Co. Extends Gold Discovery in Historic Mining District

Dakota Gold Corp. (DC:NYSE American) announced that partial assay results have extended its JB Gold Zone discovery at its Maitland Gold project in the historic Homestake District of South Dakota by 171 meters.

Hole MA23C-022 confirmed that Homestake-style gold mineralization is present 5 kilometers northwest of the 40-million-ounce (Moz) plus historic Homestake Mine, the company said.

The lower portion of the hole intersected 19.55 grams per tonne gold (g/t Au) over 5 meters in a step-out from hole from MA23C-017, which intersected 12.51 g/t Au over 4.7 meters.

The JB Gold Zone could be the company's "most significant discovery to date," noted Canaccord Genuity analyst Peter Bell in a research note on Aug. 3.

"We believe Dakota could quickly advance it from initial discovery to a substantial, high-grade deposit," commented Canaccord Genuity analyst Peter Bell.

"The two holes suggest a thickened zone of mineralized iron formation, similar to the 'ledges' mined in the old Homestake Mine," wrote Bell. "The drill success also suggests that DC has the ability to predict the complex folded geology in the system. Although much is still to be proven at the drill bit, if additional drilling demonstrates JB is a new ledge, we believe Dakota could quickly advance it from initial discovery to a substantial, high-grade deposit."

Dakota Gold Vice President Exploration James Berry called the grades "analogous with the mineralization encountered at the Homestake Mine."

"With every new intercept, we have increased confidence that we have identified another Homestake Ledge system at Maitland," he said.

The Catalyst: Zeroing in on the Deposits

The company said it had secured additional drilling equipment that has been delivered to Maitland as the program transitions from widely spaced drill holes designed to define stratigraphy to more tightly spaced drilling at the JB and Unionville discoveries. Both remain open to depth and in all directions.

Drilling will now halve the distance between holes to define the size and continuity of mineralization.

"This methodology was used to great effect at the Homestake Mine to systematically vector to wider intercepts," the company said in a release.

The upper portion of MA23C-022 intersected 8.81 g/t Au over 7.2 meters of Homestake-style mineralization, the company said.

"JB appears to be a wide, high-grade discovery within Homestake Formation, the same unit that hosts the +40Moz Homestake gold deposit about 5km to the south," Bell wrote.

A Legendary District

Robert Quartermain and Jonathan Awde head Dakota, which is exploring the 46,000 acres it has acquired and consolidated over the past decade surrounding the Homestake Mine. Industry giant Barrick Gold Corp. (ABX:TSX; GOLD:NYSE) also backs Dakota Gold.

Much of the land owned by Dakota Gold has not been explored in nearly 30 years, leading some to hope for a large discovery there.

"Dakota Gold is now seeking to revitalize this legendary district," Canaccord Genuity analyst Michael Fairbairn has written.

Richmond Hill: More Than a Mile in Strike Length

Dakota's other area project, Richmond Hill, is 1.5 miles north of Coeur Mining Inc.'s (CDE:NYSE) Wharf Mine, which produced more than 79,000 ounces Au in 2022 and is the only current operating gold mine in South Dakota.

Dakota recently announced it had completed metallurgical testing, a validation drilling program at Richmond Hill.

The results confirmed the grades and intercept thickness from historical drilling, and several holes exceeded the thickness and grades of the model, indicating untested parts of the system that are open along strike and at a greater depth than understood.

"Dakota Gold is now seeking to revitalize this legendary district," Canaccord Genuity analyst Michael Fairbairn has written.

"This new information will be essential for use in future mineral resource estimations," Berry said.

The new information from the core drilling will be used to update the geologic deposit model for the deposit, which has been described as more than a mile in strike length.

The company said it will return to exploration drilling at the site with the goal of producing a maiden resource in Q1 2024 using 880 historical drill holes and the current results.

"DC continues to drill aggressively across its Homestake District land package," Fairbairn has written for Canaccord. "Results to date bode well for the next resource update, with indications that Richmond Hill hosts a substantial high-grade gold orebody."

Dakota Gold has four drills operating on its Homestake District properties, two at Richmond Hill and two at the Maitland Gold Project, about 2 miles east.

Ownership and Share Structure

According to the company, approximately 30% of the company's shares are with management and insiders. Out of management, Co-Chairman Robert Quartermain holds the most shares at 9.75% or 7.34 million shares, Reuters said. President and CEO Jonathan Awde is next at 8.21%, with 6.18 million, while COO Jerry Aberle holds 5.57%, with 4.2 million. The remainder of the 30% is held by other members of management and the board of directors.

About 26.6% of the shares are with institutional investors. According to Reuters, those include Van Eck Associates with 4.1%, The Vanguard Group Inc. with 3.51%, Blackrock Institutional Trust Co. with 3.49%, and Sprott Asset Management LLP with 1.74%.

About 27.4% is with strategic investors, including Barrick Gold Corp., which owns 3%. The rest is retail.

Dakota Gold has a market cap of US$225.94 million, with 75.3 million shares outstanding and about 56 million free-floating. It trades in a 52-week range of US$4.69 and US$2.61.

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Important Disclosures:

1. Dakota Gold Corp. is a billboard sponsor of Streetwise Reports and pays SWR a monthly sponsorship fee between US$4,000 and US$5,000.
2. As of the date of this article, officers and/or employees of Streetwise Reports LLC (including members of their household) own securities of Dakota Gold Corp. and Barrick Gold Corp.
3. Steve Sobek wrote this article for Streetwise Reports LLC and provides services to Streetwise Reports as an employee.
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