- The Company tripled its land package that is directly adjacent to OceanaGold's Wharekirauponga project, which hosts 1.37Moz @ 17.88g/t Au (Ind)1 (Figure 1 & 2).Â
- Identified two significant soil anomalies over 4kms in length, trending north, and north-northwest and open to the northeast and northwest.Â
- Significant gold grades (8–43 ppm Au) were recorded in rock float and in situ rock samples from detailed geological mapping.Â
- Ultra detailed UAV magnetics highlights strong alteration enveloping the two anomalies and demonstrating a major alteration cell indicative of a significant epithermal system.Â
- CSAMT ground geophysics has commenced as a precursor to targeted diamond drilling.Â
Simon Henderson, COO of Rua Gold commented:Â "successful exploration commences with sound geological mapping, detailed geochemistry and geophysical surveys, and the addition of some innovative science and technology to see the opportunity for a major epithermal gold discovery.
With the highly prospective geology of Wharekirauponga and Waihi, major gold deposits next door, our exploration team is highlighting the footprint of another potential significant epithermal gold-silver vein system. CSAMT ground resistivity mapping has commenced and will be the final detail needed to feed into the VRIFY AI tool and then rank drill targets on this exciting opportunity."
Figure 1: Glamorgan is located adjacent to the high grade Wharekirauponga and Waihi gold deposits.Â
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Figure 2: Location of the Wires Ridge prospect within the Glamorgan permit.
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EXPLORATION UPDATE
UAV Magnetic Surveying
Following the access granted in May 2024, Rua Gold's exploration commenced with UAV ultra detailed magnetic surveying, completing 590 line-km of flying using a Geometrics MagArrow magnetometer suspended under a DJI M300 drone. Interpretation of the data has assisted in defining key aspects of lithology and alteration of the Whitianga Group rhyolites and Coromandel Group andesites. Major structural features interpreted in the data align with regional mineralization trends.
Ultra detailed UAV magnetics flown by the exploration team highlights strong alteration (de-magnetization of the host rocks) enveloping the two anomalies and demonstrating a major alteration cell indicative of the footprint of a major epithermal system (Figure 3).
Soil Sampling
Soil sampling commenced in July 2024 along 250m spaced crosslines with a sample spacing of 20m. A total of 3,181 samples were collected, dried, sieved in Rua Gold's Waihi facility, then transported to Reefton and analyzed by pXRF in Rua Gold's Reefton laboratory.
Simultaneously, each sample was analyzed for short-wave near infrared (SWIR) reflectance spectrometry using a TerraSpec 4 Hi-Res mineral analyzer with 6nm resolution to complete a picture of the clay alteration system, enabling identification of the higher levels of the epithermal system. A 50g split of soil was then freighted to ALS Brisbane for low-level precision gold assay. Arsenic anomalism with coincident gold anomalism highlights the two major soil anomalies A and B (Appendix table 1 and Figure 3).
Anomaly A trends north-northwest for 4.2km with conjugate gold-arsenic trends in a north-east direction. This anomaly remains open to the northwest. The northeast direction mirrors the orientation of the significant Wharekirauponga gold deposit adjacent to the Glamorgan Project.
Anomaly B trends northerly and follows north to northeasterly quartz veins mapped over 4km and is open to the north and south. The southern end of this anomaly coincides with the Wentworth/Auckland historical mine workings.
Figure 3: Soil geochemistry & UAV magnetic data highlight two major gold-arsenic anomalies and coincident strong alteration in the Wires Ridge prospect.
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Field Mapping
Ongoing field mapping has highlighted broad alteration and veining in situ, and areas of quartz-adularia float displaying banded, platy quartz after calcite, as well as brecciated andesite with stockwork veining increasing toward the zones of interest. Both float and in situ rock-chip sampling have returned encouragingly anomalous gold (Appendix table 2), coincident with the zones of high soil geochemistry.
Geological mapping and CSAMT ground geophysical surveying will be completed in Q1 2025, allowing interpretation and drill targeting mid-year.
