A systematic auger drill program has kicked off to unlock the “vast exploration potential” of Matador’s +840,000oz (and growing) Cape Ray gold project.

The Cape Ray Project in Newfoundland already boasts an impressive open-pittable mineral resource of 840,000 ounces — 96% of which sits within 200m of surface — in a Tier 1 gold jurisdiction.

Based on the Scoping Study, with a head grade of 2.6g/t gold this ranks as one of the highest open pit projects in the world.

It’s just the beginning.

The 2021 field season kicked off with the systematic ‘power-auger’ drill program across the Window Glass Hill Granite (WGHG); a known gold host at the Window Glass Hill (WGH) deposit and the 2020 Angus discovery.

Matador

There has been no systematic exploration of the WGHG away from the known deposits, and no previous exploration of the potential shear-zone hosted gold targets buried under thin ‘till’ cover surrounding the margins of the WGHG.

Unlike places like WA, where soil sampling can often be done at surface, Matador must sample underneath the till to dial in on potential drilling targets.

14 priority targets between the WGH and Big Pond deposits are the initial focus for this program.

230 holes have now been completed and the quality of the samples generated is superb, Matador says.

Initial visual inspection of multiple bottom-of-hole auger core samples confirms sulphide-bearing quartz veins and strong alteration, similar to gold mineralisation in diamond drill core from the WGH deposit.

Matador
Caption: Core from power-auger drilling showing typical WGH-style vein assemblages from a previously untested area of the Window Glass Hill Granite.

All core samples from the augur drill program will be assayed to identify basement mineralisation ‘footprints’ that typically extend up to 100m away from gold deposits across the project.

“This is a very strong start to our 2021 field season with over 230 auger holes drilled,” Matador executive chairman Ian Murray says.

“A large portion of the Window Glass Hill Granite area has now been tested with encouraging visual results returned from bottom of hole core samples.

“These samples still need to be assayed, with results expected during this quarter, but the team is confident based on visual inspection alone, that several new diamond drilling targets have been identified.

“With new exploration work programs ramping up every week, this promises to be an extremely busy period for the company on multiple fronts.”

 

This article was developed in collaboration with Matador, a Stockhead advertiser at the time of publishing.

 

This article does not constitute financial product advice. You should consider obtaining independent advice before making any financial decisions.

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