Categories: Precious Metals
Topics: General Precious Metals

Bullfrog Gold (CSE: BFG) CEO Dave Beling on Forthcoming 43-101 Enhanced with Improved Recovery Rates and Gold Prices & Additional Drilling at the Bullfrog Gold Project in Nevada

Gerardo Del Real: This is Gerardo Del Real with Resource Stock Digest. Joining me today is the President and CEO of Bullfrog Gold (CSE: BFG)(OTC: BFGC), Mr. Dave Beling. Dave, how are you today?

David Beling: Very well, Gerardo. Things are volatile, but they're also upward. So things are looking well.

Gerardo Del Real: I think that's the perfect intro to our conversation. You and I spoke a bit off air about what a busy year it's been for you and the team at Bullfrog. A lot was accomplished. There's still a lot of year left. You have a lot of irons in the fire. The big one, and one that I know shareholders are going to be excited about, is the updated 43-101 that I believe you've initiated. Is that correct?

David Beling: Yeah, we've engaged Tetra Tech to update that resource report, because the previous one that was done in mid-2017 was based on a $1,200 gold price, which was the 3-year trailing average. At that time we also used a 72% gold recovery. Since then, our metallurgical test work, we're getting on four bulk samples an average of up to 85% recovery. 

We're definitely going to get a significant recovery increase, as well as we've got the additional holes that we drill. In that Mystery Hill area, a lot of the resource that was in there was in the inferred category. We're going to be converting that because we've got much closer spaced drilling now. Plus we'll convert that M&I, measured and indicated, as well as expanding resource.

We had some intercepts that were 360 feet long of 0.41 gold in the Mystery Hill area. In the Montgomery area, the last hole we drilled northeast of the pit, we hit 80 feet of 0.5. The nearest hole along strike along that intercept is 600 feet away. So we've got room to grow there. I think we've fully defined everything that's in the Bullfrog pit area. So that'll all be in the new 43-101, which likely will be coming out, I would say, in five weeks, something of that order. So we're quite enthused about that.

Then we also have here in the latter part of September, we exercise the option to purchase the lands that we currently have under lease from Barrick Gold. We've got some encouraging things and bright things coming at us. We're looking forward to accomplish that, as well as planning the next phase of drilling, acquiring the funding, getting the permits put in place to support that drilling. We've got a very ambitious program going forward and our future is as bright as it's ever been.

Gerardo Del Real: That's well put. I want to summarize here, because it's important, the recovery number that you're going to use is going to be higher. The 3-year trailing average for the gold price in the base case scenario increases by $200 since the last time you did this. Of course, we're going to be including all the additional drilling that was recently completed. Is all of that accurate there?

David Beling: Yes, that's correct.

Gerardo Del Real: Well, that all points to hopefully a bigger resource, better numbers all across the board. That's exciting. Tell me a bit about the exploration plans after the 43-101 is updated and published.

David Beling: Well, now that we've got the results from all of those holes, we definitely want to do some more drilling along strike on north and east of the Montgomery pit. The Bullfrog pit and Mystery Hill area have been fully defined for us at this point in time. As you know, we also had this exciting Paradise Ridge target. We drilled the very southern end of that. We only tested about 4% of the target area. In fact, the target goes another 2,000 meters northwest of where we drilled. We just barely scratched the surface. We didn't connect. We didn't intersect mineralization, but the bulk of that target is still there and it doesn't discourage us at all.

We still have great faith in this thing. There's no guarantees in the exploration business, but gosh, this thing is 2,000 meters long and 400 meters wide. It's got gold on the surface. It's got the identical host rocks that are in the Bullfrog deposit. It's got structures in it. The only thing the thing doesn't have, at least in the central and north part, it doesn't have any drill holes in it. So we're still just as encouraged with that as we were before.

Gerardo Del Real: Given the companies that surround you, I have to believe that being in Nevada and having the type of resource that you have and improving upon that resource, I have to believe that you would make a lot of sense for several suitors in the area.

David Beling: Well, we've added value. We've been involved with this project for 9 years. We started out with a strategic land position adjacent to Barrick. We had no ounces on it. Now we've got over a half a million ounces on it in the M&I category. We've got a solid land position. We've acquired more land. We've staked more land. All of these things have enhanced this thing tremendously. As I think everyone realizes, the whole Beatty area of Nevada is one of the hottest exploration areas. AngloGold, Kinross Gold, Couer Mining, Corvus Gold, Waterton. All of these folks are aggressively pursuing exploration and development, as is Bullfrog Gold.

Gerardo Del Real: I noticed as soon as I mentioned potential suitors and being a takeout target, your phone started ringing. I think that's highly ironic, Dave. That was very well put. Is there anything else that you'd like to add to that?

David Beling: We're quite happy with where we're at. People ask me, they say, "Hey, you want to produce this? You want to sell it?" Look, we want to do what's in the best interest of our shareholders. Until something else comes along, we're going to continue to add value on this thing. We have a lot of potential to do that. We're constantly chopping hay while the sun is shining.

Gerardo Del Real: David, thank you very much. I appreciate it.

David Beling: Thank you, Gerardo.