The Numanoue Project contains the historic workings of the Numanoue mine and is located seven kilometres northeast, along the major vein-trend, of the Konomai gold-silver deposit, which produced 2.35 Moz of gold at an average of 6.4 g/t Au¹. The documented high gold and silver grades in both these deposits and textural evidence for multiple phases of vein development provide encouragement for exploration in the project area.

The work completed by the MMAJ has provided useful information about the geology along trend from the Numanoue mine and highlighted Au-As-Sb anomalies for follow-up. The sole drill-hole completed was designed to test the resistivity and chargeability anomalies associated with an epithermal vein system.  Although only low-grade gold was intersected, the wide zone of hydrothermal alteration may indicate the presence of a large scale hydrothermal system with stratigraphic contacts acting as conduits for ascending fluids. The electrical data and past geological mapping suggest that zone of gold-silver mineralization at Numanoue continues along strike to the northeast.  

Little modern exploration has been undertaken on the tenement or in the region. The Company considers that down-dip and along-strike extensions to the multiple high-grade vein lodes occurring in the historic Numanoue mine, which were only mined to a maximum 150-m vertical depth, are valid exploration targets for additional high-grade gold-silver resources. The area immediately surrounding the historic Numanoue mine is the highest priority exploration focus although additional targets could be identified with systematic reconnaissance work.

Japan Gold has proposed a two-stage exploration program at Numanoue. The early-phase work program includes detailed Bulk Leach Extractable Gold (BLEG) sampling of streams, geological mapping and geochemical rock sampling, grid soil sampling and ground CSAMT resistivity mapping, and spectral analysis of rock samples pertaining to alteration mapping. The second phase will include drilling of six or more holes (1,500 m) on defined targets using man-portable diamond drill rigs once the Prospecting Rights Licenses are granted.