JD

JD Project Overview

The JD Project is located in the Toodoggone gold-copper mining district in north-central British Columbia, a highly prospective, deposit-rich metallogenic belt. The project covers an area of over 15,000 hectares and is in close proximity to active exploration and development projects, such as Thesis Gold’s Lawyers and Ranch projects, TDG Gold’s Baker-Sable projects, Centerra’s Gold’s Kemess East and Underground projects, as well as the past-producing Kemess South open pit copper-gold mine.

The JD Project is underlain by prospective geology host to high-grade epithermal-related gold and silver mineralization, as well as porphyry-related copper and gold mineralization. Historical exploration across the project has included drilling, soil and rock geochemistry and geophysics, however the project is considered largely underexplored.

Location & Infrastructure

• The ~15,000 hectare / 150 km² tenure package is located 450 kilometres northwest of the City of Prince George, and 25 kilometres north of the Sturdee gravel airstrip.
• It is proximal to existing infrastructure in place to support the past-producing Kemess South open-pit copper-gold mine, including roads and a 230 kV hydroelectric power line that connects the mine to the BC Hydro Kennedy sub-station near the resource town of Mackenzie.
• Access to the Toodoggone area is by air to the Sturdee or the Kemess mine airstrip.
• Road access is available along the 400 km, seasonally maintained Omineca Resource Access Road from Mackenzie. There is gravel road access to the JD property by traveling approximately 25 km past the Sturdee airstrip to the JD Exploration Camp, located on the banks of the Toodoggone River.
• The JD Project is close to several large exploration projects, including Thesis Gold’s Lawyers and Ranch projects, TDG Gold’s Baker-Sable projects, and HDI Amarc’s Joy Project.
• It is located north of Centerra’s Gold’s Kemess East (KE) and Underground (KUG) projects, which are in advanced stages of exploration and development, respectively, and the nearby Kemess South open pit copper-gold mine, which was in production from 1988 to 2011.

Geology & Mineralization

The Toodoggone district hosts a significant number of shallow, high- and low-sulfidation epithermal-type mineral deposits and occurrences (e.g., JD, Lawyers, Shasta, Baker) as well as porphyry-related mineralization (e.g. Kemess, Brenda, Pine) that may be contemporaneous and potentially cogenetic. These deposits are hosted by a thick (>2 km) succession of well-preserved, Early Jurassic sub-aerial andesitic and dacitic volcanic rocks of the Toodoggone Formation (Hazelton Group).

The JD Project is characterized by both high-grade epithermal gold and silver mineralization, as well as porphyry-related copper and gold mineralization. The epithermal-related systems, locally dispersed over a 3.8 km east-west trend, are poorly explored, and represent high-grade gold and silver mineralization potential.

Finn Zone

Results from historical drilling highlight the high-grade gold-silver potential of near-surface epithermal-related mineralization at the Finn zone. Select drill highlights* include:

• 35.7 m of 7.26 g/t Au including 1 m of 215.4 g/t Au (JD95-047²)
• 22.0 m of 12.5 g/t Au including 0.8 m of 171.5 g/t Au (JD95-064²)
• 25.9 m of 6.42 g/t Au including 6.1 m of 12.8 g/t Au (JD94-015¹)
• 22.0 m of 6.32 g/t Au including 12.6 m of 10.8 g/t Au (JD12-003⁵)
• 27.8 m of 6.64 g/t Au including 11.0 m of 15.1 g/t Au (JD95-097²)

* Note: Drill intercepts are measured downhole and are not true widths.

Most of the historical drilling at the JD Project was focused on the Finn target where a broad zone of near-surface, epithermal-related gold-silver mineralization has been defined. Mineralization is primarily hosted in the hanging wall of a gently north-dipping, northeast-striking, inferred reverse fault. The fault, traced for over 1.5 kilometres along strike to the west from the Finn zone, separates two andesite-dominant lithological units of the Toodoggone Formation (Metsantan and McClair members). Faulting and subsequent mineralization likely exploited a volcaniclastic unit, at the base the Metsantan member, where epithermal-related fluids were focused along permeable volcanic breccias.

The core of the Finn zone consists of strongly silica+clay+sericite altered polymictic breccias, locally cemented with quartz and mineralized with pyrite with lesser sphalerite, galena, and chalcopyrite. Peripheral to the high grade core, epithermal-related alteration grades into sericite+chlorite+pyrite and more distal epidote+chlorite+/-hematite assemblages.