ABOUT GLAMORGAN
The Glamorgan Project lies within the Hauraki Goldfield, a major epithermal gold district, with over 50 historic mines and one operating mine (Waihi). The Waihi mine has produced over 10Moz of gold, with disclosed resources of 2.54Moz gold and 9.3Moz silver, and reserves of 0.48Moz gold and 1.5Moz silver remaining (estimated as at December 31, 2023 - see OceanaGold press release dated February 21, 2024 for more details).
Adjacent to the Glamorgan Project lies OceanaGold's Wharekirauponga deposit, with an initial reserve of 1.2Moz gold announced in December 2024. Early phase design and construction is expected to begin in 2025, with the first ore expected to be produced in 20321.
Rua Gold's Chief Operating Officer, Simon Henderson previously spent 14 years delineating the resource at OceanaGold's Waihi operation and then went on to joint-venture both the Glamorgan Project and Wharekirauponga Project under Glass Earth Minerals Inc., leading the exploration team to the Wharekirauponga discovery.
Figure 4: UAV magnetic data over the Wires Ridge Prospect within the Glamorgan permit.
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ABOUT Rua Gold
Rua Gold is an exploration company, strategically focused on New Zealand. With decades of expertise, our team has successfully taken major discoveries into producing world-class mines across multiple continents. The team is now focused on maximizing the asset potential of Rua Gold's two highly prospective high-grade gold projects.
The Company controls the Reefton Gold District as the dominant landholder in the Reefton Goldfield on New Zealand's South Island with over 120,000 hectares of tenements, in a district that historically produced over 2Moz of gold grading between 9 and 50g/t.
The Company's Glamorgan Project solidifies Rua Gold's position as a leading high-grade gold explorer on New Zealand's North Island. This highly prospective project is located within the North Islands' Hauraki district, a region that has produced an impressive 15Moz of gold and 60Moz of silver. Glamorgan is adjacent to OceanaGold Corporation's biggest gold mining project, Wharekirauponga.
For further information, please refer to the Company's disclosure record on SEDAR+ at www.sedarplus.ca.
TECHNICAL INFORMATION
Simon Henderson CP, AUSIMM, a qualified person under National Instrument 43-101 Standards of Disclosure for Mineral Projects and Chief Operating Officer and a director of Rua Gold, has reviewed and approved the technical disclosure contained herein. Mr. Henderson has participated in the geophysical, sampling, and mapping programs to verify that they have been conducted in accordance with the standard operating procedures. Mr. Henderson has verified the data disclosed by running checks on the location, analytical, and test data underlying the information in the technical disclosure herein.
QA/QC SOIL SAMPLES
A bulk sample of ~0.5-1 kg was collected in the field. Each sample was photographed in the field alongside the GPS with coordinates visible and each sample site marked in the field with biodegradable flagging tape. Samples were taken back to Rua Gold's Waihi facility for preparation. Samples were dried in a customized incubator, set at 38°C, for a minimum of two days. Once the samples were fully dried, they were sieved to
The 50-100-g fine-sieved (Rua Gold's Reefton facility for pXRF using an Olympus Vanta hand-held analyser, and then on to ALS Geochemistry, Brisbane, for Au-TL43 analysis. The ALS analysis consisted of 25-g sample digestion by aqua regia, followed by trace Au analysis by ICP-MS. The detection limit for Au by this method is 1ppb.
ALS Brisbane is independent to Rua Gold.
Field duplicates were collected every 20th sample and underwent the same drying, sieving, pXRF, and gold assay process outlined above. Duplicates were checked and validated by Rua Gold's Isogonal data validation system to ensure compliance.
This news release includes certain statements that may be deemed "forward-looking statements". All statements in this new release, other than statements of historical facts, that address events or developments that the Company expects to occur, are forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements are statements that are not historical facts and are generally, but not always, identified by the words "expects", "plans", "anticipates", "believes", "intends", "estimates", "projects", "potential" and similar expressions, or that events or conditions "will", "would", "may", "could" or "should" occur and specifically include statements regarding: the Company's strategies, expectations, planned operations or future actions, including but not limited to exploration programs at its Reefton and Glamorgan projects and the results thereof. Although the Company believes the expectations expressed in such forward-looking statements are based on reasonable assumptions, such statements are not guarantees of future performance and actual results may differ materially from those in the forward-looking statements.
