SOMA GOLD INTERSECTS 8.35 g/t Au OVER 1.0m AND REPORTS UNDERGROUND CHANNEL SAMPLING AT LA AURORA MINE, MACHUCA, ANTIOQUIA, COLOMBIA
Highlights include the following drill intercept:
AURDDH-24-003 1.0m at 4.35 g/t Au incl. 0.5m at 8.35 g/t Au
Composited underground channel sampling highlights include:
AURORA5_GS_AR8_ABS_10S 0.65m at 36.64 g/t Au incl. 0.25m at 94.7 g/t Au
AURORA5_GS_AR8_ABS_2S 0.8m at 14.17 g/t Au incl. 0.3m at 37.77 g/t Au
AURORA5_GS_AR8_ABS_16S 0.9m at 11.03 g/t Au incl. 0.4m at 9.92 g/t Au
This fault, along with associated quartz veins, forms a series of en echelon segments that consistently step approximately 25m-50m to the left along strike. Uniquely oriented quartz veins, created to accommodate extension within step-over zones, in these domains strike southeast and dip steeply to the south. Extensional step-over zones are recognized as hosting high-grade ore shoots and represent highly promising exploration targets.
In 2022, Soma conducted due diligence channel sampling at
Table 1 Composites of due diligence channel sample lines on level 5 of
Channel Sample No |
Zone |
Length (m) |
Au (g/t) |
AURORA5_GN_AR12_ABS_4N |
Constancia |
0.6 |
1.50 |
AURORA5_GN_AR12_ABS_8N |
Constancia |
0.7 |
0.02 |
AURORA5_GN_AR13_ABS_10N |
Constancia |
0.7 |
0.02 |
AURORA5_GN_AR13_ABS_23 |
Constancia |
1.1 |
0.34 |
AURORA5_GN_AR4_ABS_12N |
Constancia |
0.95 |
2.09 |
AURORA5_GN_AR4_ABS_18N |
Constancia |
0.9 |
0.16 |
AURORA5_GN_AR4_ABS_4N |
Constancia |
1.1 |
2.93 |
AURORA5_GN_AR4_ABS_8N |
Constancia |
1.1 |
1.39 |
AURORA5_GS_AR10_ABS_16S |
Constancia |
1.5 |
0.74 |
AURORA5_GS_AR10_ABS_18S |
Constancia |
1.6 |
0.02 |
AURORA5_GS_AR10_ABS_26S |
Constancia |
1.6 |
0.02 |
AURORA5_GS_AR10_ABS_30S |
Constancia |
1.2 |
0.02 |
AURORA5_GS_AR10_ABS_38S |
Constancia |
1 |
0.33 |
AURORA5_GS_AR10_ABS_4S |
Constancia |
1.2 |
4.38 |
AURORA5_GS_AR10_ABS_6S |
Constancia |
1.3 |
3.50 |
AURORA5_GS_AR11_ABS_10S |
Constancia |
0.4 |
0.06 |
AURORA5_GS_AR11_ABS_16S |
Constancia |
0.2 |
0.12 |
AURORA5_GS_AR11_ABS_18S |
South |
0.45 |
8.19 |
AURORA5_GS_AR11_ABS_22(FRENTE) |
Constancia |
0.16 |
0.02 |
AURORA5_GS_AR11_ABS_4S |
Constancia |
0.6 |
0.02 |
AURORA5_GS_AR4_ABS_11S |
Constancia |
0.6 |
0.52 |
AURORA5_GS_AR4_ABS_14S |
North |
0.4 |
10.29 |
AURORA5_GS_AR4_ABS_16S |
Constancia |
1.2 |
1.33 |
AURORA5_GS_AR4_ABS_2S |
Constancia |
0.5 |
3.62 |
AURORA5_GS_AR8_ABS_0 |
Constancia |
0.7 |
2.28 |
AURORA5_GS_AR8_ABS_10S |
North |
0.65 |
36.64 |
AURORA5_GS_AR8_ABS_12S |
North |
0.7 |
4.30 |
AURORA5_GS_AR8_ABS_14S |
Constancia |
0.8 |
1.45 |
AURORA5_GS_AR8_ABS_16S |
North |
0.9 |
11.03 |
AURORA5_GS_AR8_ABS_22S |
Constancia |
0.8 |
0.02 |
AURORA5_GS_AR8_ABS_26S |
Constancia |
1 |
0.79 |
AURORA5_GS_AR8_ABS_28S |
Constancia |
0.9 |
0.02 |
AURORA5_GS_AR8_ABS_2S |
North |
0.8 |
14.17 |
AURORA5_GS_AR8_ABS_30S |
Constancia |
1 |
0.12 |
AURORA5_GS_AR8_ABS_34S |
Constancia |
0.8 |
7.76 |
AURORA5_GS_AR8_ABS_36S |
Constancia |
1.1 |
1.34 |
AURORA5_GS_AR8_ABS_40S |
Constancia |
0.2 |
0.40 |
In late
AURDDH-23-001 unexpectedly intersected mine workings not documented in existing mine surveys. It could not be completed to the planned depth and, consequently, prevented the hole from intersecting the targeted section of the Constancia vein.
AURDDH-24-002 (Figure 3) Targeting down dip of high-grade channel samples from La Constancia vein on level 5, this hole intersected the vein 30 m below level 5, spanning from 178.8 m to 181.35 m with an approximate true width of 2.25 m true width (Figure 3). The milky white quartz vein was brecciated by younger, brittle fractures during structure reactivation. The fractures are filled with crushed vein material and pyrite. Assay samples of the vein did not return any significant gold values. A narrow interval of thin quartz veins occurs 2.5 m downhole from the main vein intersection and returned a weakly anomalous gold value of 0.18 g/t Au over 0.35 m at a depth of 183.9 m.
