(TheNewswire)
Vancouver, British Columbia – TheNewswire - April 3, 2024: Headwater Gold Inc. (CSE: HWG) (OTCQB: HWAUF) (the"Company" or "Headwater") is pleased to announce the planned 2024 exploration activitieson the Spring Peak and Lodestar projects under earn-in agreements (the“Earn-In Agreements” or “Agreements”) with Newmont Corporation(“Newmont”) (NYSE: NEM, TSX: NGT, ASX: NEM, PNGX: NEM) announcedon August 16, 2022 and May 9, 2023.
Highlights:
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Headwater and Newmont have agreed upon proposed 2024exploration activities at the Spring Peak and Lodestar projectstargeting high-grade gold mineralization in epithermal veins;
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Exploration activities are currently expected toinclude up to 7,000 metres of drilling at Spring Peak and up to 3,500metres of drilling at Lodestar;
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Further exploration activities including geophysics,additional geological mapping and environmental baseline surveys arecurrently planned across both project areas;
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Drilling is estimated to commence at Spring Peak inearly summer 2024 and at Lodestar in the fall of 2024;
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As the current operator, Headwater will earn a 10%management fee on earn-in exploration expenditures; and
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Discussions are underway regarding potential work plansacross the remainder of the Newmont earn-in projectportfolio.
Caleb Stroup, the President and CEO of the Company,states: “We are veryexcited to announce plans for another busy year of drilling funded byour earn-in partner, Newmont. The Company is pleased to seeNewmont’s commitment to further test our vision for Tier 1 potentialat the Spring Peak and Lodestar gold projects. This year’sdrilling will cover an expanded land position and footprint ofexploration in the district. In addition to the ongoing step-outdrilling at the Disco Zone high-grade discovery, we will be devoting asignificant proportion of our proposed drilling activity to new areas,including targets on the recently acquired private lands at SpringPeak and an exciting first test of the Zodiac sinter target atLodestar. Our understanding of this mineralized system has grownsignificantly over the last two years of drilling and our team is veryexcited to apply that knowledge at a district scale. Our partnershipwith Newmont offers shareholders a rare opportunity to gain exposureto a substantial amount of partner-funded greenfields exploration in atier-one jurisdiction, in addition to pure upside from our 100% ownedand operated exploration projects while minimizing dilution at thecorporate level.”
About the Spring Peak Project:
The Spring Peak project is located in the Aurora MiningDistrict in the Walker Lane belt, west-central Nevada, approximately50 km southwest of the town of Hawthorne. The project adjoins HeclaMining Company’s (“Hecla”, NYSE: HL) past-producing Aurora Minecomplex where existing infrastructure includes a 350 ton per day mill,several production water wells and high-voltage three-phasepower.
A multi-rig drill program totaling up to approximately7,000 metres over 20 to 25 holes is scheduled to begin in early summer2024. The primary objective of the drill program will be to test forextensions of mineralization along the Bear Fault corridor which hostshigh-grade mineralization at the Disco Zone discovery. Targets alongstrike, down dip and in the hanging wall of the Bear Fault will bedrill tested.
The Disco Zone is a mineralized corridor which hosts aseries of high-grade epithermal veins at depth discovered by Headwaterin 2022 by drilling beneath a thick accumulation of silica sinter atsurface. Drilling at theDisco Zone intercepted multiple discrete mineralized veins (Table 1). The highest-grade gold encountered to date at the Spring Peakproject is in drill hole SP22-13 which intersected two individual veins assaying 15.92 g/t Au over 2.38 m and10.43 g/t Au over 2.01 m. The highest individual assay returned 69.6g/t Au over 0.34 m. These intervals are part of a broader zone whichassayed 2.73 g/t Au over 34.72 m .
A further objective of the 2024 drill program will beto test multiple new targets across the property package with initialscout drilling, including targets on newly acquired private landswhich have no prior drilling. Drilling is authorized for 2024 underan existing drill permit and an expanded Plan of Operations permit hasbeen submitted to the United States Forest Service which is projectedto be approved for the 2025 drilling season.
