Upside Gold Corp. (CSE: UG) (FSE: 47I) (OTCQB: UGODF) announced the signing of a Letter of Intent (LOI) with a local prospector to acquire seven mineral claims totaling approximately 273 hectares located on the northwest side of the Company's Kena Gold-Copper Property in southeastern British Columbia. This strategic move aims to strengthen the continuity of the Kena land package by consolidating adjacent ground along a prospective trend, supporting the Company's broader exploration strategy.
The proposed acquisition covers historically mineralized areas, including the original six reverted Crown grants that formed the historic Venus-Juno Group. This group recorded past production of approximately 5,411 tonnes grading an average of 19.8 g/t gold and 17.7 g/t silver, with minor copper and lead, during the first half of the 20th century. This history of high-grade production underscores the district's mineralization potential and highlights the largely under-explored nature of this portion of the property, reinforcing the Company's exploration thesis.
Geologically, the claims are underlain by altered mafic volcanic rocks of the Elise Formation adjacent to the Nelson granodiorite intrusion—the same regional geological setting that hosts gold and copper mineralization at Kena. Mineralization on the newly acquired claims is characterized by quartz veins and stringers containing pyrite, galena, sphalerite, and copper sulphides, consistent with mineralization styles observed elsewhere across the Kena Property. This geological continuity suggests that the claims could contribute significantly to the broader Kena exploration model.
Upside Gold plans to conduct a systematic surface evaluation program to assess the extent and continuity of gold-silver mineralization across the newly acquired claims and determine their potential contribution to the Kena project. The information in this press release has been reviewed and approved by Trevor Boyd, P.Geo., Vice President, Exploration of the Company and a Qualified Person under NI 43-101 standards.
The Kena Project, located approximately 7 kilometres southwest of Nelson, British Columbia, consists of 198 mineral claims covering 10,114.8 hectares, together with 11 crown grants covering approximately 92 hectares. The project hosts a historical gold resource comprising an Indicated Mineral Resource of 32,146,000 tonnes at an average grade of 0.544 g/t Au for 0.561 million ounces of gold, and an Inferred Mineral Resource of 177,507,000 tonnes at an average grade of 0.486 g/t Au for 2.77 million ounces of gold. This historical estimate is disclosed in a technical report prepared by Sue Bird, P.Eng. of Moose Mountain Technical Services, dated May 3, 2021, and filed on SEDAR on behalf of West Mining Corp.
It is important to note that a Qualified Person has not done sufficient work to classify the historical estimate as current mineral resources, and Upside Gold is not treating it as such. The historical estimate is provided for information purposes only and should not be relied upon. To upgrade it to a current mineral resource, additional drilling would be required.
This acquisition comes at a time when gold prices remain elevated, and exploration companies are seeking to expand their resource bases. For Upside Gold, consolidating adjacent claims with known high-grade mineralization could enhance the economic viability of the Kena Project. The company is focused on advancing the project through systematic exploration and drilling programs, and this land package expansion is a key step in that direction.
Investors and industry observers will watch closely as Upside Gold executes its surface evaluation program on the newly acquired claims. If successful, the additional mineralization could positively impact the project's overall resource potential and future development plans.
For more information, visit the company's website at www.upsidegoldcorp.com.