AURDDH-24-003 (Figure 4) was designed to intersect a southeast striking, steeply dipping quartz vein segment that forms in the extensional stepover zone between the Constancia and Aurora veins. The vein, interpreted as forming in a normal fault accommodating extension between the two north-south striking veins, was intersected from 151.6 m to 152.7 m with a true width of 1.0 m, situated 30 m up-dip of its exposure on level 5. The intersection is comprised of a late milky white quartz-carbonate vein crosscutting an older brecciated dark grey quartz vein. In the footwall, 1 cm to 3 cm thick quartz veins with variable orientations and density form a 35m wide stockwork interval. The veins contain 1%-5% sphalerite and galena, which typically accompanies gold mineralization along the Otú Fault corridor. The quartz-carbonate vein was barren of gold mineralization, but a set of thin (1.0 cm to 4.0 cm) quartz veins with pyrite, sphalerite, and galena returned a gold assay of 8.35 g/t over 0.5 m within the stockwork interval. Additional sampling has been undertaken to continuously sample the entire stockwork interval to determine whether any unsampled quartz veins also contain high-grade gold.
Soma's Vice President of Exploration, Chris Buchanan, stated, "We are pleased that the first phase of drilling intersected quartz veins where they were predicted from initial structural models of the vein system. We're particularly encouraged that numerous stockwork-style veins with sulphides and high-grade gold intersected in the footwall of the primary vein structure. This zone is interpreted to be an extensional step-over and has the potential to develop into a broad, high-grade ore shoot."
The initial 2023 drill program successfully confirmed the presence of the Constancia and Aurora veins at depth below the current mine workings. While the low gold grades from the Constancia vein in AURDDH-23-002 are disappointing, they are consistent with the nuggety distribution of gold grade observed in the 2022 due diligence channel samples on level 5. Further drilling on a tighter spacing is required to fully delineate the vein and gold distribution within the vein system in
Soma is currently engaged in dewatering the mine to its deepest levels, enabling access to Levels 1 and 5. The engineering team is diligently evaluating the safety conditions of the mine. Simultaneously, the exploration team is set to conduct geological mapping, systematic sampling, and accurate surveys of the mine workings. The resulting additional information will be seamlessly integrated into the current datasets to strategically plan the next phase of drilling in 2024.
Table 2 Significant assays above 0.15 g/t Au in the 2023 drill holes
Hole ID |
From |
To (m) |
Length |
Sample |
Au |
Ag |
Cu |
Pb |
Zn |
AURDDH-23-001 |
90.55 |
91.3 |
0.75 |
YL-60063 |
0.24 |
0.19 |
16.4 |
8.3 |
45 |
AURDDH-24-002 |
129.7 |
130.7 |
1 |
YL-60135 |
0.33 |
0.06 |
24.3 |
7.4 |
45 |
AURDDH-24-002 |
183.65 |
184.25 |
0.6 |
YL-60159 |
0.18 |
5.23 |
60.1 |
394 |
92 |
AURDDH-24-003 |
157.2 |
157.7 |
0.5 |
YL-60193 |
0.19 |
0.62 |
67.3 |
14.5 |
58 |
AURDDH-24-003 |
158.2 |
159.2 |
1 |
YL-60207 |
0.34 |
0.72 |
58.3 |
58.3 |
41 |
AURDDH-24-003 |
159.2 |
159.7 |
0.5 |
YL-60194 |
8.35 |
13.1 |
124 |
10000 |
1765 |
In addition to ongoing exploration activities at
The Otú fault system ("Otú Fault") has a strike length of over 100 km, from Segovia-Remedios in the south to Nechi in the north (where it is concealed by younger sedimentary overlap sequences). Soma's property holdings now encompass more than 56 km of this fault's strike length. High-grade gold mineralization is observed along the entire Otú Fault strike length, primarily occurring in brittle-ductile to brittle quartz veins formed during later stages of deformation along the fault. Throughout the district, the quartz veins display orientation patterns that suggest the veins form in conjugate faults associated with brittle faulting on the Otú Fault. Prominent mines along the Otú trend, such as Segovia-Remedios, La Aurora,
Drill Core Samples
Pulps of each sample are prepared in
A comprehensive QA/QC program has been implemented to monitor the reliability of assay data collected during exploration programs. The program includes the regular insertion of certified blanks, duplicates, and certified OREAS standards. Assays of the QA/QC samples are automatically compared to the certified values and standard deviations in the database.
Channel Samples
Channel samples in
Prior to
Since 2023 all exploration samples for
Mr.
With a strong commitment to sustainability and community engagement,
The Company also owns an exploration property near Tucuma, Para State,
On behalf of the Board of Directors
"Geoff Hampson"
Chief Executive Officer and Chairman
Neither the
All statements, analysis and other information contained in this press release about anticipated future events or results constitute forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements are often, but not always, identified by the use of words such as "seek", "anticipate", "believe", "plan", "estimate", "expect" and "intend" and statements that an event or result "may", "will", "should", "could" or "might" occur or be achieved and other similar expressions. Forward-looking statements are subject to business and economic risks and uncertainties and other factors that could cause actual results of operations to differ materially from those contained in the forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements are based on estimates and opinions of management at the date the statements are made. The Company does not undertake any obligation to update forward-looking statements even if circumstances or management's estimates or opinions should change except as required by applicable laws. Investors should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements.
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