Favorable Structures and Stratigraphy Confirmed From Snowstorm Drill Campaign

TORONTO - Seabridge Gold’s first drill program at the Snowstorm Project in Northern Nevada has confirmed the presence of structures and stratigraphy. The wealth of geochemical, geophysical and geological data collected in the 2019 program is being carefully evaluated for information to help refine this year’s drilling. The 2019 drilling was designed to test for an extension of the Getchell Trend and the distinctive structural and stratigraphic features. A total of 3,806.6 meters were completed in four drill holes last season including 1,836.1 meters of reverse circulation drilling and 1,970.5 meters of core.  Drilling efficiency was poor due to difficult ground conditions and the program therefore fell short of its meters-drilled target before being terminated due to seasonal weather changes.

Rudi Fronk, Chairman and CEO, said, “We acquired Snowstorm in 2017 because we think it has an excellent chance to host a Getchell-style deposit. Nothing we have learned to date has downgraded this opportunity. We have identified the favorable stratigraphic host for a Getchell-style deposit as well as similar structures which fed the deposits to the south. These occurrences are challenging to find because they are not very large and they are hidden under younger volcanic cover. However, all the data suggests to us that we’re in the right neighborhood. We think a detailed interpretation of last year’s data now in progress will help us vector towards a discovery.”

Seabridge encountered the host Ordovician carbonate stratigraphy as predicted. Carbonate stratigraphy is intercalated with basaltic tuff and sills characteristic of Getchell-style deposits.  Locally, the carbonate stratigraphy shows weak carbonate dissolution and organic-carbon impregnation. These features, along with the appropriate clay mineralogy, indicate our first holes pierced the host stratigraphy on the margin of a potentially productive hydrothermal system. Initial drilling was concentrated along a major north-trending structure which is now believed to have postdated the peak mineralizing episode. Focus is shifting to other structural orientations.

Additional magnetotelluric (MT) surveys have been scheduled by Seabridge to help refine the recognized structural targets.  These surveys will improve resolution and extend exploration to the east into a previously unexplored area. Work continues on evaluating the regional deformation style at Snowstorm. Our drill data will enable us to build a preliminary fold pattern for the Snowstorm property. Folding plays a key role in gold deposition on the Trend. New geochemical data is also enabling us to tease out more information from historical drill holes.

Fronk also reported that, “Seabridge has expanded the responsibilities and scope of its environmental and permitting team in response to the growing importance and complexity of earning and maintaining the social license to build and operate mining projects in Canada. Key members of the management team have been promoted to expanded roles reflecting the wider scope of work required to meet new and evolving demands. A decade ago, the emphasis in our industry was on being successful with environmental permitting. Now, the mandate in this area is much larger and we are recognizing this fact. Our aim is to continue to be a leader in our responsiveness to the environmental and the social needs of our Indigenous partners and stakeholders.” 

British Columbia (BC) was one of the first jurisdictions in the world to legislate application of the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (the “UN Declaration”). The principles of the UN Declaration have been incorporated into Bill 41 developed collaboratively by the BC Government and the First Nations Leadership Council acting for member nations of the Union of BC Indian Chiefs, the First Nations Summit and the BC Assembly of First Nations. The Bill requires the BC government to take all necessary measures to ensure that the laws of BC are consistent with the UN Declaration, and to do so in consultation with Indigenous peoples.

“We see the new and more complex role of the public sector, citizens groups and Indigenous peoples in resource development as an opportunity to enhance our reputation for transparency and collaborative problem-solving, while advancing our Projects,” Fronk said.

The company’s address is 106 Front Street East, Suite 400, Toronto, ON M5A 1E1, (416) 367-9292, seabridgegold.net.