Prospecting Legend Ken Reading Returns to New
Break's Sundog Gold Project at Age 93
Toronto, Ontario, December 7th, 2023 –
InvestorsHub NewsWire -- New Break Resources Ltd.
("New Break" or the
"Company") (CSE: NBRK) is pleased to report that in
September 2023, a New Break field team comprised of famed Canadian
prospector Ken Reading, Shaun Parent, P. Geo. of Superior
Exploration Ltd. and a field assistant, accessed the Sundog Gold
Project in Kivalliq Region, Nunavut ("Sundog") by
float plane from Thompson, Manitoba. The team performed a
reconnaissance site visit to confirm access to the project area,
assess the impact of environmental changes, reproduce historical
gold assays from a small sample of historical trenches and gather
samples from previously unsampled vein structures near existing
historical trenches.
For Ken Reading, the trip back to Sundog came about a month before
his 94th birthday, which
he celebrated on October 15, 2023, and almost a decade after Ken
last visited the property. In total, Ken's involvement with
Sundog spans almost half of his 80-year career, having first
visited Sundog in June 1986 and again in the summer of 1987 on
behalf of Abermin Corporation ("Abermin"). Ken's prospecting
experience in the Arctic may be unmatched, having prospected
historically for various minerals for Pan Ocean Oil Ltd., and
predominantly for gold for Abermin, Homestake Mineral Development
Corp. on what is now New Breaks' SY property in Kivalliq and for
Comaplex Minerals Corp. ("Comaplex"). In fact, it was Ken's
ground breaking exploration work and report, that led to the
discovery of the Tiriruniak gold deposit by WMC International after
optioning the property from Comaplex. Tiriruniak is known
today as the Meliadine mine, operated by Agnico Eagle Mines
Limited.
(Figure 1: Sundog Gold Project -
Property Location)
Bill Love, New Break's Vice-President, Exploration commented, "The
world will never see another Ken Reading. At age 94, his
prospecting mind is as sharp as ever. He is quite literally a
living database of knowledge as it relates to gold exploration in
Nunavut. The significant mineral potential of the Sundog
Project is what led New Break in 2020, to target Nunavut for gold
exploration and in June 2021, New Break purchased all of Ken's
historical library of exploration data which includes information
on both the Sundog and Sy gold projects, but also on areas only
previously known to Ken. Ken has emphasized that you drill
where you find gold, as was the case at Meliadine, and New Break's
Sundog property has a lot of gold at surface. Sundog has
yielded high grade gold assays from samples taken from outcrops and
trenches exhibiting visible gold, that have never been tested
through
drilling."
The Sundog property lies approximately 16 km northeast of the
former Cullaton Lake gold mine, which produced over 100,000 ounces
of gold from October 1981 to September 1985. Cullaton Lake
was first prospected in 1960 by Thomas Skimming and Huntley
("Red") MacDonald, working for Selco
Exploration, who were tracking an iron formation. Later, in
1962, MacDonald took a grab sample from quartz veins from what
today is known as trench 10 on the Sundog property, that graded
102.9 grams per tonne gold ("g/t
Au"). As a result of its banded iron formation
("BIF") style mineralization, similar to
the Lupin gold mine, exploration and development focused on
Cullaton Lake instead of Sundog. The mine was finally closed
in 1985 by Peter Steen, President of the mine's operator, Royex
Gold Corp. In a March 7, 1988 Northern Miner article, of the
areas discovered by Skimming and MacDonald, Steen noted, "I think
that the area's real potential is in exploration. There's a
lot of gold in that area. If that property were down in
Arizona, it would be one big open pit."
In his June 1986 trip to Sundog, Ken took 9 grab
samples, 3 from what is now Trench 29 and 6 from what is now Trench
10, with the best assay being 62.8 g/t Au.
Ken returned in
August and September 1986, and collected a further 26 rock chip
samples with the best assay being 39.1 g/t Au and 13 panned
concentrate samples with the best assay being 206.7 g/t Au, from
what is now Trench 17. A description of the
historical results from the August and September 1986 rock, vein
and panned concentrate samples is provided
at https://www.newbreakresources.ca/projects/nunavut-gold-projects/sundog-gold-project/.
When asked about his thoughts on the potential at Sundog, Ken
replied, "Quite simply, barring Tiriruniak (Meliadine), I cannot
recall having ever found or personally investigated a more
interesting gold occurrence site here in Canada! The site's
potential can only be determined by the thoroughness with which it
is investigated." Ken believes that the best exploration
results come from boots on the ground, to which he added, "Sweat is
a wonderful educator."
About the Sundog Gold Project
Sundog is located approximately 235 km west of Arviat, Nunavut, 640
km north of Thompson, Manitoba and lies 16 km to the northeast of
the Cullaton Lake airstrip on parcel AR-35 of Inuit Owned Land
("IOL") and covers approximately
9,415 hectares (the "Exploration
Area"). The surface rights are managed by the
Kivalliq Inuit Association ("KIVIA") and
administration of mineral rights is managed by Nunavut Tunngavik
Incorporated ("NTI"). The Exploration Area
represents an under-explored part of the Henik Group, central
Ennadai-Rankin Archean greenstone belt, the second largest
greenstone belt in Canada, second only to the Abitibi greenstone
belt in Ontario and Quebec. The Sundog property is characterized by
high grade surface gold exposures over a minimum 2,500 x 500 m
area. There are two banded iron formations on the property, with
the potential for Musselwhite-Meadowbank-Meliadine type
mineralization.
