NovaGold's study expands zones at Donlin Creek
NovaGold Resources Inc (2) NRI
Shares issued 31,773,421 Sep 3 close $5.87
Wed 4 Sept 2002 News Release
Mr. Greg Johnson reports
DRILLING CONTINUES TO EXPAND NEW GOLD ZONES AT DONLIN
NovaGold Resources has released results from the continuing prefeasibility
and exploration program at the Donlin Creek gold deposit.
Highlights
Follow-up core holes at the new Aurora and 400 gold zones continue to
intercept high-grade gold mineralization. Highlights include DC02-740, with
14 metres grading 9.23 grams gold per tonne (45.9 feet grading 0.27 ounce
per ton); hole DC02-741, with 20 metres grading 7.89 grams per tonne (65.6
feet grading 0.23 ounce per ton); and hole DC02-855, with 19 metres grading
6.6 grams per tonne (62.3 feet grading 0.19 ounce per ton), 13 metres
grading 7.3 grams per tonne (42.7 feet grading 0.21 ounce per ton) and 32.7
metres grading 4.62 grams per tonne (107 feet grading 0.13 ounce per ton).
To date, 215 drill holes (94 core holes and 121 rotary holes) have been
drilled for a total of 27,000 metres (88,500 feet). Approximately 9,000
metres (29,000 feet) of additional drilling in 24 core holes and 46 rotary
holes will be completed by October, 2002, for the updated resource
estimate.
Environmental baseline studies for mine permitting, and geotechnical and
mine engineering studies, are under way for the preliminary feasibility
study.
Prefeasibility drilling on track, updated resource estimate in October,
2002
The in-pit expansion drilling and drilling on new target areas continue to
return excellent results. The new gold mineralization discovered during the
current drill program will add significantly to the overall gold resource
at Donlin Creek. Drilling to date has found new shallow high-grade gold
mineralization that will improve the early economics of mining for the
project as well as reduce the overall waste-to-ore strip ratio.
The current drill program is scheduled to be completed by early October,
2002, at which time NovaGold will have earned its 70-per-cent interest in
the Donlin Creek gold project. An updated resource estimate will be
released following the conclusion of the drill program and receipt of the
final assay results.
The 2002 drill program began in early April, 2002, with two diamond core
drills and one reverse circulation rotary drill working on the property.
This multistaged drill program is designed to expand the gold resource, as
defined in the March, 2002, scoping study, by expansion drilling previously
undrilled portions of the modelled $300-per-ounce pit, completing step-out
drilling away from known mineralization within the modelled pit boundaries,
and upgrading inferred resources with infill drilling to the measured and
indicated categories. All of these objectives have been met and further
resource expansion should continue with the remainder of the program.
Since April, 2002, 215 drill holes (94 core holes and 121 rotary holes)
have been drilled for a total of 27,000 metres (88,500 feet). Approximately
9,000 metres (29,000 feet) of additional drilling in 24 core holes and 46
rotary holes will be completed as part of the prefeasibility program.
Mine engineering fieldwork has been initiated with geotechnical studies on
the tailings impoundment site and the facility site, including studies for
the upgrade of the main road access to the property. Environmental baseline
studies for mine permitting, including subsurface water and air monitoring,
have also been initiated as well as continuing surface water studies. Plant
and wildlife studies have also been initiated as part of the permitting
process.
High-grade follow-up drill holes expand new Aurora zone discovery
Follow-up drilling on the new Aurora zone target, located one kilometre
west of the Acma deposit, has continued to intersect new significant
intervals of gold mineralization within intrusive porphyry rocks. The
discovery of this new gold zone extends the known gold mineralization to
over three kilometres east to west. The most recent results show that the
gold mineralization at Aurora is expanding to both the north and the south
and is connecting with mineralization in the 400 zone. All of these drill
holes are in a completely new area, falling outside of the modelled
$300-per-ounce pit, and will add significant ounces to the resource.
