Drilling Commences at High-Grade Gold Catia Prospect at Bellary Dome

HIGHLIGHTS

• The Bellary Dome Project is one of Novo’s priority areas across its significant 10,500 sq km landholding in the Pilbara region of Western Australia.
• A 3,000 m reverse circulation drill program has commenced at the Catia Prospect, part of the Bellary Dome Project.
• Highly prospective gold mineralisation at Catia is structurally controlled and quartz vein related.
• High-grade gold results returned from rock chip sampling in 2021 include peak results of 556 ppm gold and 117 ppm gold.
• Step-out drilling will test the strike potential of the Catia Trend for 700 m along strike, under cover to the east of the Catia Prospect main target.

Results referred to in this news release are not necessarily representative of mineralisation throughout the Bellary area.

Mike Spreadborough, Novo’s Executive Co-Chairman and Acting Chief Executive Officer, said, “The Bellary Dome Project is one of Novo’s priority areas across its significant 10,500 sq km landholding in the Pilbara. We are excited to get on the ground and start testing these highly prospective targets, that were identified during our previous field work program. We anticipate the programme will take four weeks, with results released as they are received. This is the first of several drilling programs Novo plans for its current season of exploration.”

Image 1 Reverse Circulation drilling at the Catia prospect at the Bellary Dome Project, March 2023

VANCOUVER, British Columbia, March 22, 2023 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Novo Resources Corp. (“Novo” or the “Company”) (TSX: NVO, NVO.WT & NVO.WT.A) (OTCQX: NSRPF) is pleased to announce the commencement of a reverse circulation (“RC”) drill program focussed on the orogenic gold Catia Prospect (“Catia”) and the gold in conglomerate Edney’s Find Prospect (“Edney’s Find”) at the Bellary Dome Project (“Bellary”), South Pilbara, Western Australia.

Novo entered into an option agreement with Bellary Dome Pty Ltd in June 2020 to acquire the gold only rights on E47/3555. Bellary Dome Pty Ltd retains the rights to all other minerals and ownership of the tenement under the agreement¹.

Figure 1: Novo’s Pilbara tenure, showing the Bellary Dome Project in the South Pilbara

Bellary is one of Novo’s priority target areas across its significant 10,500 sq km landholding in the Pilbara (Figure 1). Bellary is an area of structural uplift along the southern margin of the Pilbara Craton where both historic and more recent explorers have identified significant gold targets. Field work carried out by Novo, combined with historical exploration reviews completed in 2020/2021, highlighted several gold targets, with Catia and Edney’s Find prioritised for drilling.

Catia is a structurally complex area, comprising sulphidic quartz veins hosted in highly foliated basalt and sedimentary rocks, and hosting a network of shallow and steep dipping gold-rich quartz veins within a regional west-northwest trending shear zone. Rock chips from reconnaissance mapping and sampling by Novo returned significant anomalous gold values, with peak results of 556 ppm Au and 117 ppm Au (Figure 2). Broad (km) scale carbonate, silica and sulphide alteration has also been identified across all stratigraphic units at Bellary.

Soil sampling completed in 2021 by Novo highlighted a coherent bullseye Au-Ag-Pb-Sb anomaly in the immediate vicinity of the Catia vein system, and identified a significant soil anomaly 700m further east-southeast from the prospect along what is interpreted a continuation of the Catia Shear (Figure 3).

Figure 2: Examples of high-grade gold mineralised quartz veins from surface mapping at Catia

The 3000m RC drill program at Catia is designed to test both mineralised vein outcrop/subcrop and also drill along strike on the Catia Trend under cover to the east-southeast, where transported colluvium may be masking the true extent of gold system (Figure 3). Drilling will vary from 40 m spaced sectional traverses to 160 m.

