Metallurgical Testwork Demonstrates Increased Gold Recovery at Viva Gold’s Tonopah Gold Project, Nevada
NR 22-12
Metallurgical Testwork Demonstrates Increased Gold Recovery at Viva Gold’s
Tonopah Gold Project, Nevada
VANCOUVER, BC – October 24, 2022 – Viva Gold Corp. ( TSX-Venture: VAU; OTCQB: VAUCF ) (the
“Company” or “Viva”) is pleased to announce that it has completed an initial metallurgical optimization
program for its Tonopah Gold Project (“Tonopah”), located near Tonopah, Nevada. The work is reported
in a study titled “Tonopah Gold Project, Pulp Agglomeration, Report on Metallurgical Testwork”, dated
October 2022, prepared by Kappes, Cassiday & Associates (“KCA”), Reno, Nevada.
• Pulp agglomeration/heap leach testing produced a calculated gold leach recovery of over 91% for
high-grade (+ 1.0 gpt gold) composite samples; the 91% indicated recovery is significantly higher
than the 71% recovery estimate utilized in the 2022 PEA Technical Report
• Gold recoveries on the low -grade composite sample was 68%; this recovery estimate compares
well to the overall 71% heap leach recovery for the composited high - and low-grade recoveries
utilized in the 2022 PEA Technical Report.
James Hesketh, President and CEO, commented, “This metallurgical program indicates the potential for
substantially increased average gold recovery at Tonopah and justifies additional testwork. The pulp
agglomeration process is historically proven as a modification to the conventional heap leach process used
to capture gold recovery that would otherwise be lost at properties that have a substantial component of
discreate high-grade mineralization in combination with lower-grade mineralization. We believe that the
revenue gains from implementing this process may substantially offset any capital and operating costs
associated with the process, thereby improving overall project economics. We are planning additional
testwork to further validate and optimize these results.”
The pulp agglomeration process is well proven and has been utilized at mines in both the US and Mexico
at sites where dual high - and low-grade populations of gold mineralization exist. This includes the Ruby
Hill mine in Nevada, the Castle Mountain mine in California, and the Dolores mine in Mexico. Pulp
agglomeration is a process where mined material is campaign crushed u tilizing a three-stage crushing
plant and placed respectively on high-grade or low-grade stockpiles. The high -grade material is further
ground in a grinding mill and carbon -in-leach processed (“CIL”) in a large tank for 10 to 12 hours ,
recovering a substantial percentage of the contained gold. The depleted pulp from this process is then
dewatered and blended with low-grade crushed product and cement to produce an agglomerate d
product. This agglomerated product is then transported by conveyor to the leach pad and leached over
time for final gold recovery. One of the benefits of this process is that it accelerates overall gold recovery,
thereby improving early gold revenue generation, while at the same time eliminating the need for tailings
disposal.
Material from core drilling at Tonopah was utilized to generate a high-grade blended composite sample
(head grade 2.68 g/t Au) and a low-grade composite sample (0.795 g/t). The two (2) composite samples
were then utilized for pulp agglomeration test work. All preparation, assaying and metallurgical studies
were performed utilizing accepted industry standard procedures. These samples were previously
crushed utilizing conventional and High -Pressure Grinding Roll (HPGR) crushing methods. Crushed high-
grade composite material was ground and bottle roll tested at varying grind sizes to determine a practical
size range (80% passing 0.075mm) for final CIL bottle roll testing.
CIL bottle roll leach testwork on the ground high -grade product was replicated in 6 separate tests to
produce an average gold recovery of 65% after 8 hours of leach. Crushed low-grade material was blended
with dewatered high-grade pulp from the CIL testing at a 4:1 ratio with cement added and mixed to
produce agglomerates. These agglomerates were subject to compact permeability testing to approximate
heap leach pad loading condition s to determine correct cement addition rates. The final agglomerate
blend was then column leached, which simulates the heap leach process . Gold extraction for the
agglomerates was 69% based on a calculated head grade of 0. 84 g/t over an 86 -day leach period. The
combination of CIL bottle roll and column leach recovery resulted in a calculated gold recovery for the
high-grade mineralization of over 91%. Future testwork will be performed with a focus on optimizing CIL
leach time, grind size, cement consumption, and aggregate strength.
