Erdene Commences Drilling at Dark Horse Gold Prospect

HALIFAX, Nova Scotia, June 08, 2023 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Erdene Resource Development Corporation (TSX: ERD | MSE: ERDN) (“Erdene” or the “Company”) is pleased to announce commencement of exploration at the Dark Horse Gold prospect, located approximately two kilometers north of its Bayan Khundii Gold Project in the Khundii Minerals District (the “District”) in southwest Mongolia.

Quotes from the Company

“Since discovery in early 2021, Erdene has defined a 1.5 kilometre mineralized trend at the Dark Horse Mane prospect,” said Peter Akerley, Erdene’s President and CEO. “The current program will test a number of near-surface targets in the 20 square kilometer greater Dark Horse prospect area, outside the main mineralized zone, that have the potential to host high-grade gold mineralization.”

“Located just two kilometres north of the main Bayan Khundii gold deposit, ore from Dark Horse is expected to provide flexibility in managing high-grade ore feed at the Bayan Khundii gold processing plant,” continued Mr. Akerley. “Growing high-grade gold resources at Dark Horse will strengthen the already strong economics of the Bayan Khundii gold project, that is slated to break ground in the coming weeks.”

Program Overview

The Q2 2023 greater Dark Horse exploration program includes 18 shallow holes totaling approximately 1,000 metres to test for near-surface oxide related gold mineralization similar to the Dark Horse Mane deposit. In conjunction with the diamond drill program, the Company is also completing a gradient array IP geophysical survey covering a 9 square kilometre area, over the core of the greater Dark Horse prospect.

The target area (see Dark Horse Prospects Plan Map attached in release) exhibits extensive gold and indicator element mineralization over several kilometres along NE trending structures and their intersections with N-S faults, parallel to the Dark Horse Mane structure. Results from this program will establish priority targets for a larger program, scheduled to start in Q3, following the receipt and interpretation of results from the current drilling and geophysical programs.

Dark Horse Prospect Overview

The greater Dark Horse prospect (approximately 20 square kilometres) is located in the northern portion of the Khundii mining and Ulaan exploration licenses and is characterized by elevated gold in soil anomalism with multiple surface rock-chip, trench and drill core samples assaying greater than 1 g/t gold. Trace element anomalism, geophysical anomalies related to alteration and mineralization, structures interpreted to represent conduits for mineralizing fluids, and alteration signatures supporting an epithermal mineralization model characterize the greater Dark Horse prospect area. To date, the Company has completed 24,092 metres of drilling in 218 holes ranging in vertical depths from 8 to 318 metres within the greater Dark Horse prospect portion of the Khundii mining license, including 28 holes totaling 2,355 metres in 2022.