Aston Bay and American West Metals Announce 13% Copper in Assays at the Cyclone Deposit and a New Copper Discovery at the Storm Project, Nunavut, Canada

TORONTO, ON / ACCESSWIRE / September 3, 2024 / Drilling Highlights

• Drilling surpasses 20,000 metres ("m") with 128 Reverse Circulation (RC) drill holes and 14 diamond drill holes now completed in 2024 at Storm and Tempest

• Drilling continues 24/7

• The resource potential of the Cyclone Deposit is further highlighted with exceptional high-grade copper intervals confirmed by assays including:

• Drill hole SR24-057 has intersected:

  • 1.5m @ 13.5% copper ("Cu"), 23g/t silver ("Ag") from 54.9m downhole, and,

  • 3.1m @ 2.0% Cu, 8.0 g/t Ag from 85.3m downhole, and,

  • 1.5m @ 1.8% Cu, 3.0g/t Ag from 109.7m downhole

• Drill hole SR24-035 has intersected:

  • 3.1m @ 3.9% Cu, 10.5g/t Ag from 57.9m downhole, including,

    • 1.5m @ 5.9% Cu, 16.0g/t Ag from 57.9m downhole, and,

• 4.6m @ 1.4% Cu, 5.0g/t Ag from 71.6m downhole, including,

• 1.5m @ 3.1% Cu, 11.0g/t Ag from 71.6m downhole

• Drill hole SR24-031, located outside of the known zone of mineralization, has intersected:

  • 27.4m @ 1.1% Cu, 3.5g/t Ag from 96m downhole, including,

    • 4.6m @ 3.1% Cu, 7.7g/t Ag from 109.7m downhole

Exploration drilling and Moving Loop Electromagnetics (MLEM)

• Drilling of an MLEM anomaly in an untested area south of the Thunder Prospect has intersected strong visual copper sulfides from approximately 181.4m downhole - this new discovery is named ‘Squall'

• The deep-searching 400m loop MLEM survey is currently underway at Tornado where it has identified two EM anomalies spatially coincident with outcropping copper

• Drilling of the 1,300m x 500m EM anomaly below the Cirrus Deposit is in progress with the diamond hole planned to a depth of 600m

Visual estimates of mineral abundance should never be considered a proxy or substitute for laboratory analyses where concentrations or grades are the factor of principal economic interest. Laboratory assays are required to determine the presence and grade of any contained mineralization within the reported visual intersections of copper sulfides. Portable XRF is used as an aid in the determination of mineral type and abundance during the geological logging process.

TORONTO, ON / ACCESSWIRE / September 3, 2024 / Aston Bay Holdings Ltd. (TSXV:BAY)(OTCQB:ATBHF) ("Aston Bay" or the "Company") is pleased to provide an update on drilling activities and geophysical surveys at the Storm Copper Project ("Storm" or the "Project") on Somerset Island, Nunavut. The exploration program is being conducted by American West Metals Limited ("American West"), who is the operator of the Project. Aston Bay and American West have formed a 20/80 unincorporated joint venture in respect of the Storm Project property, with Aston Bay maintaining a free carried interest until a decision to mine upon completion of a bankable feasibility study.

Thomas Ullrich, Chief Executive Officer of Aston Bay, commented:

"The outstanding results keep coming in from the exploration program conducted by our partner American West at Storm. The drilling, which has exceeded the planned 20,000m of drilling, continues to expand the known areas of copper mineralization with more RC and diamond drill holes underway.

"In addition, we have made another significant copper discovery, named "Squall," by drilling a blind MLEM geophysical target. This is the second discovery from drilling MLEM anomalies this year. Both discoveries are in the little-explored Southern Graben area where there is no outcropping copper mineralization, spotlighting both the growth potential for a resource at Storm and confirming the effectiveness of MLEM in pointing the way to copper discoveries.

"The diamond drill has just started spinning on a new MLEM target located below the Cirrus deposit. The configuration of this large 1,300m x 500m anomaly suggests a potentially mineralized horizon with feeder faults as predicted by the geological model and as seen elsewhere at Storm. With the positive hit rate drilling EM targets at Storm, we eagerly anticipate seeing this core.

"Exploration activities at the Tornado, Blizzard, and Tempest areas are also yielding very compelling targets, with additional work, including drilling, underway."

OVERVIEW

A total of 128 RC drill holes and 14 diamond drill holes have been completed at Storm and Tempest during 2024, exceeding the planned target of 20,000m (Figure 1). Drilling continues, with further assays expected in batches over the coming weeks.

