Western Copper and Gold Corporation (“Western” or the “Company”) (TSX: WRN; NYSE American: WRN) is pleased to announce its 2023 drilling program (the “Program”) at its wholly owned Casino Copper-Gold Project (“Casino”).
The Program was developed by Western’s Technical and Sustainability Committee, which is comprised of members from Western, Rio Tinto and Mitsubishi Materials, as outlined in the Investor Rights Agreements entered as part of investments by Rio Tinto Canada and Mitsubishi Materials into Western (see news releases dated May 17, 2021 and March 24, 2023 respectively). The program is outlined below:
Metallurgical and Infill Drilling
A diamond drill program consisting of approximately 2,200 m of drilling in seven drill holes, ranging from 130 m to 560 m in depth, has been initiated. These drill holes are located inside the current pit boundaries and upon completion, this program is expected to result in upgrading of some of the Indicated Resource to the Measured Resource category.
A metallurgical program, using drill core collected from this program, will commence upon completion of drilling and receipt of assays. The program will focus on developing a more detailed geometallurgical model of the deposit, with a focus on an updated recovery and concentrate model.
Geotechnical and Hydrogeological Drilling
The Program also includes roughly 800 m of geotechnical and hydrogeological drilling designed by Knight-Piesold Consulting. This will target the ground conditions of the proposed open pit, stockpiles, tailings management facility, heap leaching facility, new airstrip, and the proposed Ranney well site.
“This is the first drill program developed by our new combined Technical and Sustainability Committee.”, said Paul West-Sells, President and CEO. “We are excited to be working with Rio and Mitsubishi, and look forward to working with them as this Program moves forward.”
INFRASTRUCTURE AND GOVERNMENT RELATIONS
In August, Yukon Premier Pillai and the Federal Minister of Innovation, Science and Industry Francois-Philippe Champagne toured Western’s Casino Copper-Gold Project while discussing infrastructure development to support Yukon’s economic growth. Premier Pillai stated, “We are committed to responsible mining practices that will contribute positively to the territory’s development and long-term prosperity. We look forward to continued work with our federal partners to develop the infrastructure necessary to unlock these opportunities.” The full statement is available by clicking this link.
QUALIFIED PERSON
Technical information in this news release has been reviewed and approved by Carl Schulze, P.Geo, and a ‘Qualified Person’ as defined under Canadian National Instrument 43-101.
ABOUT WESTERN COPPER AND GOLD CORPORATION
Western Copper and Gold Corporation is developing the Casino Project, Canada’s premier copper-gold mine in the Yukon Territory and one of the most economic greenfield copper-gold mining projects in the world.
The Company is committed to working collaboratively with our First Nations and local communities to progress the Casino project, using internationally recognized responsible mining technologies and practices.
