Annuncio • Jun 17
Auranova Resources Inc. and Kenorland Minerals Ltd. Announce Large Intrusion-Related Gold Discovery At the South Uchi Project
Auranova Resources Inc. and Kenorland Minerals Ltd. announced complete assay results from the 2026 spring (phase 3) diamond drill program at the South Uchi Project, located in the Red Lake District of Ontario. The program comprised six drill holes totalling 3,187 metres, successfully extending the Papaonga gold target to the east along the mineralised structural corridor recently identified in the Phase 2 diamond drill program. Phase 3 drilling has identified a large new mineralised target. Discovery of a large new intrusion-related gold system, the “North Papa”, at Papaonga. The North Papa is defined by gold-mineralised quartz feldspar porphyry with intense silica-sericite-albite flooding and up to 15% accessory sulphides dominated by pyrite, hosted by a large regional east-west shear zone. Discovery drill hole 26PADD046 was drilled approximately orthogonal to the large east-west structural corridor, in order to characterise gold mineralisation across its entire width. Based on available data, all reported mineralised zones are expected to extend to bedrock surface under an average 10-20 m of till cover. 26PADD046 intersected more than 122.80 m of mineralisation grading more than 0.28 g/t gold across 220.15 m of downhole core length. Lower-grade mineralised intervals in 26PADD046 include 0.58 g/t gold over 21.00 m, within a broader interval of 0.34 g/t Au over 65.45 m, 0.31 g/t Au over 35.65 m, and 0.28 g/t Au over 14.00 m. First indications of high-grade gold mineralisation were also intersected, with 7.07 g/t gold over 1.00 m in 26PADD046, and 9.09 g/t gold over 1.45 m in 500 m step-out drill hole 26PADD043. Recent drilling extended the North Papa mineralisation to 1 km of strike length, while expanding the Papaonga target footprint to approximately 7 km of strike east-west. Given the size of the target, which remains open along strike and at depth, follow-up geophysical programs are being planned for future drill targeting. The 2026 spring drill program represents the third phase of drilling at Papaonga, designed to test strike extensions of the northern mineralised structural corridor recently identified in late 2025. The program was designed as broad step-outs, at approximately 500 m spacing towards the east and west from drill holes 25PADD031 and 25PADD034 which intersected a ~200 m-wide mineralised corridor. Drilling successfully intersected broad zones of hydrothermal alteration and gold mineralisation towards the east and remains open, concealed beneath deep glacial till and glaciolacustrine cover, further demonstrating the scale of the Papaonga system. Step-out drill hole 26PADD046, located roughly 500 m to the east of previous drilling along the corridor intersected multiple broad zones of gold mineralisation returning 14.00 m at 0.28 g/t Au, 65.45 m at 0.34 g/t Au including 21.00 m at 0.58 g/t Au, and 35.65 m at 0.31 g/t Au. Mineralisation is hosted within both felsic intrusive and mafic volcanic rocks, associated with strong deformation, pervasive silica-sericite±albite alteration and disseminated to stringer style sulphides. Higher grade, mafic volcanic hosted gold mineralisation was also returned from 26PADD046 with 7.70 m at 1.13 g/t Au including 1.00 m at 7.07 g/t Au, and a further 500 m step-out to the east with 26PADD043 that returned 3.75 m at 3.65 g/t Au including 1.45 m at 9.09 g/t Au. Mineralisation is accompanied by silica-sericite alteration, quartz-carbonate veining, and pyrite-pyrrhotite mineralisation. These results demonstrate continuity of the hydrothermal system beneath glacial cover and support the interpretation that the Papaonga mineralised corridor remains open to the east. Collectively, results from the spring 2026 program expand the known footprint of gold mineralisation at Papaonga and reinforce the interpretation of a large-scale, belt-parallel mineralised corridor with significant exploration upside. Follow-up exploration is proposed for Third Quarter 2026 and will comprise detailed geophysical surveys, including induced polarisation (IP) and high-resolution magnetic surveys, covering the northern corridor identified through Phase 2 and Phase 3 drilling and extending geophysical coverage to the east. The objective of these surveys is to characterise and fingerprint mineralisation intersected in previous drill campaigns, thereby improving drill targeting beneath cover. Additional drill planning will be undertaken following completion of the geophysical surveys, with further details to be provided at a later date. Table of assay results from the 2026 spring drill program: 26PADD043: 97.50 m to 101.25 m, interval 3.75 m, Au 3.65 g/t; including 99.80 m to 101.25 m, interval 1.45 m, Au 9.09 g/t; 125.80 m to 133.50 m, interval 7.70 m, Au 1.13 g/t. 26PADD046: including 130.00 m to 131.00 m, interval 1.00 m, Au 7.07 g/t; and 136.00 m to 150.00 m, interval 14.00 m, Au 0.28 g/t; and 221.75 m to 287.20 m, interval 65.45 m, Au 0.34 g/t; including 243.00 m to 264.00 m, interval 21.00 m, Au 0.58 g/t; and 310.30 m to 345.95 m, interval 35.65 m, Au 0.31 g/t. Assay intervals reported are core lengths, true widths have not been determined. All drill core samples were collected under the supervision of Kenorland employees. Drill core was transported from the drill platform to the logging facility where it was logged, photographed, and split by diamond saw prior to being sampled. Samples were then bagged, and blanks and certified reference materials were inserted at regular intervals. Groups of samples were placed in large bags, sealed with numbered tags in order to maintain a chain-of-custody, and transported from Red Lake to Bureau Veritas Commodities laboratory in Timmins, Ontario. Sample preparation and analytical work for this drill program were carried out by Bureau Veritas Commodities. Samples were prepared for analysis according to Bureau Veritas Commodities method PRP70-250: individual samples were crushed to 2 mm (10 mesh) and a 250 g split was pulverized to 75 µm (200 mesh) for analysis and then assayed for gold. Gold in samples were analyzed using Bureau Veritas Commodities method FA430 where a 30 g split is analyzed with fire assay by Pb collection and AAS finish. Over-limits gold samples were re-analyzed using Bureau Veritas Commodities method FA530 where a 30 g split is analyzed with fire assay by Pb collection and gravimetric finish. Multi-element geochemical analysis (45 elements) was performed on all samples using Bureau Veritas Commodities method MA200 where a 0.25 g split is by multi-acid digest with ICP-MS/ES finish. All results passed the QA/QC screening at the lab, all company inserted standards and blanks returned results that were within acceptable limits.