Table 1: Select Previously ReleasedResults from Headwater’s Spring Peak Drilling 1
Hole ID | Type | From (m) | To (m) | Interval (m) | Au (g/t) | Ag (g/t) | Az | Inc | TD (m) | Comments |
SP22-11 | RC | 105.16 | 117.35 | 12.19 | 1.15 | 3.79 | 330 | -62 | 237.74 | Disco Zone hanging wall |
including | RC | 111.25 | 112.78 | 1.53 | 6.58 | 18.44 | ||||
and | DD | 185.38 | 226.01 | 40.63 | 1.86 | 18.63 | Disco Zone. True thickness is estimated at75% of downhole thickness | |||
including | DD | 197.39 | 198.18 | 0.79 | 7.37 | 55.81 | ||||
including | DD | 208.33 | 208.91 | 0.58 | 43.70 | 351.00 | ||||
SP22-13 | DD | 256.12 | 290.84 | 34.72 | 2.73 | 18.38 | 330 | -72 | 315.47 | Disco Zone. True thickness is estimated at 60%. Highest individualsample 69.6 g/t Au over 0.34 m from 275.90 m to 276.24 m |
including | DD | 262.46 | 264.47 | 2.01 | 10.43 | 55.35 | ||||
including | DD | 275.26 | 277.64 | 2.38 | 15.92 | 90.83 | ||||
SP23-17 | RC | 108.20 | 135.64 | 27.44 | 0.95 | 9.87 | 014 | -73 | 376.52 | Disco Zone hanging wall |
and | DD | 267.13 | 270.05 | 2.92 | 3.92 | 3.93 | Disco Zone. True thickness is estimated at 50%. Highestindividual sample 20.5 g/t Au over 0.42 m from 329.28 to 329.7m | |||
including | DD | 267.74 | 268.53 | 0.79 | 9.10 | 6.38 | ||||
and | DD | 310.59 | 331.01 | 20.42 | 2.59 | 15.16 | ||||
including | DD | 312.12 | 313.33 | 1.21 | 13.0 | 105.4 | ||||
including | DD | 327.90 | 331.01 | 3.11 | 9.0 | 43.2 | ||||
SP23-31 | DD | 208.79 | 248.87 | 40.08 | 1.51 | 14.87 | 359 | -63 | 253.0 | Disco Zone. True thickness is estimated at 60%. Highestindividual sample 17.60 g/t Au over 0.76 m from 234.39 to 235.15m |
including | DD | 226.16 | 235.92 | 9.76 | 4.55 | 40.36 | ||||
SP23-32 | DD | 182.27 | 222.08 | 39.81 | 1.93 | 19.65 | 354 | -56 | 243.2 | Disco Zone. True thickness is estimated at 70%. Highestindividual sample 15.00 g/t Au over 0.77 m from 206.04 to 206.81m |
including | DD | 206.04 | 217.47 | 11.43 | 4.60 | 37.94 |
1 Reported grades were calculated using a 0.2 g/tcut-off grade for primary intervals and a 2 g/t cut-off grade forincluded intervals. Intervals correspond to downhole drilledthickness. Unless otherwise stated in the “Comments” section,insufficient information is available to determine true thickness ofmineralized intervals.
Headwater holds an option to acquire a 100% undividedinterest in the Spring Peak project from Orogen Royalties (TSXV: OGN),subject to retained royalties and subject to Newmont’s option toacquire up to 75% of the project following certain expenditures andpreparation of a Pre-Feasibility Study within a designated time frame.
For more information on the Spring Peak project referto the news release dated February 13, 2024.
Figure 1: Map of Spring Peak andLodestar land positions showing location of main target areas testedduring the 2023 drill program .
About the LodestarProject:
The Lodestar project is located approximately 10kilometres north of the Company’s Spring Peak project in the AuroraMining District in the Walker Lane belt, west-central Nevada andadjoins Hecla’s past-producing Aurora mine complex where existinginfrastructure includes a 350 ton per day mill, several productionwater wells and high-voltage three-phase power.
A multi-rig drill program totaling up to approximately3,500 metres over 10 to15 holes is currently scheduled to begin in thefall of 2024. The primary objective of the drill program will be totest for high-grade precious metals in steeply dipping feederstructures under the Zodiac sinter target. The Zodiac targetconsists of a prominent silicified and brecciated ridgeline capped bya silica sinter similar in character to the sinter exposed above theDisco Zone discovery at the Company’s SpringPeak project. Additional scout drill holes are planned to testunder-cover geophysical targets adjacent to the Zodiac target, beneatha thin veneer of post-mineral basalt. A drilling permit applicationhas been submitted to the United States Forest Service for the 2024drill program. Authorization of drilling activities under thispermit is anticipated in Q3 2024.
