Vancouver, British Columbia – TheNewswire - June 11, 2025 – Rackla Metals Inc. (TSX-V: RAK) (the “Company”) is pleased to announce that crews are mobilizing to commence the 2025 exploration program on the Grad property, located in the Tombstone Gold Belt of the Northwest Territories.
All the pieces are in place for a very exciting season:
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Fully funded, fully permitted 2025 field campaign will focus on 2024 Grad Gold Discovery.
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Grad is a Reduced Intrusion-Related Gold System exposed in a 400m vertical cliff face.
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A 2,000 m maiden drill program will test the continuity of the Gold mineralization at the BiTe Zone, where channel at the base of the cliff has returned excellent gold results.
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A further ± 2,000 m will be drilled from the ridge top, following confirmation from sampling that the veins are gold bearing.
The Grad project is fully permitted for the upcoming 2025 exploration season and beyond. The Company obtained a five-year, Type A Land Use Permit from the Sahtu Land and Water Board, in April of this year supporting the maiden drill program. The Permit, with a potential for a two-year extension, allows Rackla to significantly advance exploration efforts, beginning with drilling at the BiTe Zone—a high priority target showing early promise.
All contracts are in place to support the program. The Rackla team will be supported by Horizon Helicopters Inc., Tintina Air Inc., Minconsult Exploration Services, Kluane Diamond Drilling Ltd., AFD Petroleum Ltd., Trailblazer Expediting Inc., Twilite Services Ltd. and Selwyn Chihong Mining Ltd.
The 2025 program will include additional follow-up surface exploration at Grad and in the broader region with mountaineering geologists, excavator trenching and a 4,000 m maiden drill program focused on the BiTe target.
Project Description
The Grad property is located in the eastern portion of the Tombstone Gold Belt. The mineral claims defining the property were staked in July of 2024 when the land came open following more than a decade of land use planning. Prior to Rackla staking the claims there was no history of exploration on the outcropping intrusion at the core of the property. The 2024 program was limited to 10 days on the property and consisted of prospecting, rock, stream sediment and talus-fine sampling, an airborne geophysical survey and a photogrammetry survey. Rackla is exceedingly pleased with the results from the 2024 program.
The property is centred on the North Nahanni Pluton, a Cretaceous-age, Mayo Suite felsic intrusion. The pluton measures 1.9 by 2.2 km popping up through the sediments, creating a sizable, intensely altered contact aureole expressed as hornfelsed and iron-stained gossanous sedimentary rocks surrounding the felsic intrusive body.
While conducting talus-fine sampling at the southern margin of the Pluton, a broad quartz-sericite alteration zone was identified with intense quartz-tourmaline and quartz-sulfide veining in the intrusive. The intense veining has shattered the intrusive body to almost a schistose appearance. Results of the rock sampling returned significant gold grades, up to 92 g/t Au, with many rock samples returning multi-gram gold. A continuous channel sample taken at the base of the cliff face returned 38m averaging 1.8 g/t Au.
The gold mineralization is associated with bismuth, tellurium +/- tungsten confirming that this is certainly a Reduced Intrusive-Related Gold System (RIRGS). Because of the anomalously high bismuth and tellurium associated with the gold, the discovery was named the BiTe Zone.
The talus-fine sampling program identified a 550-metre interval that returned an average concentration of 1.06 g/t Au, the core zone of this talus interval was a 180-metre interval averaging 3.68 g/t Au.
Phase 1 Drilling at the BiTe Zone
Rackla will commence its Phase 1 drill program at the BiTe Zone at base of the cliff (see Figure 1).
Phase 2 will include step-out drilling and drilling from the ridgetop, if mapping and sampling results confirm the gold-bearing zone occurring continuously up the cliff face.
Figure 1. North Nahanni Pluton with BiTe Zone discovery.
