Vancouver, British Columbia – Lumina Gold Corp. (TSXV: LUM) (the “Company” or “Lumina”) is pleased to announce that it has been granted 13 new concessions by the Ecuadorian Ministry of Mining, covering 40,647 hectares. These concessions, which are spread throughout the country, are in addition to the ones that were announced on November 16, 2016 and December 22, 2016. The new concessions, which were awarded through the Government’s auction process, consolidate Lumina’s position along trend with its existing Condor project, Lundin Gold’s Fruta del Norte project and Tongling’s Mirador project. Concessions on the prolific northwest oriented Apuela Batholith, close to world class discoveries such as Codelco´s Llurimagua and SolGold´s Cascabel, are expected to add additional value to Lumina’s prospective portfolio. The following table, map and descriptions outline Lumina’s new and previously existing concessions in Ecuador.
Lumina has commenced extensive geological mapping, soil and stream sediment sampling to focus the Company’s efforts on the mineralized areas of these new concessions. This work will enable Lumina to identify high-priority drill targets in addition to the current 12,000 meters of infill drilling that is ongoing at Cangrejos.
Diego Benalcazar, Lumina’s in-country Senior Vice President, commented: “The concessions Lumina has added since November have made it the second largest concession holder in Ecuador, and one of the leading gold explorers in the region. Our technical team of 15 geologists has already commenced work across this portfolio of highly prospective concessions.”
Countrywide Concession Summary:
| Area Name | Number of Concessions | Hectares | Province | |
| Key Projects | ||||
| Cangrejos (including Cangrejos 20) | 6 | 6,374 | El Oro | |
| Condor | 7 | 8,269 | Zamora-Chinchipe | |
| Previously Announced Concessions – Nov 16, 2016 and Dec 22, 2016 Press Releases | ||||
| Pegasus A / Pegasus B | 14 | 66,525 | Cotopaxi & Bolivar | |
| Tres Picachos | 1 | 4,828 | Zamora-Chinchipe | |
| Orquideas | 1 | 4,743 | Zamora-Chinchipe | |
| La Canela | 1 | 3,187 | Zamora-Chinchipe | |
| New Concessions Added | ||||
| Palma Real (1) | 4 | 19,775 | Esmeraldas | |
| Cascas (1) | 2 | 9,998 | Zamora-Chinchipe | |
| Tarqui (1) | 2 | 4,817 | Morona-Santiago | |
| Quimi (1) | 2 | 2,731 | Morona-Santiago | |
| Yawi | 1 | 1,494 | Zamora-Chinchipe | |
| Escondida | 1 | 1,204 | Zamora-Chinchipe | |
| Santa Elena (1) | 1 | 628 | Zamora-Chinchipe | |
| Total | 43 | 134,573 | ||
(1) Concessions currently optioned by Lumina. Lumina is responsible for funding the required work commitments on these concessions. After two years, the concessions will be transferred to Lumina.
Countrywide Concession Map:
Description of New Concessions Outside of Lumina’s Key Projects:
The Macuchi Volcanic Massive Sulphide (VMS) Metallogenic Belt Concession Areas
Lumina has assembled three large concession packages, totaling 86,300 hectares, encompassing submarine arc volcanic rocks of the Paleocene to Eocene Macuchi formation, prospective for VMS and skarn gold styles of mineralization. The Company holds the Pegasus A, Pegasus B and the Palma Real concessions in this belt.
Pegasus A / Pegasus B (66,525 hectares)
Pegasus A comprises seven contiguous mineral exploration license areas in Cotopaxi Province. The northernmost Pegasus-1 concession is two kilometers south of the Estero Hondo gold mine. First quarter 2017 field work has defined gossanous rock samples in the western part of Pegasus-1 at La Envidia, assaying between 6.3 and 9.4 grams per tonne of gold and 1,415 parts per million (“ppm”) arsenic. La Envidia shows consistently anomalous silver assays (4.7 ppm silver), and locally anomalous copper assays (up to 0.145% copper) were recently returned from both rock and saprock samples. In addition, pan concentrates at La Envidia, taken from streams every 100m, have yielded up to 70 coarse, angular and locally brilliant gold particles per pan over two kilometers north-south.
Pegasus B is a prospective area south of Pegasus A. It is adjacent to Salazar Resources’ Las Naves VMS deposit. The regional geology is Cretaceous Island Arc volcanics with potential mineralization in the form of Kuroko massive sulphide type and possible younger Miocene porphyritic mineralization. There is also potential for epithermal deposits in the highlands.
Palma Real (19,775 hectares)
Palma Real is located in the western foothills of the Andes in Esmeraldas Province, approximately 40 kilometers southwest of the giant Cascabel copper-gold deposit under development by SolGold, in broadly similar geological formations to the Pegasus blocks. Stream sediment copper anomalism, as defined by the British Geological Survey in 2000, surrounds the Canande gabbro pluton and is the principal attribute of this previously underexplored license area.
The Zamora – Morona Santiago Copper-Gold Metallogenic Belt Concession Areas
Lumina holds title to twelve mineral exploration concessions, totaling 33,630 hectares, that are on trend with its Condor project. These concessions discontinuously span 170 kilometers of the prolific Zamora Copper-Gold Metallogenic Belt. This area is prospective for porphyry copper-molybdenum-gold-silver, epithermal gold-silver, as well as skarn gold and copper styles of mineralization. Lumina has the added advantage of detailed in-house geochemical and geophysical data to facilitate prospect generation and project development within this metallogenic belt.
Cascas (9,998 hectares)
The two Cascas license areas encompass a 16 square kilometer copper-molybdenum anomaly, defined by Odin/Cambior between 1996 and 1998. The anomaly is open to the northeast and is flanked to the southwest by a stream sediment gold anomaly.
