Mirasol Resources Ltd. (TSX-V:MRZ) is pleased to announce that Yamana Gold Corporation has commenced the 2^nd year of exploration at the Gorbea JV, completing a systematic surface mapping program in December 2016 and initiating a minimum 3,500 metre, eight hole drilling program on January 17, 2017 at the Atlas gold-silver project Chile.

Atlas is one of nine properties within the Yamana – Gorbea JV, signed with Mirasol on May 10, 2015. This agreement grants Yamana the option to acquire a 51% interest in the property portfolio by incurring exploration expenditures of US$10 million and by making staged cash payments to Mirasol totalling US$2 million over a four-year period. Yamana can earn up to 75% in the JV by making a decision to mine and by funding to production Mirasol’s 25% project interest.

Mirasol’s Gorbea projects are situated in the prolifically mineralized Mio-Pliocene-age mineral belt of Chile (Figure 1).  The exploration program is targeting large, bulk-mineable, high-sulphidation epithermal (HSE) oxide gold deposits. Multi-million-ounce gold discoveries have recently been announced in this mineral belt by Barrick Gold Corp at the Alturas Project (^[1] Inferred resource of 5.5 Moz Au @ 1.25 g/t Au) and Gold Fields at the Salares Nortes Project (^[2] Mineral Resources of 3.3 Moz Au, 42.1 Moz Ag @ 3.9 g/t Au, 48.9 g/t Ag).

Results from Yamana’s first year of exploration at the Atlas Project returned encouraging gold and silver drill intersections (see news release April 25, 2016), while too deep to be considered as indications of an open-pittable body of mineralization, these intersections show similarities in grade and mineralization style to bulk mineable HSE deposits elsewhere in the belt. This suggested potential exists for the Atlas property to host a significant precious-metal bearing HSE system and warrants further drill testing for shallower open-pittable occurrences of oxide gold and silver mineralization.

Table 1: Atlas 2016 Drilling, Higher Grade Gold-Silver Intersections

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¹ Barrick Annual Report, 2015
² Gold Fields Mineral Resource and Mineral Reserve Supplement to the Integrated Annual Review, 31 December 2015

This season’s geological mapping program leveraged knowledge gained from last year’s drilling of the Altas Project, focusing on a series of breccia zones that are dominantly located within a 4 to 5 km, circular resistivity feature defined by the 2016 Atlas IP geophysics program (Figure 1; also see news release March 21, 2016).  Brecciation can be an important rock preparation mechanism and may act as a host for mineralization in HSE gold deposits (see further information on HSE gold – silver deposits by clicking on this link), as has been demonstrated at the recent multi-million-ounce Alturas and Salares Note discoveries that are predominantly hosted within breccia bodies.

The 2017 Atlas JV drill program is designed to test for oxide gold mineralization to a depth of 300 metres below surface.  Targets include the up-dip (nearer surface) extensions of mineralization intersected in last year’s drilling, as well as first pass testing of new targets at the Fox, Apollo, NN and Falda zone breccias that have been prioritized with a combination of geological, geochemical and geophysical information.  First results from this season’s drilling are anticipated by mid Q2, 2017.

Mirasol is a project generation company focused on the discovery of precious metals and copper resources in the Americas. Strategic joint ventures with metal producers have enabled Mirasol to advance its priority projects, focused in high-potential regions in Chile and Argentina. Mirasol employs an integrated generative and on-ground exploration approach combining leading-edge technologies and experienced exploration geoscientists to maximize the potential for discovery. Mirasol is in a strong financial position and has a significant portfolio of drill ready gold-silver exploration projects located in Chile and Argentina.