Snowline drills 4.67 grams gold per tonne in Yukon

Snowline Gold (TSXV: SGD; US-OTC: NWGF) says the first two holes of this year’s drilling returned high grades from the Valley deposit at the Rogue gold project in eastern Yukon.

Hole V-23-072 cut 404.8 metres averaging 2.27 grams gold per tonne, including 100.8 metres averaging 4.67 grams from surface, the company said on Wednesday. The result is consistent with the block model prediction overall and slightly outperforming the model near surface, the company said in a release. 

Hole V-23-071 returned 449.7 metres grading 1.77 grams from surface, including 169.2 metres of 2.89 grams, surpassing initial resource block model grade predictions by 36%. Snowline collared the hole in a large gap in the deposit’s coverage.

“We are encouraged by such a strong start to our 2024 exploration campaign and excited to have regional drilling underway,” Scott Berdahl, CEO said in the release. “Our first two holes of the season at our Rogue project’s Valley deposit underscore the strength and consistency of the deposit, particularly when it comes to high-grade, near-surface gold mineralization.”

Snowline Gold has had the strongest drill results out of a group of explorers in the Yukon including Sitka Gold (TSXV: SIG; US-OTC: SITKF), Banyan Gold (TSXV: BYN; US-OTC: BYAGF) and St. James Gold (TSXV: LORD). 

Tombstone belt

Major B2Gold (TSX: BTO) invested into Snowline early last year. The companies are seeking success in the Tombstone gold belt arcing across the region that includes Kinross Gold’s (TSX: K; NYSE: KGC) Fort Knox mine in Alaska. Victoria Gold’s (TSX: VGCX) troubled Eagle mine is also on the belt. 

Additional assay results from more holes within and adjacent to the Valley deposit are pending. Three drills are active.

The initial resource estimate was released last month. It contains 76 million indicated tonnes at 1.66 grams gold, containing about 4.1 million oz., and 81 million inferred tonnes at 1.25 grams containing about 3.3 million oz. of gold.

Snowline is also drilling the nearby Einarson project’s Jupiter target. The company says mineralization, including visible gold, has been encountered there in large step-outs in the first holes of the stage two program.

Both projects are located east of Mayo, Yukon, near the border with Northwest Territories, in the traditional territory of the Na-Cho Nyäk Dun First Nation.

Shares in Snowline Gold fell 6.7% to $4.74 in afternoon trading at wider markets plunged on disappointing technology company results. The stock has traded in a 52-week range of $3.95 to $6.40. The company’s market capitalization is $750.8 million.