Blende Silver Corp. (TSX.V: BAG) (OTC: BAGGF) (WKN: A2QKT9) (FSE: BCW1) has announced that field crews are mobilizing to its 100%-owned Blende Silver-Zinc-Lead Project in north-central Yukon to commence the first phase of drilling targeting the Project's 3D induced polarization (IP) chargeability anomalies. The first drill hole(s) will test the Central Zone, the approximately 2 km corridor between the Company's West Zone and East Zone deposits, and are expected to commence within approximately 10 days.
The program is designed to test whether mineralization extends beyond the currently defined zones. Blende hosts an existing NI 43-101 mineral resource and is one of the larger known carbonate-hosted silver-zinc-lead occurrences in Western Canada. The upcoming holes will be the first drilling to directly test the priority 3D IP chargeability anomalies identified in the Company's recently completed survey, notably in the Lower Central Zone and New Mountain Top areas, where the interpreted chargeability anomalies are several times greater in areal extent than the chargeability response over the defined West Zone mineralization.
“Blende is not a greenfield story. We already hold one of the larger known carbonate-hosted silver-zinc-lead resources in Western Canada, and our objective now is to test whether that resource can be expanded,” said Andrew H. Rees, President and CEO. “Our 3D IP survey identified chargeability anomalies, coincident with low resistivity, that cover a larger area than the chargeability response over the West Zone that anchors our existing resource, and this program puts a drill directly into those targets for the first time.”
The Company intends to complete as many holes as site and weather conditions allow before the current field season concludes in mid-September 2026, anticipated to be one to two holes. These holes are the first phase of a planned multi-phase drill program built around the Company's 3D IP targeting model. Phase 1 begins this summer, pauses over the winter period, and is planned to resume and expand in spring and summer 2027. During the winter break, the Company plans to mobilize equipment over the seasonal winter road to establish camp infrastructure and an airstrip, positioning the Project for an expanded exploration program in subsequent phases.
The upcoming drilling directly tests chargeability anomalies interpreted from the 3D IP survey. The survey identified a chargeability response coincident with low resistivity over the West Zone, which the Company uses as a calibration reference. Multiple significantly larger-scale, untested anomalies have been identified in the Lower Central Zone and New Mountain Top areas, appearing several times larger than the West Zone response. Both anomalies extend to the edges of the surveyed grid, and the Company has not surveyed beyond the current coverage. A chargeability high coincident with low resistivity is the criterion used to rank drill targets, as that combination may indicate sulphide mineralization.
Prior review of inversion data indicated that historical drilling in the Central Zone (13 holes drilled along and down the spine of the ridge toward the East Zone) appears to have been positioned between two distinct chargeability anomalies, rather than directly testing the strongest responses. The Company's interpretation is that these observations warrant drill testing for possible extensions of mineralization between the West Zone and the East Zone. Continuity of mineralization between the zones will be tested by this drilling campaign.
The Blende Project has been described as hosting the largest carbonate-hosted silver-zinc-lead deposit in the Yukon (M. Robinson and C.I. Godwin, Economic Geology, 1995). That characterization reflects information available as at the date of that publication. A mineral resource estimate prepared in accordance with National Instrument 43-101 at a 1.5% ZnEq cutoff, as disclosed in the Company's news release dated May 20, 2021, is reproduced below: 2021 Mineral Resource Estimate (1.5% ZnEq cutoff). Historical exploration defined the East and West Zones, two primary mineralized zones located approximately two kilometers apart.
“We aim to mobilize equipment over the winter road this winter to build camp and airstrip infrastructure through the coming spring and summer to support a substantially larger, sustained program across a district-scale property. This program is directed at testing for extensions to the existing mineral resource, and there is no certainty that it will result in any increase to that resource,” added Rees.
The scientific and technical information in this news release has been reviewed and approved by Dr. Sarah Palmer, P.Geo., an independent consultant to the Company and a Qualified Person as defined by National Instrument 43-101 Standards of Disclosure for Mineral Projects.
