Sanatana Reports Best Intercept to Date at Oweegee Dome Copper-Gold Porphyry Project, Golden Triangle BC
112.18 m grading 0.17% Cu, 0.22 g/t Au, 1.10 g/t Ag from 58.4 m depth. Includes these higher-grade zones:
12 m grading 0.40% Cu, 0.35 g/t Au, 2.10 g/t Ag from 77 m depth
12.47 m grading 0.40 % Cu, 0.39 g/t Au, 1.34 g/t Ag from 157 m depth
High-level porphyry style copper-gold mineralization confirmed in drill hole OW2022-08
Epithermal gold 4.32m grading 1.93g/t Au, 32.0g/t, Ag, 11.9g/t Te from 34.0m depth. Includes 2.1m grading 3.48g/t Au, 60.8g/t Ag, 46.2g/t Te from depth 34.0m
Mineralized footprint expanded at Delta prospect within phyllic altered hydrothermal intrusive breccias
GeologicAI XRF core scanning confirms presence of copper in eight of 12 drill holes.
Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, December 19, 2022 – Sanatana Resources Inc. (TSXV: STA) (“Sanatana”, the “Company”) is pleased to report assays for drill hole OW-2022-08 including a 112.18 m interval grading 0.17% Cu, 0.22 g/t Au, and 1.10 g/t Ag from 58.4 m depth. Tabulated results are summarized in Table 1. The Company has received assays for drill hole OW-2022-08 and will release further assay results from the balance of the 12-hole drill program once received and reviewed for QAQC.
Table 1. Mineralised intervals for OW-2022-08, >0.06Au and >0.06% Cu cut-off (must have both) and no internal intervals with less than cut-off over 6m in length.
Copper and gold equivalent grades (%CuEq) are for comparative purposes only. Calculations are uncut and recovery is assumed to be 100% as no metallurgical data is available. Metal prices are US$3.50/lb copper, US$1,700/oz gold and US$19/oz silver, using the formula: %CuEq = Cu grade + (Au price x Au grade + Ag price x Ag grade)/31.104/(Cu price x 22.046) results rounded to the nearest significant number, two decimal places.
Buddy Doyle, Sanatana’s President reported, ”Oweegee Dome drill hole OW-2022-08 provided direct evidence that we are in the high levels of a copper-gold porphyry system. In particular, we interpret the higher grades zones as representing high-permeability conduits from depth. Our plans for 2023 include drilling these zones along with the recently defined IP anomalies (see our news release of December 12, 2022). Our team is eager to test these compelling drill targets in 2023.”
Peter Miles, CEO commented, “We are pleased to report the best drill intersection to date on Oweegee Dome including higher-grade breccia and epithermal intervals. The 2022 $3.3 million, 3,679 m drill program had three objectives, all of which were achieved: (1) to prove that Oweegee Dome is a porphyry system; (2) that it is capable of carrying good grades; and (3) to understand and increase the size of the system. The program confirms we are in the higher levels of a porphyry system, highlighted by the “B” veins, alteration and the higher-grade breccia intervals. The continuous core-scanned XRF copper counts and additional mapping, rock chip and soil sampling results, along with the drilling, gives the Company strong evidence that the system is at least 4km across. Furthermore, we now recognize that Oweegee Dome has many characteristics shared with Teck’s Schaft Creek project and Seabridge’s Mitchell deposit along with other porphyry copper resources in the Golden Triangle.”
High-grade Intercepts
The assays from OW-2022-08 revealed two higher grade zones defined as >0.3g/t Au and >0.3% Cu. Both approximate 12m higher grade intervals are within the broader mineralized copper envelope and they correspond with more intense alteration and brecciation. The copper/ gold intercepts also exhibit an elemental association of Au-Ag-Cu-Mo-Re-Te. Molybdenum averages 30ppm, max 278ppm, rhenium averages 0.14ppm, maximum 0.6ppm, and tellurium 3.1ppm, maximum 11.1ppm.
Figure 1. Hole OW-2022-08 at 82m, part of the 77m to 89m high-grade copper interval referenced above. Note dark Grey “B” veins and clots of chalcopyrite, grey breccia fragments texturally destroyed.
Geology
Copper-gold mineralization is hosted in fine-grained, matrix-supported, diorite breccia with, pervasive, phyillic alteration of variable intensity. Phyillic alteration assemblage is as sericite, pyrite, and minor quartz. In less altered intervals, the matrix appears to also be fine grained diorite. The more intense altered intervals there is complete textural destruction, these zones correspond with the higher copper grades. Elevated potassium assays (>2% K) corresponds with the copper/ gold mineralized intervals, and this along with petrology suggests the introduction of K-feldspar as part of the alteration package. A fine stockwork of “B” type veins are noted in the copper mineralized intervals. Drill hole OW-2022-08, cut across the mineralized altered intrusions and breccias and drilled into unaltered country rock of Stuhini Group volcanics and mudstones, completing at a depth of 339m.
Our work to date has completely revised the geology of Oweegee Dome. Previously, all rocks were considered to be the less prospective Jurassic Hazelton Group with no intrusives mapped. Now with age dating, mapping and drilling, we know that our project at Oweegee Dome has an area of multiple altered intrusives within the Triassic Stuhini Group, which hosts all the porphyry copper-gold mineralization in the Golden Triangle.
Gold Halo
It is noteworthy that all the copper intercept is nested in a larger halo of gold and silver mineralization as listed in table 2.
Table 2. Gold-Silver Halo. 0.1g/t g/t Au cut-off.
This pattern was also noted in the historic holes.
Since the gold/silver halo is larger than the copper zone, it might be used to guide future drilling. The alteration style is consistent with being in the upper levels of a porphyry system with a high probability of finding the larger higher grade copper mineralization at moderate depths. Future drilling will include systematic follow-up of the copper zone reported here to greater depths.
