Snowstorm Drill Program Underway; High Grade Gold Potential

TORONTO - Seabridge Gold has initiated exploration drilling at its 100%-owned Snowstorm Project in Northern Nevada.  A 7,000 meter drilling campaign is slated with pre-collar reverse circulation drilling to the Paleozoic surface followed by completion with diamond core drilling to target depths. 

Targeting concepts are based on analogy to the Turquoise Ridge/Twin Creeks type of high-grade gold systems along the continuation of the Getchell Trend under thin volcanic rock cover.  

Rudi Fronk, Chairman and CEO said, “We are very excited to begin drilling Snowstorm. Our team has systematically employed multiple disciplines to confirm many of the identifying features required for the emplacement of a Getchell-style gold deposit. Our next step is to generate drill data that will enable us to vector towards areas with potential for a significant discovery. We are confident the stratigraphic setting is right and we can observe the effects of hydrothermal fluids consistent with Getchell-style gold deposits. Our focus now is to drill structural/stratigraphic intersections where these features come together.”

Approximately 7 to 10 coincident structural and stratigraphic targets will be tested. This initial program is expected to provide enough information to refine targeting for subsequent exploration including further geophysical surveys and drilling.

Considerable historical information has been integrated with an array of newly collected data.  Ordovician carbonate rock units found in drill holes on the property are part of a sedimentary rock package that accumulated at the base of an offshore seamount, as at Turquoise Ridge and Twin Creeks. In Getchell-style deposits, regional and local deformation provided the required permeability for hydrothermal fluids that dissolved the carbonate rocks, precipitating high concentrations of the most mobile pathfinder elements but only minor amounts of less mobile gold which remained in close proximity to the permissive structures. A Controlled Source Audio-magnetotellurics (CSAMT) survey and a natural source Magnetotelluric (MT) survey have identified the continuation of the favorable Getchell Trend structures onto the Snowstorm property and into the sedimentary package. Historical drilling was generally 400 to 600 meters from the favorable structures.  

Contact information is (416) 367-9292, www.seabridgegold.net.