Recent results from the Cyclone Deposit have confirmed further intersections of very high-grade copper up to 13.5% Cu both within and outside of the current resource envelope.

Exploration drilling targeting an MLEM anomaly in the Southern Graben area has intersected strong visual copper sulfides at the end of the hole. The new discovery and area have been named ‘Squall' and the drill hole is being extended to confirm the full extent of the mineralization.

The deep-searching MLEM survey is currently underway in the Tornado and Blizzard areas and has identified two high-priority EM anomalies located in favourable stratigraphy and spatially coincident with outcropping copper. Previous drilling at Storm has confirmed the strong correlation between EM targets and high-grade copper sulfides, the most recent example being Squall, which makes these compelling targets potentially leading to the discovery of copper within a new and untested area.

Figure 1: Recent and existing drill hole locations and copper deposit outlines, overlain on aerial photography.

EXCEPTIONAL COPPER HITS AT CYCLONE

Assay results from drill holes SR24-026, -027, -031, -033, -035, -037, -039, -055, -057, and -059 have been received and continue to confirm thick, near-surface intervals of copper sulfide mineralization.

The drilling results demonstrate consistent copper grades and highlight the excellent lateral continuity of the high-grade mineralization within Cyclone (Figure 2). Additionally, thick intervals of coherent copper mineralization (>1% Cu) have been intersected outside of the existing known zone of copper mineralization, highlighting the resource potential to the north and south of the deposit.

Drilling has confirmed that a small area in the central-eastern portion of the resource is characterized by a "tight" massive dolomudstone facies with lesser brecciation and sulfide veining.

RC drilling at Cyclone continues with a focus on expanding the potential resource to the west, north, and northeast. Drilling at Storm over the past three seasons has been designed to inform an upcoming maiden mineral resource that is currently being constructed to CIM standards, with the release of the resource anticipated by year's end.

Figure 2: Plan view of the Cyclone Deposit showing the copper mineralized zone outlines and historical and recent drilling, overlain on regional geology.

DRILL HOLE SR24-057 DETAILS

SR24-057 has returned exceptional copper grades in the far-eastern part of Cyclone defining new extensions to mineralization. The drill hole, and others around it, have the potential to significantly bolster the higher-grade resources within the far-eastern end of the Cyclone deposit.

Four zones of strong copper sulfide mineralization hosted within fractured dolomite of the Allen Bay Formation were intercepted in the hole.

The upper 1.5m-thick zone of semi-massive chalcocite yielded 13.5% Cu, potentially extending the upper lode of copper mineralization (Figure 3) to the northeast by approximately 100m.

The lower three zones contain strong (up to 3.7% Cu) vein- and fracture-style chalcocite mineralization with minor chalcopyrite bounded by wide zones of lower grade (<0.2%) copper.

This intensity and character of copper mineralization in SR24-057 is characterized by significant lateral continuity within Cyclone. This, and the spatial relationship to the similarly mineralized drill hole SR24-031 (see below description), is a strong indicator for potential resource growth at what is now the eastern boundary of the deposit.

Figure 3: SW-NE Geological schematic section view through SR24-033 and SR24-057 showing the recent drill hole locations, recent assays, and the interpreted zones of copper mineralization.

DRILL HOLE SR24-031 DETAILS

Drilled to the north-east of the Cyclone Deposit, SR24-031 was designed to test for potential extensions of copper mineralization to the north of Cyclone, between the previously known limit of mineralization and 2023 drill hole SR23-55 (7.6m @ 1.0% Cu from 105.2m downhole, including 1.5m @ 2.0% Cu from 109.7m downhole).

Three zones of copper sulfide mineralization were intersected (Figure 4). A thick interval of mineralization is vertically zoned with a strong chalcocite-dominant inner core (between 96m and 121.9m downhole) with chalcopyrite margins. This zonation of copper minerals is typical of sediment-hosted copper systems. The 27.4m thick main zone of mineralization (averaging 1.1% Cu and 3.4g/t Ag from 96m downhole) contains a 4.6m thick zone of very strong chalcocite veining averaging 3.1% Cu and 7.7g/t Ag from 109.7m downhole.

The drill hole is located within a large and little-tested area to the north of Cyclone. The thickness and mineralogy of the copper mineralization in both SR24-031 and -057 have the potential to add significant resources to the north of the Cyclone Deposit.

Figure 4: Geological schematic section view at 465,400E showing the recent drill hole assays and the interpreted zones of copper mineralization.