Westward Gold Inc. (CSE: WG, OTCQB: WGLIF, FSE: IM50) (“Westward” or the “Company”) is pleased to announce that it has increased the size of its flagship Toiyabe Hills Property in Lander County, Nevada (“Toiyabe Hills”) through the direct staking of an additional 72 unpatented mining claims. The Company now controls over 60 square kilometres of fully-contiguous exploration ground along the Cortez Trend, and has increased the Toiyabe Hills footprint by 347% since entering the district and embarking on a land-consolidation strategy in 2021 (see Figure 1 below).
Figure 1: Evolution of Westward’s Toiyabe Hills Property
Colin Moore, President & CEO, noted: “As evidenced by Westward’s track record over its relatively short history, we are aggressive when it comes to seizing cost-effective opportunities to grow our land position in the Toiyabe District. This latest expansion comes on the heels of our 2024 field campaign, which identified several new zones of interest through large-scale, multi-disciplinary programs. Our team remains highly attuned to developments in the area, and we were able to act quickly with boots on the ground when the land became available for staking.”
The 72 unpatented mining claims – staked by the Company in late 2024 – are administered by the U.S. Bureau of Land Management (“BLM”) and are not subject to any royalties or other payment obligations, with the exception of annual fees due to the BLM and Lander County. Technical considerations driving the decision to expand the Toiyabe Hills footprint in this southwest quadrant included the following: (i) increasing the Company’s coverage of the exposed lower-plate carbonate window in the district, (ii) capturing the continuation of important structures including dike-filled fault corridors, and (iii) acquiring ground proximal to known Carlin-suite geochemical anomalies.
Figure 2: Simplified Regional Geology, Toiyabe District
Surface expressions of favourable lower-plate carbonate rocks along the major Nevada gold trends are highly sought after for gold exploration. At Toiyabe Hills, the Wenban Formation has been identified as an important portion of the lower-plate stratigraphy – and is a known gold host at major producing mines in the surrounding area. Moving eastwards from the carbonate window at surface (see Figure 2 above), the Wenban Formation is preserved under upper-plate cover rocks and lies at drillable depths across an estimated 70% of Toiyabe Hills, based on interpretation of geophysical surveys completed to date.
Figure 3: Dike-Filled Fault Corridors at Toiyabe Hills
The continuation of detailed 1:5000 Anaconda-style geological mapping was one of the key field programs completed at Toiyabe Hills in 2024, which directly contributed to the identification of new high-priority targets. Crucially, this mapping revealed a 6-kilometre-wide corridor of igneous dike-filled, northeast-striking faults, with dikes ranging in composition from felsic to mafic and including quartz feldspar porphyry, diorite, and lamprophyre. The new ground added captures the southwest continuation of these important structures (see Figure 3 above). Dike-filled fault corridors along the Cortez and Carlin Trends are well-documented features that are intimately associated with gold mineralization.
Figure 4: Carlin-type Geochemical Footprint
Since the beginning of its land consolidation efforts, Westward has continuously built upon its geochemical database with significant rock-chip and gridded soil sampling programs. The results have revealed significant geochemical footprints of elements commonly associated with Carlin-type gold mineralization, one of which lies adjacent to the recently-staked ground (see Figure 4 above). The Company plans to conduct additional sampling across the new ground during the 2025 field season to further bolster its understanding of large-scale trends across Toiyabe Hills.
Qualified Person
The technical information contained in this news release was reviewed and approved by Robert Edie, Vice President Exploration of the Company, who is a Qualified Person under National Instrument 43-101 – Standards of Disclosure for Mineral Projects. Mr. Edie is a Certified Professional Geologist (CPG) through the American Institute of Professional Geologists (AIPG).
About Westward Gold
Westward Gold is a mineral exploration company focused on developing the Toiyabe Hills Project located in the Cortez Hills area of Lander County, Nevada, and the Coyote and Rossi Projects located along the Carlin Trend in Elko County, Nevada. From time to time, the Company may also evaluate the acquisition of other mineral exploration assets and opportunities.
For further information contact:
Andrew Nelson
Chief Financial Officer
Westward Gold Inc.
+1 (604) 828-7027
andrew@westwardgold.com
www.westwardgold.com
The Canadian Securities Exchange has neither approved nor disapproved the contents of this news release. The Canadian Securities Exchange does not accept responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this news release.
This news release contains or incorporates by reference “forward-looking statements” and “forward-looking information” as defined under applicable Canadian securities legislation. All statements, other than statements of historical fact, which address events, results, outcomes, or developments that the Company expects to occur are, or may be deemed, to be, forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements are generally, but not always, identified by the use of forward-looking terminology such as "expect", "believe", "anticipate", "intend", "estimate”, “potential”, “on track”, “forecast", "budget", “target”, “outlook”, “continue”, “plan” or variations of such words and phrases and similar expressions or statements that certain actions, events or results “may”, “could”, “would”, “might” or “will” be taken, occur or be achieved or the negative connotation of such terms.
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Forward-looking statements or information are subject to a variety of known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that could cause actual events or results to differ from those reflected in the forward-looking statements or information, including, without limitation, the need for additional capital by the Company through financings, and the risk that such funds may not be raised; the speculative nature of exploration and the stages of the Company’s properties; the effect of changes in commodity prices; regulatory risks that development of the Company’s material properties will not be acceptable for social, environmental or other reasons, availability of equipment (including drills) and personnel to carry out work programs, that each stage of work will be completed within expected time frames, that current geological models and interpretations prove correct, the results of ongoing work programs may lead to a change of exploration priorities, and the efforts and abilities of the senior management team. This list is not exhaustive of the factors that may affect any of the Company’s forward-looking statements or information. These and other factors may cause the Company to change its exploration and work programs, not proceed with work programs, or change the timing or order of planned work programs. Additional risk factors and details with respect to risk factors that may affect the Company’s ability to achieve the expectations set forth in the forward-looking statements contained in this news release are set out in the Company’s latest management discussion and analysis under “Risks and Uncertainties”, which is available under the Company’s SEDAR+ profile at www.sedarplus.ca. Although the Company has attempted to identify important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially, there may be other factors that cause results not to be as anticipated, estimated, described or intended. Accordingly, readers should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements or information. The Company’s forward-looking statements and information are based on the assumptions, beliefs, expectations, and opinions of management as of the date of this press release, and other than as required by applicable securities laws, the Company does not assume any obligation to update forward-looking statements and information if circumstances or management’s assumptions, beliefs, expectations or opinions should change, or changes in any other events affecting such statements or information.