11:00 AM EDT, 04/03/2024 (MT Newswires) -- Calibre Mining ( CXBMF ) on Wednesday said its 2024 exploration program at the Valentine gold mine in Newfoundland and Labrador is underway.

According to a statement, the property hosts five gold deposits with measured and indicated resources of 4.0 million ounces and inferred resources of 1.1 million ounces. Drilling is underway at the high-grade gold discovery along the southwest edge of the Leprechaun pit highlighting the strong resource expansion potential along the Valentine Lake Shear Zone toward the Frank Zone, which does not yet have mineral resources.

Highlight drill results from the southwest Leprechaun discovery include 46.53 g/t gold over 5.3 meters.

Highlight drill results below the Marathon, Berry and Leprechaun pits include 150.27 g/t gold over 4.3 meters, indicating "excellent potential" for additional high-grade gold mineralization.

"New discoveries combined with several exciting surface anomalies and high-grade exploration results, confirm the excellent potential within the Valentine region that is expected to yield a continuous flow of exciting discovery and resource-building results throughout 2024 and beyond," said Calibre President and CEO Darren Hall.

Meanwhile, National Bank of Canada flagged the Frank/Leprechaun corridor including along the southwestern edge of the Leprechaun pit for near-term resource accretion and mine plan supplement potential.

The bank ascribed a neutral bias as Calibre's update provided a "fresh look" at the exploration of the Valentine project by an experienced and well-funded team.

National Bank maintained Calibre's sector perform rating and $2.00 price target, citing the company's peer-leading estimated 75% production growth as Valentine commences commercial production in the second quarter of 2025.

The bank also mentioned Calibre's strong cash flow generation and exploration/resource accretion given its spare mill capacity.

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