Assay results from surface mapping and sampling at Castle Gold‘s (CSG-V) 100%-owned La Fortuna concessions in the northwestern corner of Mexico’s Durango state have returned up to 41.1 grams gold per tonne in outcrop samples.
Initial work in the first phase of the exploration program, which began earlier this year, focused on mapping and sampling road cuts and outcroppings that appear to be related to the gold resource at the La Fortuna mine, about 70 km northeast of Culiacan.(Culiacan is about 270 km northwest of the port city of Mazatlan.
The objective was to better understand the geology and structures outside the established mineralization of the La Fortuna mine. (The La Fortuna mine has a National Instrument 43-101 compliant measured and indicated resource of 4.8 million tonnes grading 1.98 grams gold per tonne for contained gold of 308,000 ounces.)
Assay results from 18 samples graded in excess of 0.30 gram gold per tonne. Twelve of the samples exceeded 1 gram gold per tonne and seven exceeded 2 grams gold per tonne.
The best result (41.1 grams gold per tonne from FF-89) came from south of the La Fortuna mine in the Meloncita prospect. Other highlights from this area included FF-86 through FF-88, which returned 6.02 grams gold per tonne, 3.87 grams gold per tonne, and 1.73 grams gold per tonne respectively. FF-90 returned 1.77 grams gold per tonne.
Anomalously elevated results also came from an area northeast of the La Fortuna mine area, including samples FF-33 through FF-36, which returned 3.98 grams gold, 8.79 grams gold, 1.29 grams gold and 2.03 grams gold, respectively.
The gold-silver-copper mineralization at the La Fortuna project occurs as disseminations, stockwork veinlets and fracture fillings. The ore body dips to the west at about 30 degrees. The deposit extends about 200 metres in a north-south orientation and 150 metres in an east-west orientation.
In addition to its La Fortuna gold-silver-copper project in Mexico, Castle gold owns a 100% interest in the El Castillo gold mine in Mexico and a 50% interest in the El Sastre gold mine in Guatemala.
In the second quarter of the year, the El Castillo open-pit mine produced 6,421 ounces of gold. New equipment (delivered to the site in the second quarter) will enable the mine to ramp up production and expand mining rates from about 500,000 tonnes per month to 800,000 tonnes per month later this year.
El Castillo has measured and indicated resources of 94.3 million tonnes grading 0.39 gram gold for total contained gold of 1.18 million ounces.
In the proven and probable reserve category, the mine has 46.8 million tonnes grading 0.50 gram gold per tonne for 752,000 ounces of contained gold.
At press-time Castle Gold was trading at 66¢ per share. The company has a 52-week trading range of 15¢-80¢ and has 75.5 million shards outstanding.
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