SEXSMITH, Alberta, Feb. 01, 2018 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Angkor Gold Corp. (TSX-V:ANK) and (OTC:ANKOF) (“Angkor” or “the Company”) CEO Mike Weeks is pleased to provide an update of activities on its 100% owned Cambodian gold and copper projects and exploration activities with Japan Oil, Gas and Metals National Corporation (JOGMEC) and Emerald Resources NL.
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“Angkor is poised to build on its strongest position in eight years with great partners, advancing projects, and multiple opportunities,” said JP Dau, Angkor's Vice President of Operations. “Technical international geologists have described our prospects as a geologist’s paradise, with gold identified across multiple projects, large anomalies of copper, and numerous drill targets on each license. I believe 2018 is going to be a stellar year for our company and for Cambodia’s growing mining sector.”
“We were told there were no porphyry systems in Cambodia,” Dau continued. “We have proven differently and attracted the interest of several potential partners seeking these formations. Our future success will be built on our proven strategy and track record, our technical and operating talent, and our project pipeline.”
Angkor’s management continues to advance its primary targets on nearly 1000 km2 of mineral rights held by the Company in Cambodia.
OYADAO SOUTH LICENSE
With exploration partner JOGMEC, Angkor continues as the operator to develop the primary target on the Oyadao South License, which is a copper porphyry system known as the Halo Project.
Under the Company’s earn-in exploration agreement with JOGMEC, JOGMEC has committed to a total of USD $3 million in exploration expenditures over a three year period which gives JOGMEC a right to acquire 51% of the Oyadao South License.
Halo Project
In January, JOGMEC committed to spending an additional USD $1 million beyond their original 2017 budget to follow up on encouraging copper results from the Phase 1 drilling program at our Halo Project. Over the coming months, Angkor’s focus on the property will primarily be to follow up on the results in drill hole HAL17-001D, which reported copper and silver mineralization in the top 99 metres, with anomalous levels of molybdenum corresponding with disseminated sulphides observed in the same interval (see Company press release of October 19, 2017).
Approximately 1,200 metres of new drilling is planned at Halo in the next two months to drill test newly identified IP targets.
Angkor has a new regional soil and IP program underway which will provide a better geological understanding of the area which surrounds Halo’s previously identified 7.25 km2 area.
Exploration work completed last year clearly indicates that Halo is not the only porphyry target on the property that merits further investigation.
KOAN NHEAK LICENSE
Exploration at Angkor’s Koan Nheak license is carried out by Renaissance Minerals (Cambodia) Ltd. (”Renaissance”), the Cambodian subsidiary of Emerald Resources NL (ASX:EMR) (“Emerald”), under an earn-in agreement announced July 12, 2017. Under the Agreement, Renaissance will spend USD $2 million in exploration and development at Koan Nheak and make a USD $200,000 cash payment to Angkor over a two year period for them to acquire a 51% participating interest in Angkor’s Koan Nheak license.
Emerald Resources is the owner and operator of the nearby Okvau gold deposit located approximately 53 kilometres southwest of Angkor’s Koan Nheak property. The Okvau gold deposit, currently in its final phase of production permitting and has been granted environmental approvals to proceed. It has a published JORC-compliant Ore Reserve (Probable) estimate totalling 14.26 million tonnes grading 1.98 gpt gold for 907,000 contained ounces of gold.
Peacock Project
Results from the recent soil sampling program on Koan Nheak’s Peacock Project successfully defined a large gold-in-soils anomaly extending over 1,000 meters north to south by 400 meters east to west.
As reported on January 9, 2018, results support the presence of a fault related, gold anomalous epithermal vein system on the south to south-southeast of the mapped intrusion at the Peacock Project. Of the 14 rock chip samples taken, the most significant returned an assay value of 9.94 gpt gold. Exploration is currently underway within the identified gold-in-soil anomaly to identify drill targets for the next stage of exploration.
BANLUNG LICENSE
Angkor’s Banlung license is 100% owned, and hosts two distinct projects - Okalla West and Okalla East. The two projects are approximately 7 kilometres apart. Both are hosted by intrusive rock complexes connected along a regional structural corridor.
