the order of 20 ppb and thus potential gold mineralisation with a surface expression of less than 20 ppb would not have been delineated by the historical soil sampling campaigns; and
- Mineralisation on the Project has been shown to be conductive and magnetic and is therefore suitable for detection by both magnetic and electrical geophysical survey techniques.
Erongo Project, Namibia
The Erongo Project covers highly prospective areas of the Damara Mobile Belt for gold and overlies similar lithologies and structures as Osino Resources' Twin Hills deposit.
The Company announced on August 4, 2021 the identification of a gold in calcrete anomaly (over 5 ppb Au with a peak value of 45 ppb) supported by a coincidental magnetic anomaly in the north east portion of the C2 Ext sampling grid (Figure 2). Due to the pervasive calcrete cover thickness, this is interpreted to represent a significant gold anomaly as thick calcrete horizons usually act as barriers to soil geochemical dispersions. Based on the success of this sampling, an additional target area was defined south of C2 ("C2 S") that is underlain by significant geophysical magnetic anomalies directly along strike of the Twin Hills deposit (Figure 2). The Company has collected 1,532 soil and calcrete samples (inclusive of QAQC) from C2 S and is currently awaiting assay results.
Figure 2: Position of the C2 Ext gold in calcrete anomaly and the C2 S sampling grid underlain by significant magnetic anomalies directly along strike form Osino Resources' Twin Hills deposit.
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Kesya REE Project, Zambia
On August 6, 2021, the Company announced it has entered into a binding letter agreement with an arm's length vendor to acquire the Kesya Project, a greenfields rare earth project in Zambia.
The Project being acquired from the Vendor contains a carbonatite which was first identified in the 1960's in the Kafue district in southern Zambia. The Company has successfully entered into land access agreements with the various traditional authorities to allow work in the chiefdoms that are located within the boundaries of the Kesya Project. Subsequently, the Company has hired an independent environmental management firm to compile the Environmental Project Brief (EPB). This work commenced in September 2021. The initial site visit by the Zambia Environmental Management Agency (ZEMA) has taken place.
A reconnaissance mapping and sampling campaign to attempt to verify historical exploration results has been completed over a small portion of the Kesya carbonatite. In total, 65 hard rock grab samples (inclusive of QAQC) were collected in order to preliminarily investigate historically reported total rare earth oxides grades within the carbonatite and identify areas of potential enrichment.
Samples were exported from Zambia and processed at Actlabs Canada using process code 8-REE which is a lithium metaborate/tetraborate fusion technique with subsequent analysis by ICP-OES and ICP-MS. Assay results from surface grab samples returned TREO grades of up to 0.66 % TREO along with elevated thorium and phosphorous, which are indicative geochemical signatures for a carbonatite system. All surface weathered carbonatite samples returned grade greater than 0.1 % TREO. Of note is the heavy weighting of 33 % NdPr as proportion of the TREO basket across the samples. Petrographical studies suggest an Nd rich monazite-(Nd) as the potential host of the REE deportment.
The Company plans further mapping and sampling as well as petrographic work on rock grab samples collected to date to identify the REE mineralogy association. A scout RC program is also being considered to investigate potential changes in minerology at depth.
Future Plans
The Company is currently reviewing several opportunities for Antler Gold PG as well as for the Company's wholly owned subsidiaries in Namibia and Zambia.
Qualified Person
Peter Hollick, BSc. (Hons), is a Consulting Geologist at RES and has reviewed and approved the scientific and technical information in this news release. Mr. Hollick is a registered Professional Natural Scientist with the South African Council for Natural Scientific Professions (Pr. Sci. Nat. No. 400113/93) and a Qualified Person for the purposes of National Instrument 43-101.
About Antler Gold Inc.
Antler Gold Inc. (TSXV: ANTL) is a Canadian company, focused on the acquisition and exploration of gold projects in Namibia, Zambia and Africa both through its wholly owned subsidiary and through Antler Gold PG, a company owned by Antler and Sherpa Resource Holdings, a company related to Remote Exploration Services, one of the premier mineral exploration contractors in Africa. Antler is currently working on the Onkoshi Gold Project as well as the Erongo Gold Project, both of which cover areas of the Central Damara Belt, and share geological similarities to the areas containing the known Namibian Gold mines (QKR's Navachab and B2 Golds' Otjikoto) as well as Osino's recent Twin Hills discovery. Namibia is recognized as one of Africa's most politically stable jurisdictions, with an extremely well-established national infrastructure.
Further details are available on the Company's website at www.antlergold.com.
Cautionary Statements
This press release may contain forward-looking information, such as statements regarding the acquisition of the Onkoshi Gold Project in Namibia by Antler and future plans and objectives of Antler, including the acquisition of new projects in Africa. This information is based on current expectations and assumptions (including assumptions in connection with the continuance of the applicable company as a going concern and general economic and market conditions) that are subject to significant risks and uncertainties that are difficult to predict, including risks relating to the ability to satisfy the conditions to complete transactions, exploration programmes and fund acquisitions in Africa. Actual results may differ materially from results suggested in any forward-looking information. Antler assumes no obligation to update forward-looking information in this release, or to update the reasons why actual results could differ from those reflected in the forward-looking information unless and until required by applicable securities laws. Additional information identifying risks and uncertainties is contained in filings made by Antler with Canadian securities regulators, copies of which are available at www.sedar.com.
Neither TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.
For further information, please contact Daniel Whittaker, President and CEO of Antler Gold Inc., at (902) 488-4700 or Chris Drysdale, VP at +264 81 220 2439.
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