La Canela and Tres Picachos (8,015 hectares)
La Canela (3,187 hectares) and Tres Picachos (4,828 hectares) straddle the same Jurassic aged volcanic and plutonic rocks present at Fruta del Norte and its district. Stream sediment sampling by Odin/Cambior between 1996-1998 defined several zones of gold anomalism in each concession, mostly within Misahualli volcanic rocks.
Tarqui and Quimi (7,548 hectares)
Tarqui & Tarqui 2 (4,817 hectares) and Quimi & Quimi 2 (2,731 hectares) license areas cover mid Jurassic granodiorites of the Zamora Batholith, as well as dioritic dikes and breccia zones located between the Mirador copper-gold-silver mine (presently under construction) and the Panantza-San Carlos porphyry copper deposits. Quimi is eight kilometers to the northwest of the Mirador mine development site and five kilometers north of the Mirador Norte copper-gold deposit. Geochemical sampling by Billiton in the early 1990’s defined kilometer-scale zones of copper-gold soil anomalism that will form the focus of Lumina’s detailed follow-up exploration in 2017.
Orquideas (4,743 hectares)
The Orquideas license contains a copper-molybdenum geochemical anomaly, approximately three kilometers long and 1.3 kilometers wide, orientated northwest by southeast, as defined by soils, stream sediments and rock samples taken between 1996 and 1998 (Odin/Cambior). Localized gold anomalism has been detected on the periphery of this zone, whereas silver is consistently anomalous from recently acquired potassic and phyllic altered rock samples (0.14-1.93 ppm silver). A major north-south fault, recently identified, is located outboard of the copper-molybdenum anomaly, in which copper sulphide and oxide mineralization assayed up to 0.25% copper.
Yawi (1,494 hectares)
The Yawi concession lies within the Zamora Batholith, overlying the Hollín and Napo formations and is prospective for high grade gold-silver and base metal veins. Odin previously held this concession and defined a silica-pyrite altered intrusion that assayed over 6 ppm gold, 213 ppm silver, 0.13% lead, 0.29% zinc and >10,000 ppm arsenic.
Escondida (1,204 hectares)
The Escondida concession fills a gap inside the Condor concession blocks. Mineralized subvolcanic breccias and proximal skarn depict an unexplored volcanic center similar to the Los Cuyes diatreme system present at Lumina’s Condor project five kilometers to the east.
Santa Elena (628 hectares)
Santa Elena is located along strike with the regionally significant Las Peñas Fault Zone, which forms the principal structural control for the Fruta del Norte epithermal gold-silver deposit. Similar cover rocks, particularly the Misahualli Formation, as well as an elaborate and local gold mineralized fault zone have also been detected. TVX defined a greater than one kilometer long gold anomaly in 1998, the scale and tenor of which has been confirmed by first quarter 2017 field work with pan concentrate sampling. Concentrates, derived from stream sediments and fault rocks, reveal up to 120 coarse, angular gold particles per pan.
About Lumina Gold
Lumina Gold Corp (TSXV: LUM) is a Vancouver, Canada based precious and base metals exploration and development company focused on gold and copper projects in Ecuador. The Company’s Cangrejos Gold-Copper project is located in El Oro Province, southwest Ecuador, and its Condor Gold-Copper project is located in Zamora-Chinchipe Province, southeast Ecuador. The Company also holds a large and highly prospective land package in Ecuador consisting of 134,573 hectares. The Company has an experienced management team with a successful track record of advancing and monetizing exploration projects. Lumina intends to continue to identify, acquire and advance mineral exploration properties that have large scale potential.
Further details are available on the Company’s website at https://luminagold.com/.
LUMINA GOLD CORP.
Signed: “Marshall Koval”
Marshall Koval, President & CEO, Director
For further information contact:
Scott Hicks
shicks@luminagold.com
T: +1 604 646 1890
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 news release.
Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Information
Certain statements and information herein, including all statements that are not historical facts, contain forward-looking statements and forward-looking information within the meaning of applicable securities laws. Such forward-looking statements or information include but are not limited to statements or information with respect to conducting extensive geological mapping, soil and stream sediment sampling on the concessions. Often, but not always, forward-looking statements or information can be identified by the use of words such as “will” or variations of that word and phrases or statements that certain actions, events or results “will” or are “intended to” be taken, occur or be achieved.
With respect to forward-looking statements and information contained herein, the Company has made numerous assumptions including among other things, assumptions about general business and economic conditions, the prices of gold and copper, and anticipated costs and expenditures. The foregoing list of assumptions is not exhaustive.
Although management of the Company believes that the assumptions made and the expectations represented by such statements or information are reasonable, there can be no assurance that a forward-looking statement or information herein will prove to be accurate. Forward-looking statements and information by their nature are based on assumptions and involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors which may cause the Company’s actual results, performance or achievements, or industry results, to be materially different from any future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements or information. These factors include, but are not limited to: risks associated with the business of the Company; business and economic conditions in the mining industry generally; the supply and demand for labour and other project inputs; changes in commodity prices; changes in interest and currency exchange rates; risks relating to inaccurate geological and engineering assumptions (including with respect to the tonnage, grade and recoverability of reserves and resources); risks relating to unanticipated operational difficulties (including failure of equipment or processes to operate in accordance with specifications or expectations, cost escalation, unavailability of materials and equipment, government action or delays in the receipt of government approvals, industrial disturbances or other job action, and unanticipated events related to health, safety and environmental matters); risks relating to adverse weather conditions; political risk and social unrest; changes in general economic conditions or conditions in the financial markets; and other risk factors as detailed from time to time in the Company’s continuous disclosure documents filed with Canadian securities administrators. The Company does not undertake to update any forward-looking information, except in accordance with applicable securities laws.