Highlights include diamond drill core hole DC02-740, which intersected 14
metres grading 9.23 grams per tonne gold, and DC02-744, which intersected
68.2 metres grading 4.16 grams per tonne gold. These holes have extended
the Aurora zone substantially toward the Acma and 400 zones, and appear to
geologically link up with the mineralization in the 400 zone that continues
another one-half kilometre to the east. Diamond drill core holes DC02-741
intersected 20 metres grading 7.89 grams per tonne; DC02-743 intersected 20
metres grading 4.16 grams per tonne; and hole DC02-855 intersected 19
metres grading 6.60 grams per tonne, 13 metres grading 7.3 grams per tonne
and 32.7 metres grading 4.62 grams per tonne. These results further extend
mineralization at the Aurora/400 zones significantly to the south. These
are the southernmost holes drilled to date in the Aurora/400 zones. The
Aurora/400 system remains open with excellent potential to increase the
extent of the defined gold mineralization.
High-grade follow-up drill holes expand new Akivik zone discovery
Additional follow-up drilling at the new Akivik discovery, located one
kilometre north of the high-grade Acma zone, has continued to intercept
high-grade gold mineralization. The previously reported high-grade area
between Akivik and Acma has been followed up with two fences of
perpendicular holes. Preliminary results from the first of these holes
include DC02-854, which intersected 4.9 metres grading 17.1 grams per tonne
and 7.0 metres grading 3.7 grams per tonne gold. Assay results from the
remaining holes are still pending. Exploration rotary drilling more than
one-half kilometre to the west of Akivik has also returned excellent
results, including DR02-796, which intersected 32 metres grading 3.4 grams
per tonne, DR02-805 which intersected 9.1 metres grading 4.3 grams per
tonne and DR02-806, which intersected 13.7 metres grading 3.97 grams per
tonne gold.
Encouraging results have also expanded the known gold mineralization at the
Akivik zone further to the north. Highlights include rotary hole DR02-816,
which intersected 16.8 metres grading 4.25 grams per tonne, and DR02-752,
which intersected 18.3 metres containing 6.4 grams per tonne gold. Both
holes are located more than 300 metres north of the Akivik zone. Additional
step-out drilling will be necessary to define the extent of the new Akivik
zone, which to date remains open in all directions. This new gold zone lies
outside of the scoping-study-modelled $300-per-ounce pit, and will add new
ounces to the resource. Additional assays are still pending from this area.
Acma in-pit expansion drilling hits new shallow high-grade mineralization
The first results from the 100-metre-by-100-metre in-pit expansion drilling
directly east of the Acma deposit are very encouraging. This area falls
within the modelled pit boundaries but was classified as waste in the
original scoping-study model since it had not been previously drilled.
Preliminary results from the first of five rotary holes include DR02-823,
which intercepted 13.7 metres grading 10.4 grams per tonne starting at only
15-metres depth. Additional assays are still pending from this area. This
new shallow high-grade mineralization will decrease the overall
waste-to-ore stripping ratio and would likely be mined early in the project
mine-life and thereby further improve the project rate of return.
New summary drill results and sample protocol
The drill program and sampling protocol are managed by NovaGold with
oversight provided by qualified person Phil St. George, vice-president of
exploration and project manager for NovaGold Resources. All drill samples
were analyzed by fire assay at ALS Chemex Labs in Vancouver.
Drill hole location maps showing the Donlin Creek target areas are
available for download on the NovaGold Web site at the following link:
novagold.net.