Epithermal Gold
There is one 4 m intercept of gold and silver that is not associated with copper/ molybdenum and which occurs in a less altered intrusive in OW-2022-08. This interval appears to be epithermal mineralization differing from the other porphyry-style mineralization encountered in the hole. Table 3 summarizes metal values. The relatively high value of silver and telluride suggest that gold might be present as a telluride possibly sylvanite.
Table 3. Epithermal Gold Intercept
Some of the historic drilling also report similar zones of possible epithermal gold in DC96-02, from 21.69 m to 26.95 m, 5.26 m at 1.46 g/t Au and from DC07-01, 1.57 m grading 1.75g/t Au from 41.45 m to 43.02 m. These occurrences also support the working model that copper-gold mineralization at Oweegee Dome is in the upper part of a porphyry system: the model allows for epithermal style mineralization in upper regions.
Figure 2. Hole OW-2022-08 at 35.5m, photographs of the epithermal style gold zone, corresponds with silica flooding, and increased sulphides.
GeologicAI XRF Core Logging
Sanatana retained the services of GeologicAI to scan and photograph the drill core. The scanning included a continuous 2cm wide XRF beam and short-wave infrared (“SWIR”) imagery, allowing Sanatana to compare this information with the assays. The Cu counts from the XRF show a one-to-one correlation between the copper and the Company’s assay results. This provides high confidence that the high XRF copper counts from other drill holes, where assays are awaited, will also give >0.1% copper results. Elevated XRF copper counts were recorded in zones within drill holes 4, 5, 6, 7, 9, 10 and 12, making it likely that assays from these corresponding intervals will be favourable. Complete results are anticipated by mid-January 2023.
Looking at the core logs and the alteration as defined by the SWIR imagery, the copper zones occur in two modes. Those that have monomictic breccias and alteration similar to OW-2022-08 and a second style that is hosted in a polymictic breccia which has sulphides in the matrix and notable potassically altered fragments with prominent “B” and “D” veins with chalcopyrite. These fragments are clearly being sampled by the hydrothermal breccia events from greater depths and provide evidence of the higher-grade potassic zones that likely exist at depth.
Figure 3: Plan view right, drill trace of OW-2022-08 on topography, with 3D view of IP response. Cross section view looking west. IP isoshells also depicted. Green trace are histograms of the copper assays, purple trace is the Cu XRF scan. Note the one-to-one correspondence.
Figure 4 DDH OW2022-05: 171.2 m: clast of intrusion with pyrite-molybdenite-chalcopyrite and abundant mm-scale 'B' veinlets within clast-supported polymictic breccia
QC/QA Statement and Qualified person
Diamond saw split samples were sent to MSA laboratory Terrace prep lab by chain of custody. After preparation the samples are sent to MSA laboratories at Langley an ISO 9000 registered lab. Pulps from the core are fire assayed for gold with an ICPMS, 30g aliquots, finish and for 56 multi-elements using ICP using a separate 30g aliquot, 4 acid digestion.
Sanatana uses independent standards to check the assays process, it should be noted that the one of the standards for this hole returned a results more than 2 standard deviations from the expected mean, with the lab under reporting the gold value for the standard. The Company has asked this batch to be re-run.
The technical information in this news release was prepared under the supervision of Buddy Doyle B.App Sc Geology, MAUSIMM. Mr. Doyle is a Qualified Person for the purposes of National Instrument 43-101 - Standards of Disclosure for Mineral Projects and has reviewed and approved the technical information disclosed in this news release.
About the Company
Sanatana Resources Inc. is a mineral exploration and development company focused on high-impact properties in Canada. With an award-winning technical team and experienced management and board of directors, Sanatana is based in Vancouver and is listed on the TSX Venture Exchange (TSX-V: STA).
Sanatana’s principal project is the Oweegee Dome copper-gold porphyry property which is situated 40 km east of the KSM – Brucejack – Treaty Creek cluster of base and precious metal deposits and is underlain by similar geologic conditions, Stuhini (Triassic age) host rocks, intrusions of the right age, alteration and porphyry style copper/gold moly mineralization.
SANATANA RESOURCES INC.
(signed) “Peter Miles”
Peter Miles
Chief Executive Officer
For additional information on the Company, please contact Mr. Peter Miles, Chief Executive Officer at (604) 408-6680 or email investor@sanatanaresources.com.
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Cautionary Statement Regarding “Forward-Looking” Information
This news release includes “forward-looking statements” and “forward-looking information” within the meaning of Canadian securities legislation. All statements included in this news release, other than statements of historical fact, are forward-looking statements including, without limitation, statements related to the Company’s exploration program for Oweegee. For instance, the Company has compared drill results to the theoretical geological model complied by the industry and academia for porphyry copper systems. Although the consensus is that the geology fits the model, there can be no guarantee that the system is economic. Many factors contribute to this, especially that not all porphyry systems carry economically minable grades. The Company refers to XRF copper values as indicating copper mineralization which are given as a guide only. Actual copper mineralization intervals will have to await assays.
Forward-looking statements and information can be identified by the use of words such as “plans”, “expects”, “intends”, “is expected”, “potential”, “suggests” or variations of such words or phrases, or statements that certain actions, events or results “may”, “could”, “should”, “would”, “might” or “will” be taken, occur or be achieved. Forward-looking statements and information are not historical facts and are subject to a number of risks and uncertainties beyond Sanatana’s control. Actual results and developments are likely to differ, and may differ materially, from those expressed or implied by the forward-looking statements contained in this news release. Accordingly, readers should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements. The Company undertakes no obligation to update publicly or otherwise revise any forward-looking statements, except as may be required by law.
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