Exploration: Limo
Limo is a large 30 sq. mile (78 sq. km) property that historically produced 93,000 ounces of gold. US Gold believes there are many geologic similarities to Barrick’s Bald Mountain mine that is located 20 miles (32 km) to the west. Gold has been identified along the 15-mile (24 km) length of the Limo property in numerous mineralized areas. The most recent drilling at Limo targeted two areas referred to as Resurrection Ridge and Ticup (See Figure 1) and was designed to accomplish four objectives:
- Core drilling in areas previously tested by reverse circulation (RC) holes, to investigate if we can duplicate an earlier result that yielded higher grade assays with core.
- Expand known mineralization and higher-grade.
- Test for continuity between the mineralized areas.
- Obtain information for an initial resource estimate.
Early results demonstrate that we have begun to achieve both goals.
Figure 1. Limo Project Area
Objective 1: Core drilling for better grade
Three holes have tested our hypothesis that RC drilling may have understated the grade due to the very broken state of the rock. The core drilling results were positive and produced results that were 33%, 56% and 859% better than earlier nearby RC drill holes (see Table below and Figure above) If future drilling continues to deliver similar results, previously explored areas on the property may contain much more gold than originally believed.
Objective 2. Expanding Known Mineralization
New results continue to expand the known mineralization and have begun to outline what US Gold geologists believe is a potential zone of higher grade (Resurrection Ridge). Results released on December 12, 2007 included:
Hole L-23 0.161 opt gold over 50 ft. (5.522 gpt gold over 16.8m)
Including 0.235 opt gold over 15 ft. (8.023 gpt gold over 4.6m)
& Including 0.278 opt gold over 15 ft. (9.515 gpt gold over 4.6m)
Figure 2. Resurrection Ridge/ North Butte
Objective 3. Testing Continuity Between Mineralized Areas
Our exploration model based on recent drill results, along with surface geochemistry and geologic mapping, suggests that the higher grade gold mineralization discovered at Resurrection Ridge has the potential to exist along a trend 6 miles (10 km) to the northeast toward Ticup and 3 miles (5 km) to the southwest to an area known as Cadillac Valley (See Figure 1). Results for the first two holes at Ticup returned a best intercept of 0.020 opt gold over 40 ft. (0.690 gpt gold over 12.2m). Despite being low-grade these early results help support our model because the mineralization found at Ticup is similar to that at North Butte. With the increased level of knowledge obtained from this year’s exploration program, US Gold is hopeful that its 2008 exploration program will expand the higher grade mineralization to the northeast and southwest.
Objective 4. Initial Resource Estimate
Metallurgical testing and geological modeling to determine the potential amount of recoverable gold is currently underway in preparation for an initial resource estimate at Limo. Past drilling has identified numerous areas of mineralization, however many of the historic results are not compliant with today’s reporting standards for mineralized resources. US Gold is currently analyzing where further drilling needs to be done to complete future resource estimate updates. The initial resource estimate is expected to be released during the second quarter of 2008.
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