Margaux Resources Ltd. (TSXV: MRL) (OTCQB:MARFF) (“Margaux” or the “Company”) is pleased to provide highlights of its 2017 exploration activities on its southern British Columbia (“BC”) Sheep Creek Gold District and Kootenay Arc Zinc District. A new video which summarizes the 2017 work program is available at the following link, (https://youtu.be/Qg2gZF8Z2LE), and is posted on the Company’s website, www.margauxresources.com.
Funding is in place for Margaux’s 2018 exploration program, which will focus primarily on the Sheep Creek Gold District. Numerous high priority drill targets have been identified and are permitted for drilling; greater detail of the 2018 drill program will be announced in a subsequent news release.
Overview
The Sheep Creek Gold District and Kootenay Arc Zinc District are adjoining projects which together cover over 24,000 hectares of mineral tenure. For the first time ever, Margaux has consolidated the mineral claims in this area under one ownership, to allow for thorough and systematic exploration. During 2017, Margaux drilled 34 holes (6,552 m) on the Company’s claims; final analytical results have now been received for all drill holes, highlights are included in the summary tables below.
Sheep Creek Gold District
A recent Geoscience BC1 study showed that orogenic gold mineralization at the Sheep Creek Gold District is analogous to that in the more widely known Barkerville area. Orogenic gold accounts for almost half of BC’s gold production, with Margaux’s Sheep Creek Gold District ranking as the 3rd largest past-producing orogenic gold district in BC (after Barkerville and Bralorne). Historic gold production from the Sheep Creek Gold District is 785,000 oz gold, at an average grade of 14.4 g/t gold (0.42 oz/t gold). Unlike Barkerville and Bralorne, the Sheep Creek Gold District has had little exploration since mining ceased in the early 1950’s.
Margaux acquired the Sheep Creek Gold District in 2017, through several option agreements and through in-fill staking, to assemble claims covering a 10 km mineralized trend. Historic data was compiled and digitized, a prospecting and rock sampling program was undertaken to locate and assess historic showings, a LiDAR survey was completed and multi-year area-based drill permits were applied for, and received, for 3 separate areas within the district. The Company commissioned an independent NI 43-101 report and undertook a 19 hole (4,039 m) drill program which concluded in mid-December 2017.
The drilling was designed to test a variety of wide spaced, big-picture targets, as opposed to close-spaced definition-type drilling on a single vein. Targets tested in 2017 included: new veins with no previous drilling and no historic production (Maggie Aikens and Kat), the at-depth continuation of veins below the depth of historic mining (Bayonne and Bluestone), and conceptual blind-vein targets in brittle units, at depth in the core of anticlines.
The program was highly successful: at least one promising new vein was discovered which requires further drilling; gold grades were confirmed from two previously undrilled targets; and two veins were also shown to continue to depth, with good gold grade, below the limit of historic mining (Bayonne Main and A vein).
Highlights from 2017 drilling in the Sheep Creek Gold District are summarized in Table 1 below:
Table 1 Sheep Creek Gold District 2017 Drilling Highlights
| Hole ID | Area | From (m) | To (m) | Length (m) | Au (g/t) | Ag (g/t) | Pb (%) | Zn (%) |
| BA17-02 | Bayonne | 32.40 | 34.20 | 1.80 | 5.11 | |||
| BA17-03 | Bayonne | 45.67 | 47.74 | 2.07 | 4.45 | |||
| including | 47.42 | 47.74 | 0.32 | 18.20 | 10.7 | 0.57 | ||
| BA17-05 | Bayonne | 51.24 | 51.65 | 0.41 | 5.71 | 2.4 | ||
| BA17-07 | Bayonne | 123.35 | 124.25 | 0.90 | 3.16 | 25.6 | 1.59 | 1.46 |
| BA17-08 | Bayonne | 157.70 | 159.55 | 1.85 | 15.31 | 42.3 | 1.67 | 1.11 |
| including | 157.70 | 158.55 | 0.85 | 31.50 | 79.5 | 3.35 | 2.19 | |
| BA17-09A | Bayonne | 168.70 | 169.40 | 0.70 | 3.39 | 8.9 | ||
| BA17-12 | Bayonne | 162.80 | 163.80 | 1.00 | 12.70 | 22.6 | 1.36 | 0.62 |
| SC17-06 | Kat | 71.76 | 72.76 | 1.00 | 5.42 | 10.4 | 0.29 | 0.49 |
Kootenay Arc Zinc District
The Kootenay Arc is a regional geological belt that hosts numerous carbonate-hosted lead-zinc deposits. Margaux’s Kootenay Arc Zinc District covers a 30 km strike length of the Kootenay Arc in southern BC, including the past-producing Jersey-Emerald lead-zinc mine. In 2017, Margaux drilled 15 holes totaling 2,513 m in the Kootenay Arc Zinc District, this included 6 holes (1,115 m) on the Jersey property to explore for lead-zinc mineralization peripheral to the historic mine, and to test unrelated gold skarn mineralization located nearby.
