VANCOUVER (miningweekly.com) – In what is anticipated to be one of the largest exploration programmes in the Yukon this year, partners ATAC Resources and Barrick Gold have announced a C$13-million exploration budget for the Racklan gold project, in the Yukon Territory of North-West Canada.

Under an April 2017 earn-in agreement, Barrick can earn up to a 70% interest in the 780 km² Orion project by spending C$63.3-million on exploration. These include a flow-through private placement that netted ATAC C$8.3-million in proceeds and completed in 2017, and total exploration expenditures of C$55-million.

The Rackla gold project comprises three projects, namely the 100% owned Carlin-type gold Osiris project, which hosts the Conrad, Osiris, Sunrise and Ibis Carlin-type gold zones; the 100%-owned Rau project, which hosts the Tiger gold deposit; and the Orion project, under option to Barrick.

The 2018 programme will include about 20 000 m of diamond drilling and is planned to start in May.

The team will investigate high-priority gold targets at the Orion project, including step-out drilling from the significant 2017 results that included 12.5 m of 20.78 g/t gold at the Conrad zone and 15.24 m of 13.52 g/t gold at the Sunrise zone; and diamond drilling to extend stratigraphically-controlled mineralisation at the Osiris zone.

The work programme will also look to advance the 2017 prospecting discoveries at the Rau project, where results indicate the potential for a district-scale polymetallic discovery.

“We are excited to get started on what will be the largest drilling campaign since 2012 on the Rackla gold property. Our technical team will work alongside Barrick to unlock the discovery potential we see emerging at the Orion project. Meanwhile, we will be looking to expand some of the highest-grade gold zones identified to date at our wholly-owned Osiris project,” ATAC president and CEO Graham Downs commented in a recent press release.