Firefox Gold Launches Summer Exploration Program in Finland

SODANKYLÄ, Finland, July 14, 2020 /CNW/ – FireFox Gold Corp. (“FireFox” or the “Company”) is pleased to announce that following its oversubscribed non-brokered private placement (see Company news release dated July 2, 2020), it has launched a multidisciplinary field program on several of its gold projects in the Central Lapland region of Finland. The majority of the field work will be focused on the Jeesiö and Sarvilehto (“Sarvi”) Projects, which are in a portion of the Central Lapland Greenstone Belt (“CLGB”) that has been a hotbed of recent activity by fellow explorers, Aurion Resources, Rupert Resources, and others. The primary objective of the program is to define drill targets at both Jeesiö and Sarvi for a fall and winter drill program.

There are four major elements of the summer exploration program:

• A high-resolution UAV (unmanned aerial vehicle) based airborne magnetics survey;
• Excavator trenching and systematic sampling at several projects, and potentially other areas as prospecting results dictate;
• Follow-up prospecting, reconnaissance mapping and sampling in areas of known gold mineralization or prospectivity, as well as newly acquired exploration reservations; and
• A next-generation integrated interpretation and targeting exercise using multivariate data across the Company’s Lapland properties.

Patrick Highsmith, FireFox’s chairman, commented, “We are very excited to launch a significant and fully funded summer exploration program that will include a state-of-the-art UAV magnetics survey as well as extensive good old-fashioned prospecting. Our Jeesiö and Sarvi Projects occur on-trend with important structures, where we have already identified gold occurrences of note. In addition to this work, we look forward to unveiling a next-generation integrated targeting exercise in the coming weeks. It is fantastic to see the Central Lapland Greenstone Belt finally enjoying significant levels of funding and drilling for its gold potential. As a team, we have been working these rocks for a long time; the emerging discoveries in the belt have heightened the intensity for all of us.”

Detailed Airborne Survey

The airborne survey will commence in mid-July and will span over 1,100 line-kilometres. Radai Ltd (www.radai.fi) will conduct the survey at the Jeesiö and Sarvi Projects and surrounding areas.  Radai is an experienced, innovative Finnish provider of airborne geophysics and other services, who has conducted recent mineral exploration airborne surveys in Lapland for Boliden, Rupert Resources, and others.

The Radai team will deploy a fixed-wing autonomous aircraft using a fluxgate sensor to measure total magnetic field. The aircraft will operate at an altitude of 40 metres with flight line spacing of 50 metres in order to achieve high resolution. The detailed magnetic data will facilitate a careful analysis of bedrock geology beneath the glacial sediments, including faulting, folding, and alteration that may be important indications of gold mineralization.

Excavator Trenching and Sampling

FireFox has also mobilized teams to Lapland for a trenching program that is expected to last for at least two weeks. Since most of Lapland is covered by glacial sediments of varying thickness, trenching is an excellent tool for exploration where an excavator can reach bedrock by removing glacial sediments and other regolith. The teams will first target the gold anomalies at Jeesiö where geologists collected numerous rock samples in 2018 and 2019 containing up to 6.4 grams per tonne (g/t) of gold (refer to News Releases filed on SEDAR, in particular that dated January 23, 2020).

The machine will also travel to the Mustajärvi Project, where FireFox has previously reported high-grade gold in boulders, channel samples, and in core drilling at shallow depths below surface (See 43-101 Technical Report on SEDAR, as well as Company news releases dated January 3 and 21, 2019). The Phase 1 drill program in late 2018 followed from a small drill program on the property by Outokumpu in the 1990’s. FireFox identified a different style of mineralization that included narrow intervals of massive to semi-massive pyrite and grades up to 45 g/t over 2.0 metres from 125.5 metres downhole. The mineralization is believed to be related to the northeast trending Venejoki Thrust Zone, which is a splay of the well-known Sirkka Shear Zone, but there appear to be important cross structures that are not well understood. New trenches at Mustajärvi will enable collection of extensive structural geology data and detailed sampling of key structures, alteration, and host rocks. 