DONLIN CREEK NEW DRILL RESULTS
HIGHLIGHTS TABLE
Interval Length Gold
DHID (m) (m) (g/t)
DC02-737 29.7 to 34.4 4.7 4.93
And 66.0 to 84.0 18.0 3.27
DC02-739 22.0 to 28.6 6.6 7.71
And 86.0 to 90.0 4.0 16.12
DC02-740 104.7 to 110.0 5.3 3.43
And 58.0 to 72.0 14.0 9.23
DC02-741 102.0 to 122.0 20.0 7.89
DC02-742 32.0 to 36.0 4.0 3.39
DC02-743 158.0 to 164.0 6.0 4.29
And 264.0 to 268.0 4.0 3.03
And 304.0 to 324.0 20.0 4.16
DC02-744 56.0 to 124.2 68.2 4.17
DC02-745* 123.7 to 134.7 11.0 4.12
And 156.0 to 163.4 7.4 3.80
And 191.0 to 200.5 9.5 5.62
DC02-855* 198.4 to 205.9 7.5 3.97
And 229.5 to 237.0 7.5 4.13
And 274.3 to 278.0 3.7 7.98
And 307.0 to 326.0 19.0 6.60
And 343.0 to 356.0 13.0 7.30
And 382.3 to 415.0 32.7 4.62
DC02-748 166.2 to 169.8 3.6 6.78
DC02-749 106.0 to 109.0 3.0 5.23
And 119.4 to 122.7 3.3 14.46
And 130.0 to 154.6 24.7 3.59
DC02-750* 203.0 to 206.0 03.0 4.28
DR02-752 25.9 to 44.2 18.3 6.44
DC02-851 39.0 to 56.0 17.0 4.46
And 50.6 to 56.0 5.4 7.94
DC02-854* 167.6 to 172.6 4.9 17.12
And 187.0 to 194.0 7.0 3.72
DR02-792 32.0 to 36.6 4.6 4.13
And 67.1 to 70.1 3.0 6.89
And 74.7 to 100.6 25.9 3.04
DR02-796 7.6 to 39.6 32.0 3.40
DR02-805 13.7 to 22.9 9.1 4.30
DR02-806 10.7 to 24.4 13.7 3.97
DR02-807 71.6 to 74.7 3.1 9.24
DR02-816 59.4 to 76.2 16.8 4.25
DR02-823* 15.3 to 29.0 13.7 10.36
Length Gold
DHID (ft) (oz/t) Type
DC02-737 15.3 0.14 Core
And 59.1 0.10
DC02-739 21.6 0.23 Core
And 13.1 0.47
DC02-740 17.5 0.10 Core
And 45.9 0.27
DC02-741 65.6 0.23 Core
DC02-742 13.1 0.10 Core
DC02-743 19.7 0.13 Core
And 13.1 0.09
And 65.6 0.12
DC02-744 223.7 0.12 Core
DC02-745* 36.0 0.12 Core
And 24.2 0.11
And 31.2 0.16
DC02-855* 24.5 0.12 Core
And 24.5 0.12
And 12.0 0.23
And 62.3 0.19
And 42.7 0.21
And 107.3 0.13
DC02-748 11.9 0.20 Core
DC02-749 9.8 0.15 Core
And 10.8 0.42
And 80.9 0.10
DC02-750* 9.8 0.12 Core
DR02-752 60.0 0.19 Rotary
DC02-851 55.8 0.13 Core
And 17.7 0.23
DC02-854* 16.2 0.50 Core
And 23.0 0.11
DR02-792 15.0 0.12 Rotary
And 10.0 0.20
And 85.0 0.09
DR02-796 105.0 0.10 Rotary
DR02-805 30.0 0.13 Rotary
DR02-806 45.0 0.12 Rotary
DR02-807 10.0 0.27 Rotary
DR02-816 55.0 0.12 Rotary
DR02-823* 45.0 0.30 Rotary
DHID Area Objective
DC02-737 Aurora/400 Step-out
DC02-739 Aurora/400 Step-out
DC02-740 Aurora Step-out
DC02-741 Aurora/400 Step-out
DC02-742 Aurora Step-out
DC02-743 Aurora/400 Step-out
DC02-744 Aurora Step-out
DC02-745* Zone 400 Step-out
DC02-855* Aurora/400 Step-out
DC02-748 Akivik Step-out
DC02-749 Akivik Step-out
DC02-750* Akivik Step-out
DR02-752 North of Akivik Exploration
DC02-851 Akivik Step-out
DC02-854* Akivik Step-out
DR02-792 North of Akivik Exploration
DR02-796 North of Akivik Exploration
DR02-805 West of Akivik Exploration
DR02-806 West of Akivik Exploration
DR02-807 North of Akivik Exploration
DR02-816 North of Akivik Exploration
DR02-823* East Acma Pit Expansion
* -- Final assay results still pending
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