VANCOUVER, BRITISH COLUMBIA--(Marketwired - Jan. 4, 2017) - West Kirkland Mining Inc. (TSX VENTURE:WKM) ("West Kirkland" or the "Company") announces an early-2017 drilling program at the Hasbrouck Gold-Silver Project, which consists of the phase 1 Three Hills pit and the adjacent phase 2 Hasbrouck pit. The Company has contracted Boart-Longyear for drilling services at Three Hills and the recently-leased Hill of Gold properties (see details below).
At Three Hills a 1,300 meter RC drill program will explore targets identified by previous drilling and geophysical surveys to the east of the permitted open pit by stepping out from hole MW14-01 (40 meters @ 1.36 g/t, 55 meters below collar), and TH12R-15 (66 meters @ 3.3 g/t, 76 meters below collar). Drill targets at Three Hills are adjacent to some of the best intercepts on the property. These earlier holes are located within the permitted pit boundary, but are not located within the current Mineral Reserve boundary.
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Step-out and in-fill drilling will also be performed at the recently-leased Hill of Gold property which lies three kilometers immediately south of Three Hills and between the Three Hills and Hasbrouck Mines. Earlier drilling at the Hill of Gold totals 29,926 feet from 83 reverse circulation holes and 6 core holes. A small historical resource was estimated at Hill of Gold based on past results. Core crushed to 1-1/2 inch was tested by McClelland Laboratories Inc. in columns with gold recovery from cyanide leaching projected at 81.0% and 86.7% after 62 to 79 days.
Drilling performed at Hill of Gold in 1993 in the area to be targeted by WKM for follow-up included hole 93-63 which intercepted 32 meters of 0.5 g/t gold, 58 meters below collar, and hole 93-61 which intercepted 41 meters of 1 g/t gold, 70 meters below collar. Drilling in this same area in 1996 included hole HG96-5 which intercepted 29 meters of 1.2 g/t gold, 55 meters below collar and hole HGC96-6 which intercepted 17 meters of 2.9 g/t gold, 59 meters below collar. Modelling by West Kirkland suggests that these intercepts are open for further expansion near surface at potential open-pittable depths. The Hill of Gold host rocks and geological setting of gold mineralization are similar to the Three Hills deposit.
The Hill of Gold property was leased and is now being explored as a target for possible trucking to Three Hills for processing at the permitted heap leach site there.
Hasbrouck Mine Permitting
Advancement of permitting for Phase-2 construction and mining at the Hasbrouck Mine is also to continue in early 2017. Phase-1 construction and mining at the Three Hills Mine is fully permitted at federal and state levels.
The Company has commissioned EM Strategies (formerly Enviroscientists Inc.) to continue permitting the Hasbrouck Mine. This work builds on previous biology and cultural base-line studies with the intent of submitting a Plan of Operation to the BLM in Q3 2017. The Hasbrouck Mine is the second and larger part of the Hasbrouck Gold-Silver Project, and has a Probable Mineral Reserve of 588,000 ounces of gold and 10.6 million ounces of silver, (32 million tonnes at 0.6 g/t gold, 10.2 g/t silver, per Mine Development Associates' Technical Report dated September 1, 2016, www.sedar.com). This work is being commissioned now to ensure that Hasbrouck Mine permits will be in hand when needed before mining at Three Hills is complete.
"The Hasbrouck Mine will require the typical amount of permitting for a mining operation in Nevada, including the completion of an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS). There appear to be no biological, cultural, hydrology, or geochemistry issues that would otherwise delay or disrupt the timely process of applications for development", states Richard Delong, president of EM Strategies.
About West Kirkland Mining Inc.
West Kirkland owns a 75% interest in the Hasbrouck Gold Project in Tonopah, Nevada. A Pre-Feasibility Study and Environmental Assessment with construction-level drawings and all federal and state permits for the phase-one Three Hills Mine provides a ready-to-construct gold project. West Kirkland also holds a 60% interest in the open pit heap-leach TUG Gold Project in Utah in Joint Venture with Newmont.