Investors are cautioned that any such forward-looking statements are not guarantees of future performance and actual results or developments may differ materially from those projected in the forward-looking statements. A variety of inherent risks, uncertainties and factors, many of which are beyond the Company's control, affect the operations, performance and results of the Company and its business, and could cause actual events or results to differ materially from estimated or anticipated events or results expressed or implied by forward looking statements. Some of these risks, uncertainties and factors include: general business, economic, competitive, political and social uncertainties; risks related to the effects of the Russia-Ukraine war; risks related to climate change; operational risks in exploration, delays or changes in plans with respect to exploration projects or capital expenditures; the actual results of current exploration activities; conclusions of economic evaluations; changes in project parameters as plans continue to be refined; changes in labour costs and other costs and expenses or equipment or processes to operate as anticipated, accidents, labour disputes and other risks of the mining industry, including but not limited to environmental hazards, flooding or unfavorable operating conditions and losses, insurrection or war, delays in obtaining governmental approvals or financing, and commodity prices. This list is not exhaustive of the factors that may affect any of the Company's forward-looking statements and reference should also be made to the Company's short form base shelf prospectus dated July 11, 2024, and the documents incorporated by reference therein, filed under its SEDAR+ profile at www.sedarplus.ca for a description of additional risk factors.
Forward-looking statements are based on the beliefs, estimates and opinions of the Company's management on the date the statements are made. Except as required by applicable securities laws, the Company undertakes no obligation to update these forward-looking statements in the event that management's beliefs, estimates or opinions, or other factors, should change.
Appendix Table 1: Significant gold and arsenic assay results from soil samples.
| Sample ID | Easting_NZTM | Northing_NZTM | Au (ppm) | As (ppm) |
| WR18022 | 1845455 | 5873468 | 0.28 | 17 |
| WR14016 | 1845843 | 5874398 | 0.26 | 41 |
| WR05107 | 1848533 | 5875462 | 0.26 | 410 |
| WR07134 | 1848758 | 5874761 | 0.26 | 29 |
| WR06119 | 1848620 | 5875127 | 0.22 | 542 |
| WR15027 | 1845911 | 5874072 | 0.19 | 132 |
| WR09143 | 1848669 | 5874237 | 0.17 | 268 |
| WR14017 | 1845860 | 5874388 | 0.17 | 22 |
| WR14007 | 1845686 | 5874486 | 0.15 | 281 |
| WR03096 | 1848588 | 5876006 | 0.14 | 315 |
| WR04109 | 1848691 | 5875660 | * | 1546 |
| WR04111 | 1848726 | 5875641 | * | 1061 |
| WR10019 | 1846387 | 5875239 | * | 1052 |
| WR04110 | 1848709 | 5875650 | * | 1025 |
| WR01116 | 1849182 | 5876244 | 0.10 | 1000 |
| WR16124 | 1847478 | 5872900 | 0.05 | 981 |
| WR15118 | 1847496 | 5873177 | 0.12 | 952 |
| WR11048 | 1846769 | 5874736 | * | 784 |
| WR10033 | 1846630 | 5875102 | * | 772 |
| WR15149 | 1848036 | 5872872 | 0.02 | 673 |
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* gold assay results pending
Table 2: Significant assay results from rock-chip samples.
| Sample ID | Location | Type | Easting_NZTM | Northing_NZTM | Au (ppm) |
| GERS0746 | Wharekawa River | Float | 1846791 | 5877157 | 5.71 |
| GERS0747 | Wharekawa River | Float | 1846610 | 5876261 | 4.35 |
| GERS1605 | Wharekawa River | Float | 1847353 | 5875117 | 6.24 |
| GERS1611 | Wharekawa River | Float | 1847144 | 5875759 | 7.32 |
| GERS1618 | Sutcliff Stream | Float | 1847346 | 5875253 | 10.80 |
| GERS1623 | Phoenix Stream | Float | 1847263 | 5874868 | 6.05 |
| GERS1625 | Phoenix Stream | Float | 1847205 | 5874503 | 43.10 |
| GERS1626 | Phoenix Stream | Float | 1847246 | 5874406 | 8.04 |
| GERS1636 | Tairua River | Outcrop | 1845747 | 5873564 | 10.90 |
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1: Source: OceanaGold Pre-Feasibility Study, December 11, 2024
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