Nighthawk Reports High-Grade Mineralization from Initial Drilling at Cass

Hole CM21-12 returned 6.92 g/t Au over 51.00 m,  including 11.31 g/t Au over 19.50 m

TSX: NHK  

TORONTO, Aug. 3, 2021 /CNW/ - Nighthawk Gold Corp. ("Nighthawk" or the "Company") (TSX: NHK) (OTCQX: MIMZF) is pleased to report assay results for nine (9) drillholes (1,266 metres) from the Cass Zone ("Cass"), located 15km southwest of the Colomac Centre within its Indin Lake Gold Property, Northwest Territories, Canada (Figure 1; Table 1).

Keyvan Salehi, President & CEO commented, "At the start of the year we outlined a new strategy looking at targets that could not only contribute to increasing the global resource base, but also increasing the average resource grade. Cass very quickly became a top target for us, given the historical drilling results and the possibility for expansion not only along strike but at depth.

"These drilling results illustrate the near-surface high-grade nature of Cass, showcasing good widths and continuity of the mineralization. The results clearly demonstrate the presence of a continuous high-grade core which appears open at depth, offering both easily accessible open pit potential as well as underground possibilities. The current drill results including the eastern extension, continue to return significant near-surface mineralization. We look forward to providing additional results from the Phase I program at Cass as they become available."

A VRIFY interactive 3D model of the Cass Zone, including the drill results announced today is available through the following link: https://www.nighthawkgold.com/news/ 

Highlights of Cass Drilling Results:

• Hole CM21-12 tested the core of the mineralized zone to confirm historical information and to obtain important geological information on the type of deposit that hosts the mineralization, which showed regular and consistent gold mineralization throughout the intersection as follows:
• 6.92 grams per tonne gold ("g/t", "Au") over 51.00 metres ("m") starting at 121.75 m(Figure 2);
• Including a higher-grade core of 11.31 g/t Au over 19.50 m starting at 144.50 m;
• Highest single assay result of 96.70 g/t over 0.50 m with 19 out of 87 samples higher than 10.00 g/t Au (22%); and
• 28 different samples contained visible gold (32%).
• Drilling at the east extension followed up on Nighthawk drilling conducted in 2014, which returned interesting results 500 m east of the main zone:
• CM21-04 returned 1.10 g/t Au over 8.25 m starting at 35.75 mincluding 10.80 g/t Au over 0.50 m (Figure 3); and
• CM21-06 returned 1.78 g/t Au over 15.25 m starting at 52.00 m including 2.23 g/t Au over 9.50 m (Figure 3).

To date, approximately 35,000 metres of drilling have been completed as part of the Phase I program, with 13,220 metres having been reported on. There are currently two (2) drills at Fishhook and one (1) drill located at each of the following targets: the Cass Zone (western extension); the Albatross Target (immediately to the southwest of Cass); and at the 24/27 zones within the Colomac Centre.

Drilling tested the core of the zone to confirm historical information and to obtain important geological information on the type of deposit that hosts the mineralization. This is also an integral part of the validation process in order to include the historical data into the upcoming resource update. The core demonstrates consistent sheared and altered gabbro hosting abundant quartz veining along with pyrrhotite, arsenopyrite, and multiple sightings of visible gold throughout the interval. Drilling also tested the eastern extension of the zone to the northeast, in an area with limited drilling as conducted by Nighthawk in 2014 (see press release dated December 3, 2014). The recent drilling in this area returned interesting results 500 m east of the main zone, warranting follow-up in Phase II of the 2021 program.

Validation of the Kim & Cass database is progressing well and will be integrated with the 2021 program along with the remaining drilling which is currently testing the western extension and is expected to be reported on shortly. The Kim & Cass zones typically show better than average grades with consistently good widths up to surface and we expect they will contribute significantly to the total in-pit resources of the property.

Table 1 – Cass Zone Drilling (Core and Eastern Extension) – Summary Table

Technical Information
Nighthawk has implemented a quality-control program to comply with best practices in the sampling and analysis of drill core.  Drill core samples were transported in security-sealed bags for analyses at ALS Global Assay Laboratory in Vancouver, BC ("ALS Global"). ALS Global is an ISO/IEC 17025 accredited laboratory. Pulp and metallics assaying for gold was conducted on the entire pulverized sample.

As part of its QA/QC program, Nighthawk inserts external gold standards (low to high-grade) and blanks every 20 samples in addition to the standards, blanks, and pulp duplicates inserted by ALS Global.

Qualified Person
Richard Roy P.Geo., V.P. Exploration of Nighthawk, who is the "Qualified Person" as defined by NI 43-101 for this project, has reviewed and approved of the technical disclosure contained in this news release.

About Nighthawk
Nighthawk is a Canadian-based gold exploration company with 100% ownership of a district-scale land position within the Indin Lake Greenstone Belt, located approximately 200km north of Yellowknife, Northwest Territories, Canada. Within this largely under explored Archean gold camp, the Company has identified a number of high-priority targets all centred around a growing deposit. These targets lie within large regional deformation zones that contain gold mineralization which warrant additional exploration and follow-up. The main goals and objectives over the next 6-12 months will be to carry out exploration to foster resource expansion opportunities as well as new, near-surface discoveries that support the global mineral resource base.

The Company has an experienced and dedicated team with a track record of successfully advancing projects and is well funded and supported to advance its near-term goals and objectives.

Neither the Toronto Stock Exchange has neither reviewed nor accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this news release.

Forward-Looking Information

This news release contains "forward-looking information" within the meaning of applicable Canadian securities legislation. Forward-looking information includes, but is not limited to, information with respect to: the Company's continued exploration initiatives and its ability increase the global resource base at the end of the 2021 drilling season, and in particular the ability to grow the size of the in-pit resources. Generally, forward-looking information can be identified by the use of forward-looking terminology such as "plans", "expects", or "does not expect", "is expected", "budget", "scheduled", "estimates", "forecasts", "intends", "anticipates", or "does not anticipate", or "believes" or variations of such words and phrases or state that certain actions, events or results "may", "could", "would", "might", or "will be taken", "occur", or "be achieved".

Forward-looking information is based on the opinions and estimates of management at the date the information is made, and is based on a number of assumptions and is subject to known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause the actual results, level of activity, performance or achievements of Nighthawk to be materially different from those expressed or implied by such forward-looking information, including risks associated with the exploration, development and mining such as economic factors as they effect exploration, future commodity prices, changes in foreign exchange and interest rates, actual results of current exploration activities, government regulation, political or economic developments, environmental risks, permitting timelines, capital expenditures, operating or technical difficulties in connection with development activities, employee relations, the speculative nature of gold exploration and development, including the risks of diminishing quantities of grades of reserves, contests over title to properties, and changes in project parameters as plans continue to be refined as well as those risk factors discussed in Nighthawk's annual information form for the year ended December 31, 2020, available on www.sedar.com.  Although Nighthawk has attempted to identify important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those contained in forward-looking information, there may be other factors that cause results not to be as anticipated, estimated or intended. There can be no assurance that such information will prove to be accurate, as actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated in such information. Accordingly, readers should not place undue reliance on forward-looking information. Nighthawk does not undertake to update any forward-looking information, except in accordance with applicable securities laws.

SOURCE Nighthawk Gold Corp.