Most of the drilling from the 1990s at the Finn zone targeted the higher-grade core covering a footprint of approximately 300 metres by 100 metres within which drill holes were mostly collared on 25 metre centres. Although drilling, logging and surveying methods were completed to industry standards, core sampling was locally selective and left significant gaps in sampling. Some drill holes ended in Au-Ag mineralization and were not followed up with additional drilling. More recent drilling in 2012 and 2013 tested the margins of the Finn zone and extended the zone of mineralization down-dip for 350 metres and along strike for 500 metres.

Based on this review of historical drilling at the Finn zone, numerous priority areas for initial drill testing have been defined. These include:

• Infill drilling near the center of the high-grade core to verify historical grades, confirm structural controls while drilling deeper to investigate the geometry and grade of the locally strongly mineralized footwall zone (e.g., JD12-009).
• Step-out drilling down-dip towards hole JD12-015 to investigate mineralization continuity and to explore for additional higher-grade zones.
• Step-out drilling along-strike towards hole JD13-024 to systematically test the low-angle fault zone for additional Finn zone-style high-grade gold-silver mineralization.

Click to download select historical drillhole intercepts from the Finn zone

Results from limited historical drilling highlight the high-grade gold potential of structurally controlled, sulfide-rich mineralization at the Creek zone. Select drill highlights* include:

• 22.0 m of 11.7 g/t Au including 4.0 m of 61.2 g/t Au (CZ97-008³)
• 21.5 m of 3.1 g/t Au including 3.0 m of 18.7 g/t Au (CZ98-012⁴)

* Note: Drill intercepts are measured downhole and are not true widths.

The Creek Zone, centered approximately 3 kilometres to the west of the Finn Zone, is underlain primarily by andesite flows and volcanic breccias of the Toodoggone formation. Near-surface high-grade gold mineralization is associated with replacement-style, pyrite, sphalerite, galena and chalcopyrite within a broad zone of quartz-carbonate stockwork. The Creek zone was first discovered in 1997 and was followed-up by drilling in 1998 where a further 11 drill holes tested an interpreted strike-length of over 450 metres. The discovery hole, CZ97-008, intersected numerous zones of high-grade gold mineralization, highlighted by an interval of 4.0 metres of 61.2 g/t Au. This interval was later re-analysed via metallic screens and returned 4.0 metres of 103.3 g/t Au. Subsequent drill holes also intersected numerous zones of strong gold mineralization, (e.g., 21.5 metres of 3.1 g/t Au including 3.0 metres of 18.7 g/t Au, CZ98-012).

Although drilling, logging and surveying methods were completed to industry standards during the 1998 program, most historic holes contain broad gaps due to discontinuous sampling and assaying. Only holes CZ98-009 (72.3 metres at 0.8 g/t Au including 4.3 metres at 6.7 g/t Au) and CZ98-016 (57.0 metres at 0.6 g/t Au including 26.0 metres at 1.0 g/t Au) were subject to near-continuous sampling. These holes, located 350 metres apart, demonstrate the presence of previously unrecognised bulk-tonnage style gold mineralization at the JD project. Additionally, the remaining holes from the 1998 drill program contain significant gaps in assay data where many higher-grade veins lack neighbouring assays preventing adequate evaluation of gold mineralization continuity or target scale potential (e.g., bottom of CZ98-015).

A full review of all Creek zone exploration data including soil and rock geochemical sample data, trench data, and magnetic geophysical data is ongoing. However, based on compiled drill data, a systematic exploration program is being planned to include:

• Step-out drilling near the 1997 discovery hole to evaluate the orientation and extent of the high-grade mineralization while also sampling complete holes for full multi-element geochemistry. 
• Tight-spaced IP (induced polarization) geophysical survey to investigate the size of the largely concealed, pyrite-rich alteration zone peripheral to the high-grade veins.
• Based on structural data from surface mapping and geochemistry together with drill hole data and IP models, wider-spaced step-out drill holes along trend to evaluate the scale of the bulk-tonnage system as well as targeting higher-grade veins.

Click to download select historical drillhole intercepts from the Creek zone

Maps & Figures

Photo Gallery

Disclaimer

This information has been reviewed and approved by Sun Summit’s Vice President Exploration, Ken MacDonald, P. Geo., a “Qualified Person” as defined in National Instrument 43-101 Standards of Disclosure for Mineral Projects of the Canadian Securities Administrators. He has not been able to verify the historical exploration data disclosed, including sampling, analytical and test data, underlying the technical information in this news release since such data is historical and the original drill core is not readily available. Technical information contained in this release is historical in nature and has been compiled from public sources believed to be accurate. The technical information has not been verified by Sun Summit and may in some instances be unverifiable dependent on the existence of historical drill core and grab samples.