Indigenous Engagement and Draft Nunavut Land Use
Plan
New Break considers consultation with indigenous communities
impacted by mineral exploration to be a critical component of
advancing its projects in Nunavut, including Sundog. In May
2022, Bill Love and John Todd, former Minister of Finance for the
Northwest Territories and an advisor to New Break, travelled to
Arviat to meet with the Hunters and Trappers Organization ("HTO")
to present New Break's exploration plans at Sundog and to address
any concerns that they may have. The meeting was highly
productive with the HTO confirming that the Sundog property does
not serve as a caribou migration route or contain any culturally
significant sites that would impede mineral exploration or
development. New Break further confirmed that there are no
proposed restrictions that would pertain to Sundog as a result of
recommendations made in the Nunavut Planning Commission's Draft
Nunavut Land Use Plan, which was submitted for approval to the
government of Nunavut and NTI in June 2023 after 16 years in
development.
Why to Consider Investing in Junior Gold
Exploration in Nunavut
746,659 ounces of gold were produced in Nunavut in 2022 by Agnico
Eagle from their Meliadine and Meadowbank mines in Kivalliq
Region. Agnico Eagle acquired Meadowbank and Meliadine
respectively, through their 2007 acquisition of Cumberland
Resources Ltd. for approximately CDN$710 million and their 2010
acquisition of Comaplex for approximately CDN$700 million.
2023 drilling by Agnico Eagle at the Hope Bay deposit in Kitikmeot
Region continues, with a view of ultimately putting Hope Bay back
into production following their February 3, 2021 acquisition of
TMAC Resources Inc. for approximately CDN$287 million. On
April 21, 2023, another major gold producer, B2Gold Corp. completed
the acquisition of Sabina Gold & Silver Corp. for CDN$1.1
billion to gain ownership of the Back River Gold District, located
in Kitikmeot Region, including the Goose Project, currently under
construction with completion expected in
2025.
Michael Farrant, President and CEO of New Break
commented, "A Sundog, or mock sun, is an atmospheric optical
phenomenon that occurs when light is refracted through significant
ice crystals suspended in clouds or freezing moist air, causing a
bright spot to one or both sides of the
sun. Similar to a rainbow,
they are seen as a sign of good luck.
It is clear that Nunavut has become a growing
focus for major gold producers looking to replace reserves and
resources and maintain gold production within a top tier mining
jurisdiction that also offers large underexplored land packages
hosting significant exploration
potential. It is our belief that
the Sundog project holds this potential and will continue to serve
as a sign of good luck for New Break
shareholders. For more information
on what others, including Ammar Al-Joundi, my former colleague at
Barrick Gold Corporation and now President and CEO of Agnico Eagle
are saying about mineral exploration and mining in Nunavut, watch
the video in this link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fRQy2zH6Go8."
Stay Tuned for New Break's Technical Update on
the Sundog Gold Project
New Break expects to have assay results from the September 2023
trip imminently and intends to provide a technical update on the
Sundog property, including a review of Sundog assay results from
1986 to present and a discussion of Sundog's geology and nature of
gold occurrences in assays.
Qualified Person
Peter C. Hubacheck, P. Geo., consulting geologist to New Break, and
a Qualified Person as defined by National Instrument 43-101, has
reviewed and approved the technical disclosure in this news
release.
About New Break Resources Ltd. and Nunavut
Property Portfolio
In addition to the Sundog, New Break's portfolio of gold
exploration projects in Kivalliq Region, Nunavut include the Sy,
Esker-Noomut and Angikuni Lake properties, collectively covering an
additional 21,960 hectares, situated on Crown Land. These
mineral claims were acquired in 2021 through staking, using the new
on-line Nunavut Map Selection System operated by the federal
government of Canada through the Department of Crown-Indigenous
Relations and Northern Affairs Canada ("CIRNAC").
New Break is a Canadian mineral exploration
company with a dual vision for value
creation. In northern Ontario,
New Break is focused on its Moray Project, in a well-established
mining camp, within proximity to existing infrastructure, while at
the same time, through our prospective land holdings in Nunavut, we
provide our shareholders with significant exposure to the vast
potential for exploration success in one of the most up and coming
regions in Canada for gold exploration and
production. New Break is
supported by a highly experienced team of mining professionals
committed to placing a premium on Environmental, Social and
Corporate Governance.
Information on New Break is available under the
Company's profile on SEDAR+ at www.sedarplus.ca
and on the Company's website at
www.newbreakresources.ca.
New Break began trading on the Canadian
Securities Exchange (www.thecse.com) on September 7, 2022 under the
symbol CSE:
NBRK.
For further information
on New Break, please visit
www.newbreakresources.ca or contact:
Michael Farrant, President and Chief Executive Officer
Tel: 416-278-4149
E-mail:
mfarrant@newbreakresources.ca
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commission or other regulatory authority has approved or
disapproved the information contained in this news release.
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