Announcement • Jul 08
Kenorland Minerals and Auranova Resources Commence Induced Polarisation Survey over North Papa Gold Discovery At South Uchi Project
Kenorland Minerals Ltd. and Auranova Resources Inc. announced the commencement of a 24 line-kilometre induced polarisation (IP) survey at the South Uchi Project, located in the Red Lake District of Ontario. The survey covers the recently discovered North Papa gold trend within the larger Papaonga target area, designed to characterise the geophysical response of the mineralised corridor to support future drill targeting beneath glacial cover. The IP survey is being undertaken by Abitibi Geophysics of Val-d'Or, Quebec and is expected to commence in late July following completion of line cutting. The survey is designed with a depth of investigation (DOI) of approximately 760 m to image the North Papa hydrothermal system, providing a three-dimensional view of chargeability and resistivity trends associated with alteration and sulphide mineralisation within the felsic intrusive rocks that host gold mineralisation. Results will be integrated with geological and drilling data to refine future drill targeting along the North Papa mineralised corridor. The survey comprises eight parallel 3 km lines spaced 250 m apart and oriented perpendicular to the North Papa mineralised corridor, for a total of 24 line-kilometres of coverage. The survey layout has been designed to provide comprehensive coverage of the discovery area, with the objective of further constraining the geometry and extent of the mineralised corridor ahead of the next phase of drilling. The South Uchi Project was first identified and staked by Kenorland based on the under-explored region's prospectivity to host significant gold mineralised systems. The Project covers a portion of Confederation Assemblage volcanic rocks, as well as the boundary between the Uchi geological subprovince to the north and the English River geological subprovince to the south. Multiple major east-west striking deformation zones associated with the subprovince boundary transect the Project, resulting in zones of strong shearing and folding of the supracrustal stratigraphy, which are favourable settings for orogenic gold mineralisation. Prior to Kenorland staking the Project, records indicated little to no systematic exploration had been completed, and the land package remained under-explored. The majority of gold deposits in the Red Lake District (Red Lake, Madsen, Hasaga, and others) are located on the northern margin of the Confederation Assemblage. However, recent discoveries such as the LP Fault Zone on the Dixie Project by Great Bear Resources Ltd. (acquired by Kinross Gold and renamed Great Bear Project) highlight the prospectivity of the entire Confederation Assemblage along the southern margin of the Uchi subprovince. Kenorland announced on December 2, 2024, that it had entered into a definitive agreement with Auranova, granting Auranova the right to earn up to a 70% interest in the Project. Pursuant to the agreement, Auranova may earn an initial 51% interest in the Project by making cash payments totalling $500,000 to Kenorland, completing a diamond drilling program with at least $8,000,000 in qualifying expenditures or completing 15,000 metres of drilling within two years of receiving a drill permit, issuing Kenorland 19.9% of Auranova's common shares, and maintaining Kenorland's 19.9% share position until Auranova raises a minimum of $10,000,000 through share issuances, after which Kenorland's stake will remain at 10% on a pro-rata basis through to the completion of a Preliminary Economic Assessment. Kenorland has received the $500,000 in cash payments and currently holds 9,242,267 common shares of Auranova and confirms that Auranova has now earned a 51% ownership interest in the Project. Further, Auranova may earn an additional 19% interest, for a total of 70%, by incurring an additional $10,000,000 in qualifying expenditures on or before the third anniversary of Auranova's election to proceed with the second option. Kenorland will also retain a 30% carried interest in the Project through to the completion of the Preliminary Economic Assessment, at which point a joint venture will be formed. Kenorland also holds a 2% net smelter return royalty on the Project. 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 2mm (10 mesh) and a 250g split was pulverized to 75µm (200 mesh) for analysis and then assayed for gold. Gold in samples were analyzed using Bureau Veritas Commodities method FA430 where a 30g 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 30g 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 0.25g 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.
