Mako kicks off drilling at Tchaga North gold prospect

Mako Gold begins RC drilling at Tchaga North prospect at Napié gold project
Drilling targeting three zones that could increase current resource
Company also signed drill-for-equity deal with Geodrill

Special Report: Mako Gold has commenced a scout 1,500m Reverse Circulation (RC) drill program at the Tchaga North prospect at the Napié gold project in Côte d’Ivoire.

The drilling is targeting three high-grade zones identified from recent mapping and trenching programs within the vast Tchaga North area – the Discovery Zone, Double Zone and Deep Artisanal Zone.

At the Discovery Zone, trenching returned values of 4m at 3.97g/t Au, including 1m at 14.80g/t Au; and 4m at 1.79g/t Au, including 1m at 5.34g/t Au.

At the Double Zone, trenching returned values of 5m at 1.12g/t Au, including 2m at 2.19g/t Au and extended the mineralised zone over 400m in strike length.

And at the Deep Artisanal Zone, high-grade rock chip values of 24.34g/t Au, 9.47g/t Au, and 4.55g/t Au have been returned, with artisanal excavation highlighting gold-bearing quartz veins over 200m strike length.

Resource growth could be on the cards

“The drill testing of the three high-grade prospects is just the beginning of what may unlock further significant gold mineralised zones,” Mako Gold (ASX:MKG) managing director Peter Ledwidge said.

“These zones could contribute towards an increase of the current 868,000 ounce gold resource on the Napié Permit.”

The company also signed a drill-for-equity agreement with drilling contractor Geodrill (TSX:GEO) for up to 50% of drilling costs to be paid in shares to maximise drilling metres while preserving cash.

“We are pleased to have secured a drill-for-equity agreement with our drilling contractor, Geodrill, which will help us preserve cash while achieving our goal of drill testing the high-priority targets identified by our recent ‘boots-on-the-ground’ field work,” Ledwidge said.

“Geodrill has been on the MKG share register for some time, and we welcome their further investment in the company.”

Pic: Napié Project – Tchaga North with new high-grade zones recently identified by mapping. Source: MKG.

Geodrill CEO Dave Harper says “The ‘drill-for-equity’ arrangement allows Mako to drill twice the meterage for the same cash burn, doubling the likelihood of success, while at the same time providing flexibility to revert to cash payment, should Mako elect to”.

“We look forward to increasing our shareholding in Mako,” he said.

This article was developed in collaboration with Mako Gold, 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.