Margaux added the Jackpot property to its Kootenay Arc Zinc District in late 2016, by way of an option agreement. 2017 was the Company’s first year of work at this prospect. Historic data was compiled and digitized, a multi-year area-based drill permit was applied for and received, surface chip sampling was done and a LiDAR survey was flown. In late summer 2017, a 9 hole (1,397 m) drill program was completed on the Jackpot property.
Highlights from 2017 drilling in the Kootenay Arc Zinc District are shown in Tables 2 and 3 below. Both high-grade mineralization, with potential for underground mining, and large tonnage, lower-grade mineralization that is potentially open-pittable, exist on Margaux’s Kootenay Arc Zinc District.
Table 2 Kootenay Arc Zinc District 2017 Drilling Highlights – High-grade
| Hole ID | Area | From (m) | To (m) | Interval (m) | Zn (%) | Pb (%) | Ag (g/t) |
| JP17-03 | Jackpot | 8.5 | 14.5 | 6.00 | 6.52 | ||
| including | 10.2 | 12.5 | 2.00 | 14.90 | 2.0 | ||
| JP17-04 | Jackpot | 19.20 | 20.50 | 1.30 | 7.65 | ||
| JP17-05 | Jackpot | 50.30 | 52.00 | 1.70 | 7.71 | ||
| JP17-06 | Jackpot | 68.68 | 71.39 | 2.71 | 6.10 | 2.3 | |
| JP17-07 | Jackpot | 112.09 | 120.59 | 8.50 | 6.66 | 0.70 | 6.5 |
| JP17-07 | Jackpot | 142.67 | 144.76 | 2.09 | 6.01 | 0.26 | 4.1 |
| JP17-07 | Jackpot | 152.88 | 154.00 | 1.12 | 6.78 | 0.23 | 1.9 |
| JP17-08 | Jackpot | 8.00 | 14.00 | 6.00 | 6.86 | 1.3 | |
| JP17-08 | Jackpot | 26.20 | 28.20 | 2.00 | 7.69 | 0.18 | 1.6 |
| JP17-08 | Jackpot | 110.00 | 113.50 | 3.50 | 7.81 | 1.72 | 15.7 |
| JP17-08 | Jackpot | 163.10 | 171.90 | 8.80 | 7.13 | 0.93 | 8.4 |
Table 3 Kootenay Arc Zinc District 2017 Drilling Highlights – Large tonnage
| Hole ID | Area | From (m) | To (m) | Interval(m) | Zn (%) | Pb(%) | Ag (ppm) |
| JP17-01A | Jackpot | 158.44 | 212.57 | 54.13 | 1.09 | 1.4 | |
| JP17-02 | Jackpot | 0.0 | 49.2 | 49.20 | 1.04 | 1.2 | |
| JP17-04 | Jackpot | 3.05 | 31.50 | 28.45 | 1.02 | ||
| JP17-05 | Jackpot | 16.70 | 77.80 | 61.10 | 1.01 | ||
| JP17-06 | Jackpot | 63.23 | 99.53 | 36.30 | 1.48 | 1.0 | |
| JP17-07 | Jackpot | 107.00 | 157.68 | 50.68 | 2.30 | 0.22 | 2.6 |
| JP17-08 | Jackpot | 8.00 | 171.00 | 163.90 | 1.41 | 0.13 | 1.7 |
PDAC
Finally, Margaux wishes to announce that the Company will be attending the PDAC conference in Toronto, March 4-7 2018. We invite shareholders and other interested parties to visit us at Booth 2952.