Regional Exploration
The 2025 program will include an extensive regional surface exploration campaign to test several potential RIRGS targets in the area. The company has a regional exploration crew that will be conducting detailed stream sediment sampling, prospecting and rock sampling in the area that has been identified as being highly underexplored but exhibits tremendous potential for new discoveries.
CEO Simon Ridgway stated, “We are pleased to kick off the season, one of the most exciting times in Rackla’s journey in the Tombstone belt. The crew is preparing the camp that will support our summer program, and we are getting all the supplies required to have a productive season. The snow at BiTe is clearing and we expect to start working on the ground at full capacity in the last week of June. Drilling is on-schedule to start the first week of July.
The Company is well financed with a treasury of over C$10 million following the recent exercise of 26,673,625 warrants with a strike price of $0.20 that were issued in our June 2024 financing.”
Rackla is working in consultation with the Sahtu communities and remains committed to maintaining the respectful, collaborative relationships we’ve built in the area. As we advance exploration at the Grad Project, we will continue working closely with local stakeholders and regulatory agencies to ensure our activities create long-term value and reflect community priorities.
Qualified Person
Scott Casselman, B.Sc., P.Geo., Vice-President Exploration of the Company, is a member of the Association of Professional Engineers and Geoscientists of British Columbia and is the Company’s Qualified Person as defined by National Instrument 43-101. Mr. Casselman has reviewed and approved the technical information contained in this news release.
About Rackla
Rackla Metals Inc. (TSX-V: RAK) is a Vancouver, Canada based junior gold exploration company. The Company is targeting Reduced Intrusion-Related Gold Systems (RIRGS) mineralization on the southeastern part of the Tombstone Gold Belt in eastern Yukon and western Northwest Territories. Management believes that this area, which is underexplored for RIRGS deposit types, has the potential to be the next frontier for the discovery of these large gold systems.
ON BEHALF OF THE BOARD
Simon Ridgway,
CEO and Director
Tel: (604) 801-5432; Fax: (604) 662-8829
Email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
Website: www.racklametals.com
Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accept responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this news release.
Forward-Looking Information
Certain statements contained in this news release constitute forward-looking statements within the meaning of Canadian securities legislation. All statements included herein, other than statements of historical fact, are forward- looking statements and include, without limitation, the Company’s future exploration activities; and general business and economic conditions. Often, but not always, these forward looking statements can be identified by the use of words such as “estimate”, “estimates”, “estimated”, “potential”, “open”, “future”, “assumed”, “projected”, “used”, “detailed”, “has been”, “gain”, “upgraded”, “offset”, “limited”, “contained”, “reflecting”, “containing”, “remaining”, “to be”, “periodically”, or statements that events, “could” or “should” occur or be achieved and similar expressions, including negative variations.
Forward-looking statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors which may cause the actual results, performance or achievements of the Company to be materially different from any results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by forward-looking statements. Such uncertainties and factors include, among others, changes in general economic conditions and financial markets; the Company or any joint venture partner not having the financial ability to meet its exploration and development goals; risks associated with the results of exploration and development activities, estimation of mineral resources and the geology, grade and continuity of mineral deposits; unanticipated costs and expenses; and such other risks detailed from time to time in the Company’s quarterly and annual filings with securities regulators and available under the Company’s profile on SEDAR+ at www.sedarplus.ca. Although the Company has attempted to identify important factors that could cause actual actions, events or results to differ materially from those described in forward-looking statements, there may be other factors that cause actions, events or results to differ from those anticipated, estimated or intended.
Forward-looking statements contained herein are based on the assumptions, beliefs, expectations and opinions of management, including but not limited to: that the Company’s stated goals and planned exploration activities at its properties will be achieved; that there will be no material adverse change affecting the Company, its properties or its securities; and such other assumptions as set out herein. Forward-looking statements are made as of the date hereof and the Company disclaims any obligation to update any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or results or otherwise, except as required by law. There can be no assurance that forward-looking statements will prove to be accurate, as actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated in such statements. Accordingly, investors should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements.