Figure 3: The Bellary Dome Project showing gold prospects and the Catia Shear

Edney’s Find (Figure 3) is a conglomerate-hosted gold occurrence that has been explored since the 1970s by multiple companies. The area has remnants of significant historical and recent prospector activity including dry-blowing spoils, historic pits and a small shaft. Previous work includes mapping, surface sampling, trenching, and drilling. The area is dominated by Bellary Formation sediments comprising arkosic sandstone, quartzite, shale, and conglomerate, shallowly overlying basement rocks. The conglomerate is clast supported with clast size varying from pebble to cobble size and zones of the conglomerate show disseminated buckshot pyrite, up to 10mm in diameter. A peak gold value from a trench rock chip sample by Novo in 2020 returned 36.4 ppm Au. Several short holes are planned in order to test the gold endowment of the conglomerate.

Refer to Table 1 Rock Chip Assay Results and Table 2 Soil Sample Assay Results (Appendix 1).

ANALYTIC METHODOLOGY

All surface samples were sent to Intertek Genalysis, Perth (“Intertek”), for analyses. Soil samples were collected in 2021 as 150g samples, sieved to -80 mesh (0.177 mm) and analysed for gold and multi elements via AR25/MS. Rock chips were analysed for gold via 50 g Fire Assay with OE finish (FA50/OE) and for multi elements via Multi Acid Digest with MS finish (4A/MS). Blanks and standards were inserted in the sample sequence to ensure data quality and control, and field duplicates of soil samples were conducted at the rate of four per 100 samples.

Four metre composite and single metre split samples from the current drill program will be sent to Intertek for analyses of gold via 50 g Fire Assay with OE finish (FA50/OE). Multi-element data will be collected via pXRF analysis of sieved 1 m sample powders with significant multielement anomalies assayed at a future date.

There were no limitations to the verification process and all relevant data was verified by a qualified person as defined in National Instrument 43-101 Standards of Disclosure for Mineral Projects (“NI 43-101”) by reviewing analytical procedures undertaken by Intertek.

QP STATEMENT

Mr. Iain Groves (MAIG), is the qualified person, as defined under NI 43-101, responsible for, and having reviewed and approved, the technical information contained in this news release. Mr. Groves is Novo’s Exploration Manger – West Pilbara.

ABOUT NOVO

Novo explores and develops its prospective land package covering approximately 10,500 square kilometres in the Pilbara region of Western Australia, along with the 22 square kilometre Belltopper Project in the Bendigo Tectonic Zone of Victoria, Australia. In addition to the Company’s primary focus, Novo seeks to leverage its internal geological expertise to deliver value-accretive opportunities to its stakeholders. For more information, please contact Leo Karabelas at (416) 543-3120 or e-mail leo@novoresources.com.

On Behalf of the Board of Directors,

Novo Resources Corp.

“Michael Spreadborough”

Michael Spreadborough
Executive Co-Chairman and Acting CEO

Forward-looking information

Some statements in this news release contain forward-looking information (within the meaning of Canadian securities legislation) including, without limitation, the proposed RC drill program at the Bellary Dome Project. These statements address future events and conditions and, as such, involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors which may cause the actual results, performance or achievements to be materially different from any future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by the statements. Such factors include, without limitation, customary risks of the resource industry and the risk factors identified in Novo’s management’s discussion and analysis for the nine-month period ended September 30, 2022, which is available under Novo’s profile on SEDAR at www.sedar.com. Forward-looking statements speak only as of the date those statements are made. Except as required by applicable law, Novo assumes no obligation to update or to publicly announce the results of any change to any forward-looking statement contained or incorporated by reference herein to reflect actual results, future events or developments, changes in assumptions or changes in other factors affecting the forward-looking statements. If Novo updates any forward-looking statement(s), no inference should be drawn that the Company will make additional updates with respect to those or other forward-looking statements.

APPENDIX 1

Table 1 - Rock chip assay results for sampling by Novo in 2020 and 2021. Samples were analysed by FA50/OE. Co-ordinates are GDA94/Zone 50

Table 2 – Soil sample assay results for sampling by Novo in 2021. Samples were analysed by AR25/MS. Co-ordinates are GDA94/Zone 50

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¹ Refer to the Company’s news release dated June 12, 2020.