Mirasol Announces Exploration Program with Newcrest Mining

Mirasol Resources Ltd (TSXV:MRZ) announced that Mirasol and Newcrest Mining (ASX:NCM), have initiated a US$750,000 surface exploration program at the Zeus project to explore for a large high-sulfidation epithermal (HSE) gold deposit within the prospective Mio-Pliocene age belt of Northern Chile.

As quoted in the press release:

Zeus comprises an 18,480 ha property package located in an accessible area of the high Andes of Chile, approximately 40 km ESE of Gold Fields’ recent discovery at their Salares Norte deposit (total indicated resource of 3.49 Moz Au grading 5.2 g/t gold and 48.57 million ounces of silver grading 72.1 g/t Ag. The Mio-Pliocene belt of Chile hosts many world-class Cu and Au+Ag gold mines and prospects, including Salares Norte and Barrick’s multi-million once HSE gold discovery at Alturas (6.8 Moz inferred resource grading 1.00 g/t gold). Gold Fields has recently presented interim results from the feasibility study for the Salaries Norte deposit, suggesting the deposit can be developed into a low cost, profitable, open-pit mine.

The current phase of the Zeus exploration program is designed to be completed by the end of May 2018 before the onset of the southern hemisphere winter. The program focuses on the known breccia bodies of the Apollo and Artemisa prospects, and includes detailed mapping, gridded systematic soil and rock chip sampling geochemistry, CoreScan alteration mapping and 32 line-km of Controlled Source Audio-Magnetotellurics (CSAMT) geophysics.  All these technologies have been successfully applied in the exploration for, and assisted in discovery of, recent multi-million ounce HSE deposits elsewhere in Chile.

Results from the current Zeus exploration program are due to be received in stages over the May to June 2018 period and will form the basis for subsequent exploration including a drilling campaign anticipated to commence in the fourth quarter of 2018.  Mirasol will report on the results from current surface program as they become available.

The Zeus option and Farm-in agreement requires NCM to spend US$1.5 million on exploration over the first 18 months and then gives NCM the right to earn 51 percent of the project by spending US$8.0 million over an additional 4 years, for a total spend of US$9.5 million. NCM has the right to earn up to 80 percent of the Zeus Project by completing a series of exploration and development milestones, that include funding to commercial production of Mirasol’s 20 percent of the project and by making staged option payments to Mirasol of US$1 million.

Click here to read the full Mirasol Resources Ltd (TSXV:MRZ) press release.