VANCOUVER - New Found Gold Corp. ('New Found' or the 'Company') (TSX-V: NFG, NYSE-A: NFGC) is pleased to announce assay results from 39 diamond drill holes designed to further delineate and expand the network of high-grade gold veins and associated structures at the Keats Zone.
These holes were drilled as part of the Company's ongoing 400,000m diamond drill program targeting +20km of prospective strike along the regional-scale Appleton ('AFZ') and JBP fault zones at its 100% owned 1500km2 Queensway project, accessible via the Trans-Canada Highway 15km west of Gander, Newfoundland.
Highlights
A gap in the drilling at the north end of the Keats Main Zone in a structurally complex portion of the near surface extents of the Keats-Baseline Fault Zone (KBFZ) was recently tested with NFGC-22-593 which returned 9.12 g/t Au over 8.20m and 42.6 g/t Au over 11.75m, beginning at 8.8m down hole. This intercept extends the high-grade gold mineralization to surface in this area and indicates that there is a wide domain of high-grade gold veining immediately below the overburden; current modelling suggests that this thickened segment is approximately 125m in strike length and 35m wide.
55.1 g/t Au over 5.10m in NFGC-21-448, 56.3 g/t Au over 2.05m in NFGC-21-364A, 9.0 g/t Au over 5.65m in NFGC-21-388, 10.9 g/t Au over 2.35m in NFGC-21-466 and 10.1 g/t Au over 2.20 in NFGC-22-486 are all intersections in the Keats Main Zone which to date has been defined over 845m down plunge and intersected at a vertical depth of 375m. The Keats Main Zone consists of a network of veins that is associated with the KBFZ which generally strikes N55-degreeE and dips 60-degree to the southeast.
Targeting the 421 Zone at the south end of Keats, NFGC-22-486 intersected 11.2 g/t over 2.10m at 30m below surface. This high-grade gold mineralization is associated with an extensive moderately southwest dipping brittle fault zone that appears to play a role in localizing gold. The extents of this target area are not well constrained and this fault zone area and its projected intersections with the AFZ and KBFZ are high priorities for the current drilling.
Melissa Render, VP Exploration for New Found, stated: 'Drilling continues to advance our understanding of the geometries and potential projections of the high-grade gold veins and faults that comprise the Keats. Our team is working tirelessly to keep the drills focused on expanding the zones discovered to date and concurrently building our understanding of the controls on the high-grade gold mineralization to allow continued optimization of targeting. Six drills are operating in and around Keats, with three working to tackle mineralization correlated to the main plunge and to depth, while an additional three drills are working at Keats North to follow-up on the recent near surface discoveries such as the 275 g/t Au over 2.15m in NFGC-22-538 (reported on May 4, 2022), 8.70 g/t Au over 6.75m in NFGC-22-533 (reported on May 4, 2022) and 43.9 g/t Au over 3.85m in NFGC-22-515 (reported on April 13, 2022). Meanwhile, six more drills are systematically testing along the north segment of the AFZ. I would like to thank our exploration team for their ongoing dedication and hard work as we continue to advance this discovery.'
Discussion
Mineralization at the Queensway Project is hosted by a fold-thrust sequence of northeast-striking, steeply dipping turbiditic sedimentary rocks deposited and deformed during the closure of the Iapetus Ocean and subsequent continent-continent collision. During this prolonged period of continued shortening, at least two regional-deformation zones developed and include the Appleton ('AFZ') and JBP fault zones. The AFZ is interpreted to be a significant, deep-seated thrust fault, that strikes southwest across the full +100km length of the property and is likely the main conduit for the gold mineralizing fluids, much like the Cadillac-Larder Lake Fault Zone in the Abitibi.
As a result of progressive deformation, the brittle host stratigraphy developed an extensive network of gold-bearing fault zones enveloping the AFZ, the extents of which are not yet known. Higher-grades and widths of gold mineralization occur in areas where there was greater mineralizing fluid flow such as at structural intersections, at dilational openings within fault structures, and along lithological contacts where breakage occurs due to rheological differences in the compressional strength of contrasting sedimentary rock units.
