Ximen Mining Corp. (TSX-V: XIM) (FRA: 1XMA) (OTCQB: XXMMF) announces that it has conducted an initial interpretation of results from a LiDAR survey completed at its Brett Property, located near Vernon in southern British Columbia.

LiDAR survey area at Brett Property

The Brett epithermal gold property, located west of Vernon in southern B.C., is one of Ximen’s prime exploration assets. Exploration to date has identified a low-sulphidation epithermal gold (+ silver) deposit with vein-hosted and disseminated mineralization.

LiDAR DEM and features identified

A helicopter-borne LiDAR survey was completed over an area of 54 km2 at the Brett property. The survey resulted in two products: a digital elevation model (DEM) and an orthophoto mosaic. The purpose of the survey was to obtain a high-resolution topographic base and updated orthophotos of the area since the wildfires. The DEM was used to identify lineaments related to geological and geomorphological features.

Orthophoto mosaic and features identified from the DEM

Lineaments were identified from the DEM that correspond to topographic lows. Several sets of lineament orientations were identified, including prominent NW-SE, NE-SW, N-S, and WNW-ESE sets. The largest features identified are the Whiteman Creek lineament (WNW-ESE) that coincides with the mapped Whiteman Creek fault and a NW-SE lineament south of the Whiteman Creek. Past exploration at the Brett deposit shows that the orientation of the gold mineralization is NW-SE. Therefore, NW-SE lineaments in proximity to the Brett area are considered priority for future exploration. The fracture/fault pattern determined by lineament analysis suggests that the Whiteman Creek fault may be a first-order structure with gold the mineralization controlled by secondary NW-SE trending structures.

A prominent small-scale WNW-ESE trending fabric was also evident on the dataset, which is interpreted as glacial striae. In addition, infrastructure features including logging roads and previous exploration workings can be seen on the LiDAR even when obscured by vegetation.

The high-resolution orthophoto mosaic provides an excellent base to locate outcrop and landslides and shows that more than 50% of the area was affected by wildfires.

Further exploration drilling from surface and underground are planned by the Company to advance the project. The Company’s efforts have been hampered over recent years due to the pandemic, wildfires and now due to the access road having been washed out during spring 2023 flooding.

Ximen believes the Brett property has high potential for discovery of an economic gold deposit due to the fact that bonanza-grade vein-hosted and low-grade, bulk-mineable disseminated epithermal styles of gold mineralization are present in multiple zones over a 2 kilometer square area.

Since acquiring the property, Ximen conducted surface drilling programs in 2014 and 2016.  These programs discovered new gold-bearing vein zones, with results including 34.18 g/t Au over 0.9 m, 16.7 g/t Au over 1.5 m, 18.95 g/t Au over and 1m, and 13.35 g/t Au over 0.58 m.  Large intervals of disseminated mineralization were also intercepted, including 1.77 g/t Au over 31m, 1.88 g/t Au over 16.55m and 0.82 g/t Au over 33m.

Samples collected by Ximen in 2014 were analyzed by Activation Laboratories Ltd. (Actlabs) in Kamloops, B.C.  Actlabs is an ISO 17025 accredited laboratory.  Samples were analysed for gold by Fire Assay with AA finish on a 30 gram sample.  Samples that returned greater than 2 ppm Au by FA/AA were subsequently tested by metallic gold assay on a 500 gram sample of pulverized material. Other elements were determined by a multi-element suite using ICP-MS, and for mercury by cold vapour-FIMS. 

Samples collected by Ximen in 2016 were submitted to ALS Canada Ltd. and analyzed for gold, silver, and a 32-element package by ICP analysis. This ALS facility is certified to standards within ISO 9001:2008 and has received accreditation to ISO/IEC 17025:2005. Analyses for gold were by Fire Assay and Inductively Coupled Plasma – Atomic Emission Spectrometry (ICP-AES).  Silver and other elements were analyzed in a multi-element package using four-acid digestion and determination using ICPAES. Selected samples were also analyzed for gold by Fire Assay – Atomic Absorption Spectroscopy (AAS). High grade gold samples were analyzed for gold by Fire Assay and Gravimetric Finish and re-analyzed for silver by four-acid and ICP-AES.

Readers are cautioned that historical records referred to in this News Release have been examined but not verified by a Qualified Person. Further work is required to verify that historical records referred to in this News Release are accurate.

Dr. Mathew Ball, P.Geo., VP Exploration for Ximen Mining Corp. and a Qualified Person as defined by NI 43-101, approved the technical information contained in this News Release.