Summary
- Pucara Gold has commenced its Phase 1 drilling campaign at the
Lourdes Gold Project and expects to release initial drill results
by December 2020
- CEO, Steve Zuker, and VP
Exploration, Ken Balleweg, have
traveled to the Lourdes Gold Project to oversee the start of the
drill campaign
- Phase 1 consists of 5000 meters in 20 reverse circulation holes
and will focus on four high priority target areas within the
Lourdes Gold Project
- The focus of Phase 1 drilling will test the Jellopata and
Paccha Huayco diatremes and the Chucllani and Ayani zones where
gold-bearing granular silica has been sampled in outcrop
- Road access to four target areas completed with 12 drill sites
constructed
TSX-V: TORO
VANCOUVER, BC, Oct. 28, 2020 /CNW/ - Pucara Gold
Ltd. ("Pucara Gold", "Pucara" or the
"Company") (TSXV: TORO) is pleased to announce that
it has commenced the Lourdes Gold Project drill campaign. Nine
primary target areas have been identified for drill testing in the
project area. Selection criteria include size and intensity of the
hydrothermal alteration, presence of multiple alteration and
brecciation events, strong structural control, anomalous rock
and/or soil geochemical response, large IP resistivity anomalies,
and large deposit size potential. Target areas are predominantly
diatreme centers and/or broad structural zones or a combination of
both. The first phase of the program consists of 20 holes
(5000m) testing four target areas;
Phase 2 consists of 16 holes (2650m)
that include the remaining five target areas. Eleven additional
sites are included in the proposed plan to allow for follow-up
infill and step-out drilling with the 40 sites allowed by
permit.
"We at Pucara have been anticipating drilling Lourdes for the last four years since the
initial identification of the Lourdes diatremes by Ken Balleweg and their control on potential
mineralization. We have followed-up with detailed geologic mapping,
geochemical sampling, and re-interpretation of the IP geophysics to
focus in on specific drill targets. Every bit of information
compiled to date has continued to grow our excitement in the
exploration potential at Lourdes,"
stated Steve Zuker, CEO of Pucara,
"Now with drill permits in hand and capital from our summer
financing we are finally able to initiate our drill program and
determine if Lourdes is the next
great Peruvian gold discovery that we hope it to be."
"We've been anxiously waiting to drill these targets for more
than two years," stated Ken
Balleweg, VP of Exploration, "The project has had a
tremendous amount of exploration work done prior to drilling with
the generated data consistently pointing to the same target areas.
It's exciting to see the first drill holes in progress and we will
be anxiously awaiting the results."
Figure 1. Lourdes project
hydrothermal alteration, diatreme breccias, and Phase 1 drill
targets.
Figure 2. Three dimensional rendition of the Lourdes Project IP
resistivity anomaly in plan view.
Target # 1: Jellopata
The Jellopata target, located in the western portion of the
project area, is the largest identified in the Lourdes hydrothermal system and believed to
have the highest potential for a large, multi-million-ounce gold
deposit. The target consists of a 1.2km long, 300m wide north-south trending, near-surface zone
of high IP resistivity that is interpreted to be silicic alteration
within a large structurally controlled diatreme. The Jellopata zone
trend is parallel to and within the Apumayo mineralized trend,
which is interpreted to be the primary controlling structure.
Multi-stage granular silica breccias and advanced argillic
alteration containing high temperature pyrophyllite clays overly
the IP resistivity anomaly. Stratiform cryptocrystalline silica
overlies the northern portion of target area. The Jellopata target
is at the highest elevation in the Lourdes system (4350m), with a surface alteration assemblage
characteristic of high levels of high sulfidation gold deposits.
The exposure level is believed to be above the zone of gold
deposition, but weak soil gold and arsenic anomalies overly and
support the concept of a shallow blind target. The IP resistivity
anomaly is funnel-shaped consistent with the morphology of the
exposed diatremes and vents, with the inferred feeder portion
extending to below 4000m
elevation.
A distinct concave-upward zone of anomalous low chargeability is
present within the northern 600-800m
of the IP resistivity anomaly, interpreted as a zone of strong
oxidation extending to at least 200m
below the surface. This area is believed to be the most prospective
for gold mineralization due to deep oxidation commonly found where
the brecciation and resulting porosity and permeability is the
highest.
Figure 3. Three dimensional rendition of the Jellopata IP
resistivity anomaly and proposed drill holes showing structural and
stratiform morphologies, view to east.