The extent of the trenching program could expand based on the mapping and sampling work that is already underway. The Company expects the trenching to include hundreds of metres of excavation and sampling in areas with anomalous rock and till geochemistry, or where geophysics or drilling indicate important near-surface features of interest. 

Prospecting, Mapping, and Sampling

Other activities already in progress include a 2-month mapping and sampling program concentrated in the Jeesiö and Sarvi exploration areas. FireFox’s land holdings are extensive and outcrop is sparse, so reconnaissance mapping during the summer season is important to identify outcrop and update geological maps. Some of the last field expeditions in 2019 turned up highly anomalous gold samples, such as the 6.4 g/t sample at the Katajavaara Target on the Jeesiö Project. The teams will be following up on these emerging targets, as well as pushing into new areas, such as prospective greenfield areas in the newly acquired Naula and Lehto exploration reservations. The vast historical databases in Finland offer huge potential. A component of this program will be to apply modern assay and ultra-trace geochemical methods to historical till samples acquired by the Geological Survey of Finland (GTK).  

The Naula reservation covers approximately 21,820 hectares and is located in the western part of the CLGB along the northeast continuation of major crustal-scale structures from the historical Saattopora Gold Mine. The Lehto exploration permit application area (494 hectares) is located closer to FireFox’s other properties in the eastern end of the belt, approximately 27 kilometres southeast from the Agnico Eagle’s Kittilä Mine. The Lehto property occurs within the Kittilä Group volcano-sedimentary sequence, which also hosts the Kittila Mine. Regional geologic maps suggest that the underlying bedrock is dominated by mafic volcanics, including iron tholeiites, graphitic tuffs, and banded iron formation along NS-trending structures.  [ FireFox cautions that proximity or similar geology to an active or past-producing mine does not indicate that mineralization will occur on FireFox’s property, and if mineralization does occur, that it will occur in sufficient quantity or grade that would result in an economic extraction scenario. These facts were simply used as elements of the prospectivity analysis of these properties.]

Quality Assurance

Dr. Petri Peltonen, Exploration Manager of FireFox Gold, is a qualified person as defined by National Instrument 43-101 – Standards of Disclosure for Mineral Projects. Dr. Peltonen has supervised the collection and interpretation of the technical data generated in the Company’s field program and has helped prepare, and approves, the technical information in this news release.

Patrick Highsmith, Certified Professional Geologist (AIPG CPG # 11702) and director of the Company, is a qualified person as defined by National Instrument 43-101. Mr. Highsmith has helped prepare, and approves, the technical information in this news release.

About FireFox Gold Corp.

FireFox Gold Corp is listed on the TSX Venture stock exchange under the ticker symbol FFOX. The Company is focused entirely on gold exploration in Finland where it is exploring its project portfolio that includes over 150,000 hectares of prospective ground.

Finland is one of the top mining investment jurisdictions in the world as indicated by its multiple top-10 rankings in recent Fraser Institute Surveys of Mining Companies. Having a strong mining law and long mining tradition, Finland remains underexplored for gold. Recent exploration results in the country have highlighted its prospectivity, and FireFox is proud to have a Finland based CEO and technical team.

For more information concerning the Company, please refer to the Company’s profile on the SEDAR website at www.sedar.com.

On behalf of the Board of Directors,

“Carl Löfberg”

Chief Executive Officer

Forward Looking Statements

The information herein contains forward looking statements that are subject to a number of known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause actual results to differ materially from those anticipated in our forward-looking statements. Factors that could cause such differences include: changes in world commodity markets, equity markets, the extent of work stoppage and economic impacts that may result from the COVID 19 virus, costs and supply of materials relevant to the mining industry, change in government and changes to regulations affecting the mining industry.

Forward-looking statements in this release may include statements regarding: the current and future work program, including the extent and nature of exploration to be conducted in 2020, as well as future possible drilling on the properties described. Although we believe the expectations reflected in our forward-looking statements are reasonable, results may vary. The forward-looking statements contained herein represent the expectations of FireFox as of the date of dissemination and, accordingly, are subject to change after such date. Readers should not place undue importance on forward-looking statements and should not rely upon this information as of any other date. FireFox does not undertake to update this information at any particular time except as required in accordance with applicable laws.

SOURCE FireFox Gold Corp.