Other News
Viva announces that it has appointed Ms. Shayla Forster to the position of Corporate Secretary and has
engaged Ms. Anne Hite of GROW Resources Inc. to provide investor relations and support services. Both
Ms. Forster and Ms. Hite have extensive experience in the mining industry. GROW will provide investor
relations and administrative services to the Company and will be compensated on an hourly basis which
will remain below US$5,000 per month.
Qualified Person
James Hesketh, MMSA -QP, has approved the scientific and technical disclosure contained in this press
release. Mr. Hesketh is not independent of the Company; he is an Officer and Director.
Notes
1) NI43-101 Technical Report, Preliminary Economic Assessment (“PEA”) of the Tonopah Project by
Gustavson Associates, amended April 2022.
About Viva Gold Corp:
Viva Gold Corp’s (TSX-V: VAU; OTCQB: VAUCF; Frankfurt :7PB) principal asset is its 100% ownership in the
Tonopah Gold Project (Tonopah), a large land position on the world class Walker Lane Mineral Trend in
western Nevada, located about 30 minutes’ drive south-east of the Kinross Roun d Mountain gold mine.
The project is well advanced with a positive Preliminary Economic Assessment (PEA) describing a potential
open pit, heap leach gold recovery operation and a pit confined measured and indicated gold mineral
resources containing 394,000 ounces at 0.78 grams/tonne and 206,000 ounces of Inferred resource at
0.87 grams/tonne. The principal mineral trends on the property remain open for extension and the
company has a track record of steadily increasing gold resource over the last four years . Viva is building
market awareness as it advances Tonopah towards feasibility study and permitting and has made a
significant commitment to ESG and de -risking the project through open community disclosure and near
completion of a number of baseline enviro nmental and technical studies. Viva has a strong capital
structure with 91.6 million shares outstanding and a strong management team and board who can claim
both gold exploration and production experience. For additional information on Viva Gold and the
Tonopah Gold Project, please visit our website: www.vivagoldcorp.com.
For further information please contact:
James Hesketh, President & CEO
(720) 291-1775
Anne Hite, Director Investor Relations
(303) 519-5149
Forward-Looking Information:
This news release contains certain information that may constitute forward -looking information or
forward-looking statements under applicable Canadian securities legislation (collectively, “forward -
looking information”), including but not limited to drilli ng operations and estimates of gold mineral
resource at the Tonopah Gold Project. This forward -looking information entails various risks and
uncertainties that are based on current expectations, and actual results may differ materially from those
contained in such information. These uncertainties and risks include, but are not limited to, the strength
of the global economy, inflationary pressures, pandemics, and issues and delays related to permitting
activities; the price of gold; operational, funding and liquidity risks; the potential for achieving targeted
drill results, the degree to which mineral resource estimates are reflective of actual mineral resources; the
degree to which factors which would make a mineral deposit commercially viable are present; the risks
and hazards associated with drilling and mining operations; and the ability of Viva to fund its capital
requirements. Risks and uncertainties about the Company’s business are more fully discussed in the
Company’s disclosure materials filed with the securities regulatory authorities in Canada available at
www.sedar.com. Readers are urged to read these materials. Viva assumes no obligation to update any
forward-looking information or to update the reasons why ac tual results could differ from such
information unless required by law.
Cautionary Note to Investors --- Investors are cautioned not to assume that any "measured mineral
resources", "indicated mineral resources", or "inferred mineral resources" that the Company reports in this
news release are or will be economically or legally mineable. United States investors are cautioned that
while the SEC now recognizes "measured mineral resources", "indicated mineral resources" and "inferred
mineral resources", investors should not assume that any part or all of the mineral deposits in these
categories will ever be conve rted into a higher category of mineral resources or into mineral
reserves. These terms have a great amount of uncertainty as to their economic and legal feasibility. Under
Canadian regulations, estimates of inferred mineral resources may not form the basis of feasibility or pre-
feasibility studies, except in limited circumstances. Further, "inferred mineral resources" have a great
amount of uncertainty as to their existence and as to their economic and legal feasibility. It cannot be
assumed that any part or all of an inferred mineral resource will ever be upgraded to a higher category.
The mineral reserve and mineral resource data set out in this news release are estimates, and no assurance
can be given that the anticipated tonnages and grades will be a chieved or that the indicated level of
recovery will be realized.
Neither TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies
of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.