Headwater holds an option to acquire a 100% undividedinterest in the Lodestar project from a private vendor, subject toretained royalties and Newmont’s option to acquire up to 75% of theproject following certain expenditures and preparation of aPre-Feasibility Study within a designated time frame.
For more information on the Lodestar project refer tothe news release dated March 7, 2023.
About Headwater Gold:
Headwater Gold Inc. (CSE: HWG, OTCQB: HWAUF) is atechnically-driven mineral exploration company focused on theexploration and discovery of high-grade precious metal deposits in theWestern USA. Headwater is aggressively exploring one of the mostwell-endowed and mining-friendly jurisdictions in the world with agoal of making world-class precious metal discoveries. Headwater hasa large portfolio of epithermal vein exploration projects and atechnical team of experienced geologists with diverse capital markets,junior and major mining company backgrounds. The Company is systematically drilltesting several projects in Nevada and in August 2022 and May 2023announced significant transactions with Newmont where it acquired a9.9% strategic equity interest in the Company and entered into earn-inagreements on several of Headwater’s projects.
Headwater is part of the NewQuest Capital Group whichis a discovery-driven investment enterprise that builds value throughthe incubation and financing of mineral projects and companies. Further information about NewQuest can be found on the companywebsite at www.nqcapitalgroup.com .
For more information, please visit the Company'swebsite at www.headwatergold.com .
On Behalf of the Board ofDirectors
Caleb Stroup
President and CEO
+1 (775) 409-3197
For further information, please contact:
Brennan Zerb
Investor Relations Manager
+1 (778) 867-5016
Qualified Person:
The technical information contained in this newsrelease has been reviewed and approved by Scott Close, P.Geo (158157),a “Qualified Person” (“QP”) as defined in National Instrument43-101 – Standards of Disclosure for Mineral Projects.
Forward-Looking Statements:
This news release includes certainforward-looking statements and forward-looking information(collectively, “forward-looking statements”) within the meaning ofapplicable Canadian securities legislation. All statements, other thanstatements of historical fact, included herein including, withoutlimitation, statements regarding future capital expenditures,exploration activities and the specifications, targets, results,analyses, interpretations, benefits, costs and timing of them,Newmont’s anticipated funding of the earn-in projects and the timingthereof, and the anticipated business plans and timing of future activities of the Company, areforward-looking statements. Although the Company believes that suchstatements are reasonable, it can give no assurance that suchexpectations will prove to be correct. Often, but not always, forwardlooking information can be identified by words such as “proforma”, “plans”, “expects”, “may”, “should”,“budget”, “scheduled”, “estimates”, “forecasts”,“intends”, “anticipates”, “believes”, “potential” orvariations of such words including negative variations thereof, andphrases that refer to certain actions, events or results that may,could, would, might or will occur or be taken or achieved.Forward-looking statements involve known and unknown risks,uncertainties and other factors which may cause the actual results,performance or achievements of the Company to differ materially fromany future results, performance or achievements expressed or impliedby the forward-looking statements. Such risks and other factorsinclude, among others, risks related to the anticipated business plansand timing of future activities of the Company, including theCompany’s exploration plans and the proposed expenditures forexploration work thereon, the ability of the Company to obtainsufficient financing to fund its business activities and plans, therisk that Newmont will not elect to obtain any additional interest inthe earn-in projects in excess of the minimum commitment, the abilityof the Company to obtain the required permits, changes in laws,regulations and policies affecting mining operations, the Company’slimited operating history, currency fluctuations, title disputes orclaims, environmental issues and liabilities, as well as those factorsdiscussed under the heading “Risk Factors” in the Company’sprospectus dated May 26, 2021 and other filings of the Company withthe Canadian Securities Authorities, copies of which can be foundunder the Company’s profile on the SEDAR website at www.sedar.com.
Readers are cautioned not to placeundue reliance on forward-looking statements. The Company undertakesno obligation to update any of the forward-looking statements, exceptas otherwise required by law.
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