Aggressive Drilling and Field Programs Ramping Up

VANCOUVER - Gold Standard Ventures Corp. reported that reverse-circulation (RC) and core drilling will begin on the Dark Star and North Bullion deposits. These deposits are on the Company’s 100%-owned/controlled Railroad-Pinion Project in the Railroad District of Nevada’s Carlin Trend. As springtime access conditions improve over the coming weeks, additional drill rigs will be added to the program.

The US $15.5 million program includes up to 48,800 m of RC and core drilling in 117 holes. The 2017 program objectives are: Test for extensions of the higher grade North Dark Star oxide gold discovery to the north and west; Increase resources at Dark Star and Pinion; Test new high-value targets within the prospective Dark Star Corridor; Continue to expand the high-grade North Bullion deposit; and develop and drill test new targets on the 20,941 gross acres (85 square kilometers) recently acquired to the south of Dark Star and Pinion.

Jonathan Awde, CEO and Director of Gold Standard commented: “We are very excited by this year’s program which builds on the outstanding exploration successes of the past five years. Each of our known deposits has well-defined opportunities for substantial growth. At the same time, we are applying what we have learned from our past discoveries to a series of new prospects, especially on the ground to the south that we acquired earlier this year. We have never been more confident of our potential for finding additional gold deposits.

At North and West Dark Star, complete up to 24 RC and core holes (approximately 12,600 m) to expand areas of known shallow oxide gold mineralization, including testing new targets stepping out from intercepts of 52.1m of 1.02 g Au/t in DS16-26 and 24.4m of 2.11 g Au/t in DS16-38, to the west of Main Dark Star (see January 19, 2017 and April 18 news releases). These intercepts support the view that the Pinion and Dark Star deposits could merge. Mineralization in DS16-26 and DS16-38 is associated with a thrust fault and feldspar porphyry dikes. To refine the geometry of this target, and identify new targets between Pinion and Dark Star, multiple seismic lines are planned for 2017. Within the 6.7 km-long Dark Star Corridor (DSC), complete approximately 11,400 m of RC scout drilling in 25 holes to test new targets south of the Dark Star maiden resource, particularly targeting higher-grade (greater than 1 g Au/t oxide) North Dark Star-type discoveries which can be indicated by nearby low-grade intercepts such as 35.1m of 0.34 g Au/t in CDC-040 at the Dixie prospect. Note that the gold intercept in CDC-040 is historic in nature, completed before standards set forth in NI 43-101, and its true thickness is unknown. Initial drilling will focus on verifying this intercept by Gold Standard’s geologists. The DSC is a north-trending structural high of altered Pennsylvanian-Permian carbonate host rocks defined by gravity, CSAMT, geologic mapping, and soil sampling. The corridor is largely untested by drilling.

At the Sentinel Breccia target 350 meters to the north of Pinion, 13 RC and core holes (approximately 3,900 m) will test for extensions to oxide gold mineralization identified by surface rock samples.   This target is a hematitic, silicified breccia within the footwall of the north-striking Bullion Fault Zone. Drill 10 holes (approximately 6,700 m) to extend areas of west-northwest and north-trending, high-grade gold mineralization in the Lower Breccia Zone. Drilling will follow-up on the 2016 results in RR16-01 which intersected 65.6m of 3.17 g Au/t, including a higher-grade interval of 8.5m of 11.16 g Au/t located 120m west-northwest of previous drilling (announced on August 30, 2016); and, RR16-05 which returned 19.8m of 4.40 g Au/t, including a higher-grade interval of 5.3m of 7.02 g Au/t located 180m north of previous drilling.

Geologic mapping, historical data compilation, soil and rock geochemical sampling and geophysics will continue to define new targets throughout the 208-square km. Railroad-Pinion Project. In the past month, contractors have completed data collection on a 1,024-station gravity survey and initiated a +8,000-station soil grid on newly consolidated lands south of Dark Star and Pinion. Thirty RC holes are planned to provide the first tests of these newly identified targets. 

At the Jasperoid Wash target, historic RC drilling by Westmont intersected multiple zones of gold mineralization in rocks that reconnaissance mapping identified as similar to the Pennsylvanian-Permian carbonate host rocks at Main and North Dark Star. Most notably, RC drill hole JW-9007 intersected 117.4m of 0.51 g Au/t from 33.5-150.9m as described in a 1990 Westmont report. To the northwest of Pinion, early stage geologic mapping along the north-northwest-striking Ski Track corridor has identified altered carbonate rocks that are similar to the Pennsylvanian-Permian rocks that host the Dark Star gold deposit. Detailed mapping is planned to confirm this promising correlation with follow-up sampling and gravity used to define new targets. Up to 20 RC holes (about 5,400 m) are allocated to testing new oxide gold targets at Jasperoid Wash and Ski Track.

At the Sylvania, Steve’s Camp, Bald Mountain, Big Skarn and Dragon Back targets, drilling will test targets within dike-filled corridors peripheral to the Eocene Bullion intrusive center. At Dragon Back, reconnaissance sampling by Gold Standard returned up to 4.8 g Au/t in select rock samples. Up to 10 RC scout holes (about 4,600 m) will test these new oxide gold targets.

Mac Jackson, Gold Standard’s Vice President of Exploration, stated: “Our 2017 program will explore a variety of high quality, early-to-advanced-stage targets at Railroad-Pinion. Early stage, target definition work on our new southern land acquisition will consist of the collection of gravity, CSAMT, and geochemical data, as well as detailed mapping…the tools that have worked so well for us to date. We’ll also be running seismic lines and drilling scout holes peripheral to Dark Star and Pinion to find new deposits in those more advanced stage areas. At North Bullion, drilling will follow up on last year’s high-grade intercepts by continuing to test productive trends in that large system with wide-spaced step out holes.   Our program has expanded to take on new targets this year, and with this increased opportunity, we look forward to continuing to add resources in the Railroad-Pinion district.”