Target # 2: Chucllani
The Chucllani target area is a broad area of intense alteration
on the northeast side of the Lourdes system consisting of four separate
target areas over approximately 800m
of strike length. It has similarities to the Apumayo group of gold
deposits being mined 14km to the south. The primary drill target
consists of a >200m long,
>75m wide northeast-trending zone
of granular silica alteration with outcropping gold mineralization
up to 0.64 g/t Au. A secondary target exists 200m to the northeast along zone trend where
gold-bearing (up to 1.7 g/t Au) granular silica outcropping within
a prominent ravine. A strong westerly-plunging IP resistivity
anomaly that is believed to be the east margin of the Paccha Huayco
diatreme is also targeted from this area. The Chucllani target area
exhibits moderate to strong anomalous soil gold and pathfinder
element response.
Target # 3: Ayani
The Ayani zone is located at the extreme northeastern portion of
the Lourdes system and consists of
a 700m long and up to 150m wide structural zone of silicified breccias
with proximal stratiform silicic alteration, a vent breccia with
chalcedonic silica at the upper portions, and gold-bearing granular
silica breccia. Gold-bearing granular silica (up to 0.87 g/t Au) is
exposed at the edge of colluvial cover in the lower portions of the
zone, suggesting that the colluvium may be concealing additional
non-resistant mineralized granular silica. Soil gold and arsenic
anomalies appear to be sourced in the zone.
Figure 4. Lourdes three
dimensional IP resistivity anomaly viewed to the north showing the
Jellopata and Paccha Huayco diatremes and lateral stratiform
silicic alteration, locally gold-bearing in the outcropping portion
of the Ayani and Chucllani Zones
Target # 4: Paccha Huayco
The Paccha Huayco target is in the central part of the
Lourdes system and is the second
largest in the project area. It occurs at the three-way
intersection of the dominant structural trends on the property: the
north-south Apumayo trend, the northwest fold axis trend, and the
northeast Ayani structural trend. The target area is underlain by a
large funnel-shaped IP resistivity anomaly that is interpreted to
be a diatreme like the Jellopata target. The anomaly and inferred
diatreme are elliptical in plan, 1000m long within the Ayani structural zone and
up to 500m wide. The IP resistivity
anomaly occurs below pervasive strong advanced argillic alteration
with structurally controlled granular and massive silica. Soil gold
and weak rock chip gold anomalies occur on the west and southeast
flanks of alteration overlying the IP resistivity anomaly. The
surface alteration assemblage is high-level, consisting of chalky,
possibly steam-heated granular silica and cryptocrystalline silica
inferred to be above the level of gold deposition.
About Lourdes Gold Project
The wholly-owned Lourdes Gold Project is a fully-permitted high
sulfidation epithermal precious metal project, which lies at the
intersection of two regional mineralized trends with neighboring
high sulfidation prospects and a producing mine. Lourdes covers a highly prospective contiguous
area of 2,576 hectares that had received minimal prior exploration
and has not been previously drill tested. Pucara has identified a
complex of nested diatremes, vent breccias, and breccia bodies at
Lourdes that are similar in size
and associated alteration to the high sulfidation epithermal gold
deposits at Yanacocha and Pierina in northern Peru, and the Mulatos district of Mexico. The property is approximately 400
kilometres southeast of Lima and
is easily accessible by a paved, single-lane road originating in
the town of Puquio, 155 kilometres east of the Pan American
Highway.
About Pucara Gold
Pucara Gold is a well-financed junior exploration company
focused on the discovery and advancement of economic precious
metals deposits in resource-rich Peru. Pucara has a portfolio approach to
project acquisition and controls nine precious and base metal
projects, including its flagship Lourdes Gold Project, located in
Ayacucho, Peru. Pucara is
advancing six projects while the remaining three are under option
agreements with strategic partners. Pucara plans to grow through
discoveries, strategic relationships, and grassroots
exploration.
QUALIFIED PERSON
The Lourdes exploration program is
conducted under the direction of Ken
Balleweg, P. Geol., BSc. Geological Engineering, M.S.
Geology, Registered Professional Geologist, Pucara's Vice President
of Exploration and a Qualified Person as defined by NI 43-101 of
the Canadian Securities Administrators.
Cautionary Statements
Neither the 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. This news release includes
forward-looking statements that are subject to risks and
uncertainties. All statements within, other than statements of
historical fact, are to be considered forward looking. 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 or
developments may differ materially from those in forward-looking
statements. Factors that could cause actual results to differ
materially from those in forward-looking statements include market
prices, exploitation and exploration successes, the impact of the
COVID-19 pandemic on the worldwide economy, continued availability
of capital and financing, and general economic, market or business
conditions and regulatory and administrative approvals, processes
and filing requirements. There can be no assurances that such
statements will prove accurate and, therefore, readers are advised
to rely on their own evaluation of such uncertainties. We do not
assume any obligation to update any forward-looking statements.
SOURCE Pucara Gold Ltd.
