TORONTO, Nov. 18, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Wesdome Gold Mines Ltd. (TSX:WDO, OTCQX:WDOFF) (“Wesdome” or the “Company”) today provides an update on the underground and surface exploration programs (Figure 1) at its 100%-owned Kiena Mine (“Kiena”) in Val-d’Or, Québec.
Ms. Anthea Bath, President and Chief Executive Officer, stated: “This year’s exploration budget for Kiena of over $20 million covered surface and underground expansion, infill and delineation drilling totaling more than 70,000 metres. This robust program has yielded impressive results across various zones at Kiena, underscoring its prospectivity and long-term potential. These latest drill results support both our fill the mill and two-mine structure initiatives, where high-grade production from Kiena Deep leverages existing shaft infrastructure, supplemented by near-surface feed transported from the 33-level via the Presqu’île ramp.
“Drilling in the Footwall Zone of Kiena Deep has yielded promising results, supporting the conversion of resources to the indicated category at higher than expected grades. These results not only strengthen our understanding of the geology but also reinforce the potential to expand this high-grade zone. Given the proximity and continuity of this mineralization, the Footwall Zone may be integrated earlier into the life of mine plan. Drilling at depth below Kiena Deep also continues to confirm that high-grade mineralization extends to at least 1,875 metres below surface. In 2025, Wesdome is planning to establish an additional platform on 134-level to further test the structure down-plunge.
“Results from both the Presqu’île and Dubuisson zones are also highly encouraging with the success of the Dubuisson infill program expected to support a year-end initial reserve estimate. Our team’s execution during a limited seasonal barge drilling window allowed us to increase drill metres significantly across both the Dubuisson Northern and Southern zones, as well as Presqu’île. These zones hold strategic importance, leveraging existing 33-level development to potentially enhance operational flexibility, increase mill utilization and materially reduce overall mine unit costs. The extension of down-plunge growth at Presqu’île, where stope production is scheduled to commence in late 2025, is poised to establish it as an important new mining front. This progress has also enabled us to test the down-plunge extension at Dubuisson and advance infill drilling to support resource conversion at Presqu’île.”
Highlights
Kiena Deep - Footwall Zone (Figure 2, Table 1) 1
Footwall Zone continues to showcase mineralization at grades above current resource:
- Hole N127-6894: 218.9 g/t Au over 22.1m core length (30.3 g/t Au capped, 6.0m true width) including
- 988.0 g/t Au uncapped over 1.0m core length (90.0 g/t Au capped, 0.3m true width)
- 1,920.0 g/t Au uncapped over 0.8m core length (90.0 g/t Au capped, 0.2m true width)
- Hole N127-6893: 49.7 g/t Au uncapped over 13.5m core length (31.7 g/t Au capped, 5.3m true width)
- Hole N127-6915: 18.1 g/t Au uncapped over 10.6m core length (18.1 g/t Au capped, 7.0m true width)
Kiena Deep Extension (Figure 2, Table 1) 1
Follow-up drilling down-plunge at Kiena Deep confirms high-grade mineralization:
- Hole N103-6840W7: 84.3 g/t Au uncapped over 5.0m core length (63.6 g/t Au capped, 3.8m true width)
Presqu’île Zone (Figure 3, Table 1) 1
Infill drilling has intersected mineralization with visible gold:
- Hole PR-24-088: 62.1 g/t Au uncapped over 3.0m core length (42.3 g/t Au capped, 2.6m true width)
- Hole PR-24-089: 33.0 g/t Au uncapped over 2.6m core length (33.0 g/t Au capped, 2.3m true width)
Dubuisson Zone (Figure 4, Table 1) 1,3
Infill and down-plunge drilling confirm continuity of the deposit:
- Hole DB-24-022: 9.5g/t Au uncapped over 3.2m core length
- Hole DB-24-023: 18.1g/t Au uncapped (16.8g/t Au capped) over 5.9m core length
- Hole DB-24-024: 9.1 g/t Au uncapped over 19.5m core length
Duchesne Zone (Figure 5, Table 1) 1
Drilling has helped to improve understanding of the historical zone:
- Hole DU-24-003: 24.4g/t Au uncapped (19.2g/t Au capped) over 3.2m core length3
Wish Area (Figure 5, Table 1) 2
Exploration drilling aimed at the down-plunge extension of Wish intersected high-grade mineralization:
- Hole N033-6904: 26.3 g/t Au uncapped over 3.5m core length
Northwest Zone (Figure 6, Table 1) 1
Unexpectedly, drilling intersected high-grade mineralization to the north, while targeting the zone at depth:
- Hole: NW-24-005: 93.0g/t Au uncapped (24.8 g/t Au capped) over 2.9m core length3
1 Assays capped at 90.0 g/t Au.
2 Assays for Wish Zone capped at 35g/t Au.
3 True width is unavailable at this time.
Technical Details
Underground Exploration Drilling
Kiena Deep – Footwall Zone
In recent years, underground drilling efforts have primarily focused on areas around the Kiena Deep A Zone. A significant early achievement was the discovery of the Footwall Zone in 2021.
The Footwall Zone comprises several folded parallel veins in the footwall of Kiena Deep with widths ranging from 2 to 7 metres. The gold mineralization in this zone closely resembles that of Kiena Deep, featuring visible gold within quartz veins hosted by ultramafic rock in contact with mafic rock. These highly mineralized veins have the potential to be mined as a single unit from the same development level, which could enhance overall vertical ounces per metre. The recent establishment of the 127-level drill platform has improved the drilling angle towards the Footwall Zone with most 2024 drilling activities directed at this zone within the Kiena Deep orebody.
To date in 2024, 14,000 metres of drilling in 48 drillholes has been completed within the Kiena Deep area, including 10,000 metres of infill drilling across 40 holes targeting the Footwall Zone. By the end of 2024, an additional five holes, or 2,000 metres, are planned for the Footwall Zone with a focus on upgrading the inferred resources. Additionally, the incremental drilling is expected to provide essential information that improves our understanding of the geometry of the zone and its relationship to the Kiena Deep A Zone.
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