New Gold (TSX:NGD; NYSE American:NGD) has provided an update on its exploration at the New Afton mine in British Columbia, showing continued growth in the K zone and HW zone. Drilling in the mine’s eastern sector intersected high-grade copper-gold porphyry mineralization, adding to earlier results from the K zone.
The eastern sector, including the K zone, HW zone, and the east extension resource, is shaping up as a potential new high-grade mining area. The zones are located above the C zone extraction level and near existing infrastructure, which could reduce the capital and time required for production.
The bornite-bearing zone, which reaches both the K zone and HW zone, returned grades such as:
- Intersected 4.18% copper and 3.03 g/t gold over 50 metres
- Intersected 1.60% copper and 1.87 g/t gold over 76 metres
- Intersected 1.66% copper and 2.14 g/t gold over 54 metres
- Intersected 1.75% copper and 1.49 g/t gold over 16 metres
- Intersected 0.90% copper and 2.12 g/t gold over 24 metres
Borehole EA24-510 in the K zone delivered the most impressive result, intersecting 2.83% copper and 1.90 g/t gold over 84 metres, marking one of the best grades found at New Afton. Other notable drilling results include:
K zone:
- Borehole EA24-516: Intersected 0.99% copper and 1.23 g/t gold over 169 metres
- Borehole EA24-519 in bornite-bearing zone: Intersected 3.25% copper and 1.91 g/t gold over 36 metres
- Borehole EA24-520: Intersected 1.13% copper and 1.43 g/t gold over 93 metres
Drilling at the HW zone also delivered solid results, such as 1.05% copper and 1.08 g/t gold over 51 metres in borehole EA24-506.
HW zone:
- Borehole EA24-521B: Intersected 0.49% copper and 1.08 g/t gold over 94 metres
New Gold plans to allocate an additional $3 million to its 2024 New Afton exploration program, adding 10,000 metres of drilling to further define these high-grade zones. The company aims to report initial mineral resources for the K zone by the end of 2024.
“With the completion of the underground exploration drift in the second quarter, we are well positioned to grow and define the eastern high-grade zones,” said New Gold president and CEO Patrick Godin. “We aim to report initial resources for K zone by year-end.”
For more information, visit www.NewGold.com.