Okalla East Project
Last year’s drill program consisted of two holes totalling 123m to test the along-strike extent of a highly prospective gold intercept of 1 metre top-cut at 34.29 gpt Au from Angkor’s 2011 drill program. (See: http://www.angkorgold.ca/diamond-drill-results-from-okalla-prospect-cambodia/)
Angkor has retained Jocelyn Pelletier, MSc, P.Geo, as an independent consulting geologist specializing in high sulphidation and structurally controlled deposits to conduct a metallurgical study on samples he collected from historical and current drill core from Okalla East. The work, intended to identify and differentiate the types of mineralizing events, is planned to commence in February 2018.
Okalla East exhibits features of a high sulphidation epithermal system, which Mr. Pelletier observes has “similarities and parallels” to mineralization found in neighbouring country projects, such as Sepon (Laos), Truong Son (Vietnam) and Loie Fold Belts (Thailand). It appears that the high sulphidation epithermal vein system is overprinting a pre-existing copper, gold porphyry mineralization system.
Okalla West Project
Last year’s Phase 1 drilling program of 439.2m in 9 holes confirmed the existence of gold veins which are related to the faulting at Okalla West. The program was conducted to determine the structure and type of mineralization of the targets over a gold anomaly devoid of outcrop. Okalla West drilling revealed that gold mineralization is associated with copper, as well as tellurium and bismuth. The veins are hosted within an alkalic mafic to intermediate intrusive complex. The gold and copper in soils anomaly extends 300m further north and at least 2 kilometres to the south, which is the current extent of the Company’s previous auger soil survey.
ANDONG MEAS LICENSE
Angkor Gold has carried out exploration for the past several years on its 100% wholly owned Andong Meas License, which has led to the discovery of multiple prospects.
Exploration has focussed on determining both base metal and gold potential given the widespread gold occurrences appearing on the property. Intrusive related activity has created the potential for multiple opportunities in the form of both high grade epithermal systems as well as large gold bearing copper porphyry systems.
Five key gold prospects stand out on the 188 km2 property and will be the focus areas for the upcoming exploration seasons. Andong Meas has a long history of both small and medium scale artisanal mining which is where it earned its local name, literally translated as “Well of Gold”.
This season Angkor will map the remaining major area of interest on the property with support from the Institute of Technology of Cambodia, where all major rock types, alteration, structure, and mineralization will be logged into Angkor’s data base. The focus of the project will be to identify the most significant mineral occurrences. Once completed, the program will lay the framework for future drilling campaigns.
A map accompanying this announcement is available at http://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/ac336d75-a9fd-4195-9b63-2b14a5b1503e
ABOUT ANGKOR GOLD CORP.
ANGKOR Gold Corp. is a public company listed on the TSX-Venture Exchange and is a leading mineral explorer in Cambodia with a large land package and a first-mover advantage building strong relationships with all levels of government and stakeholders.
Dennis Ouellette, B.Sc, P.Geo., is a member of The Association of Professional Engineers and Geoscientists of Alberta (APEGA #104257) and a Qualified Person as defined by National Instrument 43-101 (“NI 43-101”). He is the Company’s VP Exploration and has reviewed and approved the technical disclosure in this document.
On behalf of the Board,
Mike Weeks
President & CEO, Angkor Gold Corp.
CONTACT:
Stephen Burega, Vice President of Corporate Development
Telephone: (647) 515-3734
Email: sb@angkorgold.ca
Website: http://www.angkorgold.ca or follow us on Twitter @AngkorGold.
Neither TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.
Certain of the statements made and information contained herein may constitute “forward-looking information.” In particular references to the private placement and future work programs or expectations on the quality or results of such work programs are subject to risks associated with operations on the property, exploration activity generally, equipment limitations and availability, as well as other risks that we may not be currently aware of. Accordingly, readers are advised not to place undue reliance on forward-looking information. Except as required under applicable securities legislation, the Company undertakes no obligation to publicly update or revise forward-looking information, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.