Keats
Mineralization at Keats is associated with a significant east-northeast striking and moderately southeast dipping brittle fault zone, the Keats-Baseline Fault Zone ('KBFZ') that developed adjacent to and trends at an oblique angle to the AFZ. Situated 1.8km south of Lotto and 1.2km south of the Golden Joint discoveries, this fault forms an extensive damage zone that is discordant to the northeast striking and steeply dipping stratigraphy and controls the development of a complex network of high-grade gold vein arrays that are epizonal in character and exhibit breccia, stylolitic, and vuggy textures. The host rock units are comprised of an interbedded sequence of turbiditic shales and greywackes where lithological contrasts in part control domains of high-grade gold, however model advancements suggest the larger underlying control are dilational settings that experienced increased fluid flow that typically develop at structural intersections such as intersecting fault or vein segments. The KBFZ expresses itself as a topographic low and interpretation of this low has traced it over +2km strike length. At this stage, exploration has been largely focused within close proximity to the AFZ and has delineated a high-grade gold segment of the Keats-Baseline Fault over a strike length of 660m, the high-grade southwest plunging dilational zone to 845m while the deepest high-grade gold intercept to date is at a vertical depth of 375m.
About New Found Gold Corp.
New Found holds a 100% interest in the Queensway Project, located 15km west of Gander, Newfoundland, and just 18km from Gander International Airport. The project is intersected by the Trans-Canada Highway and has logging roads crosscutting the project, high voltage electric power lines running through the project area, and easy access to a highly skilled workforce. The Company is currently undertaking a 400,000m drill program at Queensway, now 43% complete. The Company is well funded for this program with cash and marketable securities of $87-million as of June 2022.
Acknowledgements
New Found acknowledges the financial support of the Junior Exploration Assistance Program, Department of Natural Resources, Government of Newfoundland and Labrador.
Forward-Looking Statement Cautions
This press release contains certain 'forward-looking statements' within the meaning of Canadian securities legislation, relating to assay results, exploration and drilling on the Company's Queensway gold project in Newfoundland, interpretation of the assay results and the results of the drilling program, the discovery of zones of high-grade gold mineralization, follow-up step-out drilling and funding of the drilling program. Although the Company believes that such statements are reasonable, it can give no assurance that such expectations will prove to be correct. Forward-looking statements are statements that are not historical facts; they are generally, but not always, identified by the words 'expects,' 'plans,' 'anticipates,' 'believes,' 'intends,' 'estimates,' 'projects,' 'aims,' 'suggests,' 'potential,' 'goal,' 'objective,' 'prospective,' 'possibly,' and similar expressions, or that events or conditions 'will,' 'would,' 'may,' 'can,' 'could' or 'should' occur, or are those statements, which, by their nature, refer to future events. The Company cautions that forward-looking statements are based on the beliefs, estimates and opinions of the Company's management on the date the statements are made, and they involve a number of risks and uncertainties. Consequently, there can be no assurances that such statements will prove to be accurate and actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated in such statements. Except to the extent required by applicable securities laws and the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange, the Company undertakes no obligation to update these forward-looking statements if management's beliefs, estimates or opinions, or other factors, should change. Factors that could cause future results to differ materially from those anticipated in these forward-looking statements include risks associated with possible accidents and other risks associated with mineral exploration operations, the risk that the Company will encounter unanticipated geological factors, risks associated with the interpretation of assay results and the drilling program, the possibility that the Company may not be able to secure permitting and other governmental clearances necessary to carry out the Company's exploration plans, the risk that the Company will not be able to raise sufficient funds to carry out its business plans, and the risk of political uncertainties and regulatory or legal changes that might interfere with the Company's business and prospects. The reader is urged to refer to the Company's Annual Information Form and Management's discussion and Analysis, publicly available through the Canadian Securities Administrators' System for Electronic Document Analysis and Retrieval (SEDAR) at www.sedar.com for a more complete discussion of such risk factors and their potential effects.
Contact:
Collin Kettell
Tel: +1 (845) 535-1486
Email: ckettell@newfoundgold.ca
NEW FOUND GOLD CORP. 