Notes
Results reported in this release are composite, weighted average grades returned from continuous drill core samples across the interval. For gold, all intervals returning > 3 g/t Au are reported. For zinc, all intervals returning >1.5 m grading >6% Zn or >25 m grading >1% Zn are reported. Results for Pb and Ag are included for these intervals if values exceed 0.1% or 1 g/t, respectively. Intervals reported are core intervals. Further drilling is required to understand the relationship between core interval and true width. After logging, intervals marked for sampling were sawn along the core length, with half of the core placed in bags for analysis and the remaining half core piece returned to the box for reference. Samples were shipped to ActLabs’ Kamloops, B.C. laboratory for preparation and analysis. Actlabs is an independent laboratory, recognized with expertise in analytical geochemistry and certified with ISO 9001:2008, ISO 17025, CAN-P-1579 certification. At the lab, samples were crushed so that 80% passes through a 10 mesh (2 mm) screen, then a 250 g split of the crushed sample was pulverized to 95% passing 105 microns. All samples were analyzed for gold by FA/AA finish on a 30 g sample of pulverized material, and for a multi-element suite by ICP-MS following aqua regia digestion of a 0.5 g sample. For samples returning >5000 ppm Zn or >5000 ppm Pb, samples were subsequently analyzed using peroxide fusion/ICP-MS techniques, while gold samples returning > 5 g/t Au by FA/AA were subsequently analysed by FA/GRA on a 30 g sample. Industry best-practice QA/QC procedures were implemented during the drilling program, including the insertion of analytical blanks and standards at regular intervals, as well as systematic duplicate sampling. Core size was NQ2 (50.6 mm = 2-inch core diameter).
Qualified Person
Linda Caron, M.Sc., P.Eng, Margaux’s Vice President of Exploration, is the Company’s Qualified Person as defined by NI 43-101 who has reviewed and approved the technical information contained within this press release.
About Margaux Resources Ltd.
Margaux Resources Ltd. (TSXV: MRL) (OTCQB:MARFF) is a mineral acquisition and exploration Company focused on the development of gold, zinc and tungsten deposits in the Kootenay Arc, in the southeastern region of British Columbia. The Company is directed by a group of highly successful Canadian business executives and is focused on exploration of the Company’s Kootenay Arc Zinc District, and Sheep Creek Gold District.
Forward Looking Statements
This press release may contain forward looking statements including those describing Margaux’s future plans and the expectations of management that a stated result or condition will occur. Any statement addressing future events or conditions necessarily involves inherent risk and uncertainty. Actual results can differ materially from those anticipated by management at the time of writing due to many factors, the majority of which are beyond the control of Margaux and its management. In particular, this news release contains forward-looking statements pertaining, directly or indirectly, to the following: Margaux’s exploration plans and work commitments, the potential of mineral resources and potential for recovery thereof, the timing of reporting exploration results, as well as other market conditions and economic factors, business and operations strategies. Readers are cautioned that the foregoing list of risk factors should not be construed as exhaustive. These statements speak only as of the date of this release or as of the date specified in the documents accompanying this release, as the case may be. The Company undertakes no obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statements except as expressly required by applicable securities laws.
Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.
CONTACT INFORMATION
Margaux Resources Ltd.
Tyler Rice
President, CEO and a Director
(403) 537-5590
Tyler@margauxresources.com