Jan 7 2011
Revolution Resources Corp. (TSX:RV) has announced that significant gold mineralization has been encountered in the first drill holes completed at its Champion Hills Project located in the Carolina Slate Belt, North Carolina.
The 2,700 metre, 11 hole Phase I drilling program focused on two areas of historic mining and drilling. Results from the initial holes at the Loflin Prospect confirm a significant gold mineralized system with geological similarities to mines and deposits in the Carolina Slate belt; including Romarco Minerals' Haile Mine. Assays are currently pending for two additional holes at Loflin, and three holes completed at the historic Jones-Keystone mine, located along trend 1,500 meters to the east. Additionally, Revolution is completing an extensive soil geochemical sampling program and geological mapping throughout the trend.
Initial drill results from the Loflin target include:
- LF10-17: 70.0 meters averaging 1.10 g/t Au
- LF10-18: 30.0 meters averaging 2.59 g/t Au
- LF10-19: 14.0 meters averaging 0.79 g/t Au
Revolution has commenced a second Phase, 5,000m drill program. Drilling will continue to target the Jones-Keystone and Loflin prospects. Along with drilling, mapping, prospecting, and soil sampling, will be conducted along the Champion Hills trend with the objective of identifying additional drill targets. The estimated budget for this program is US$1 million, and is expected to be complete at the end of March 2011.
The Gold mineralization is hosted within andesitic metavolcanic rocks, typically with strong pyrite, pyrrhotite and arsenopyrite mineralization. Gold occurrences within the Champion Hills trend are likely hosted along synvolcanic structures that strike east-northeast. Initial drill holes, including LF10-17, which intersected 70.0 meters averaging 1.10 g/t Au (including 20.0 meters averaging 2.19 g/t Au) and L10-18, which intersected 74.0 meters averaging 1.12 g/t Au (including 30.0 meters averaging 2.59 g/t Au) were completed from the same collar location and intersected near surface mineralization. LF10-19 is a stepout hole, located 50 meters to the southwest.
Drill Holes LF10-20 and 21 were drilled towards the northeast as stratigraphic holes. The purpose of these holes was to better understand the layered volcanic stratigraphy at Loflin; the different suites of metavolcanic flows and breccias are interpreted to have varying permeability, with brecciated host rocks being better hosts for gold mineralization. These holes encountered long intervals of sericite and carbonate alteration, as well as moderate amounts of pyrite and pyrrhotite. It is interpreted that these holes are drilled subparallel with the northeast trending mineralization structure. Hole LF10-22 was collared at the same setup as LF10-17 and 18, and oriented to the southeast to test the upper portion of the mineralized zone, and for parallel zones. This hole may have drilled overtop of the mineralized structure. Assays for two additional holes at Loflin are currently pending.
The Champion Hills Property is comprised of multiple historic pits and workings within a 25 kilometer long trend in North Carolina. The Project occurs within the Carolina Slate Belt, which hosts most of the major gold mines in the southeastern U.S. Significant deposits include the Ridgeway Mine, which produced 1.5 million ounces of gold from 1988 to 1999, and Romarco's Haile Mine project. The Champion Hills project is geologically analogous to these deposits, whereby gold mineralization is hosted within quartz-sericite-pyrite altered volcanic rocks, associated with northeast trending shear zones.
Minimal modern exploration has occurred in the Carolina Slate Belt, generally due to previous complex land tenure. Gold was discovered in Champion Hills in the early 1800's, with small scale production from many small operations. Mining continued in the area through the 1930's depression era. Noranda explored Champion Hills for shallow, open-pit gold deposits from 1989 to 1992, completing 23 core holes totalling 2,936 meters. This drilling encountered multiple drill intercepts averaging over 0.5 to 1.3 g/t Au over long intervals, including several holes that were abandoned in mineralization at depth.
Acquisition of the Champion Hills Gold Project
Further to its news release issued on September 7, 2010, the Company has completed the acquisition from a non-arm's length private company (controlled by Aaron Keay, Rob McLeod and Michael Williams, three directors and/or officers of the Company) of a 90% interest in the option and lease agreements with underlying property holders covering the Champion Hills Gold Project. The Company paid US$75,000 and issued 2,000,000 common shares to the private company to complete the acquisition. The Company is required to make additional post-closing payments of an aggregate of US$300,000 to the private company in three stages over the next nine months.
The Company retains a right of first refusal to acquire the remaining 10% of the private company's interest in the option and lease agreements, exercisable at any time following the Company having expended at least US$1,000,000 on the subject properties. Until such time as the remaining 10% interest is acquired by the Company, the 10% interest will be carried by the Company for the purposes of exploration expenditures.
In completing the acquisition, the Company has assumed multiple arms-length, third-party option and lease agreements (the "Agreements") with the underlying private land owners covering the Champion Hills Gold Project. These Agreements include annual cash payments of US$200 per acre to the land owners over a five year lease term, as well as a payment of US$1 per foot drilled. At any time during the five year lease term, the Company may enter into a lease/purchase agreement with the underlying private land owners for a 20 year lease term, pursuant to which the Company will pay the land owners a US$200 per acre annual advance royalty. The Company may at any time purchase the land for 150% of its appraised value. Upon commencement of commercial production, the Company will owe a 2% net smelter returns royalty (whether the property is leased or owned).
The Company completed the acquisition shortly following filing of a valuation with the Toronto Stock Exchange and obtaining the conditional approval of the Toronto Stock Exchange to the issuance of the 2,000,000 common shares.
The Company acquired certain additional property interests with respect to the Champion Hills Gold Project directly.
Source: Revolution Resources Corp.