Treasury Metals releases assays from 2021 exploration program at Goliath

Toronto-based Treasury Metals (TSX: TML; US-OTC: TSRMF) has released new assay results from its Goliath gold project in northwestern Ontario, as well exploration and development plans for the year ahead.

The company’s 100%-owned Goliath complex comprises a 330 sq. km land package that is made up of three distinct deposits located 20 km east of Dryden: Goliath, Goldlund and Miller.

Treasury completed a 60,000-metre drill program that wrapped up in late December. The initial assay results released by the company come from 26 holes (11,400 metres) drilled at the Goliath deposit and 14 holes (3,600 metres) drilled at the Goldlund deposit.

Highlights from the Goliath deposit included hole TL21-559, which intersected 5.5 metres from 162 metres downhole grading 9.55 grams gold per tonne, including 1.5 metres grading 24.4 grams gold per tonne and another 1.5 metres grading 8.6 grams gold per tonne.

At the company’s Goldlund deposit, hole GL-21-078 returned 11.58 grams gold per tonne over 6.8 metres from 242.2 metres. This intercept included 1.5 metres grading 48.8 grams per tonne gold.

Jeremy Wyeth, Treasury’s president and CEO, said in a statement that the company is pleased with all the work completed last year, work that included “the filing of a positive PEA report that combined the Goliath, Goldlund and Miller projects for the first time; the completion of the largest drill program in the company’s history; as well as the building out of a development-focused team that has done a great job moving the projects forward.”

Treasury also announced exploration plans for the project in the year ahead. The 2022 program, which has already begun, includes drilling 25,000 metres that will primarily focus on regional exploration of new targets that were identified in last year’s work. The company also plans early-stage exploration on prospective areas of Goliath, and a mapping and prospecting campaign of under-explored parts of the site.

Additionally, the company plans to release an updated resource estimate in the first quarter of this year that will incorporate 41,000 metres of last year’s drill program at Goliath.

The company released a preliminary economic assessment (PEA) a year ago that envisioned a 5,000 tonne-per-day combined open pit and underground operation mining the Goliath, Goldlund and Miller deposits with an adjacent mill. Initial capital costs were pegged at $233 million.

The PEA outlined a 13-year mine life with average annual production of 102,000 oz. gold in the first nine years of operation, and a post-tax net present value of $328 million.

The measured and indicated resources for the three deposits total 55.4 million tonnes grading 1.1 grams gold per tonne for a total of 1.96 million oz. gold, with a further 21 million inferred tonnes grading 0.78 gram per tonne gold for 528,000 oz. gold.

At presstime, Treasury’s shares were trading at 75¢ in Toronto, within a 52-week range of 65¢ and $1.31. The company has just under 138 million common shares outstanding for a market cap of $103 million.