Nighthawk Drilling at Colomac Confirms Widening of its Two Best Mineralized Zones to Depth

INTERCEPTS 110.50 METRES OF 1.89 GPT AU (UNCUT), INCLUDING 57.00 METRES OF 2.37 GPT AU, AND INCLUDING 6.40 METRES OF 5.16 GPT AU

TORONTO, Dec. 3, 2019 /PRNewswire/ - Nighthawk Gold Corp. ("Nighthawk" or the "Company") (TSX: NHK; OTCQX: MIMZF) is pleased to report assay results for seven drillholes (2,685 metres) completed on Zones 2.0, 3.0 and 3.5 of the Colomac Main Sill, part of the Colomac Gold Project ("Colomac") centrally located within its Indin Lake Gold Property, Northwest Territories, Canada (Table 1). Hole C19-39B at Zone 2.0 shows the continued widening of the mineralized portion of the sill to depth, where the true width has grown to more than 110 metres at vertical depths of 700 metres below surface. This hole was drilled approximately 270 metres to the south of the deepest intersection at Zone 1.5 (hole C17-15C), where drilling in 2017 showed a similar widening of the mineralized portion of the sill to 155 metres in true width (see press release dated September 18, 2017).

The newly defined panel of mineralization, formed by the merger of high-grade Zone 1.5 with the northern part of Zone 2.0, has now been traced approximately 500 metres in strike with its narrowest width of 30 metres at shallow depths but expanding to upwards of 155 metres at 800 metres vertical depth where it remains open (Figure 3).

Two holes drilled at the southern end of Zone 3.5 within a previous unexplored area, have intersected shallow high-grade mineralization outside and west of the quartz diorite portion of the sill. These intercepts represent a new style of Colomac mineralization that will need to be further explored in 2020.

Additional results pending includes: assay results for the remaining 32 drillholes (12,210 metres), from the Colomac Main Sill and the Goldcrest Sill (to date a total of 59 drillholes for 22,808, metres have been released); assay results for the remaining 9 holes (2,796 metres) at the Treasure Island Gold Project (to date 10 holes for 3,018 metres have been released); final cyanide leach metallurgical test results for Colomac (bottle roll and column test); and regional prospecting and mapping exploration results.

Dr. Michael Byron, President and Chief Executive Officer said, "We were very pleased to confirm that the widening of the sill does not appear to be an isolated feature, but that the entire Zone 1.5 - Zone 2.0 mineralized panel resembles a wedge form that widens significantly to depth. We believe that the dimensions of this mineralized panel will have a positive impact on our resource growth and has opened the door for exciting new exploration opportunities at Colomac."

Colomac Drilling Highlights:

Zone 2.0

• C19-39B was drilled below previously reported hole C19-39 (see press release dated October 31, 2019), and intersected 110.50 metres (55 metre true width) of 1.89 grams per tonne gold ("gpt" "Au"), including 57.00 metres (25 metre true width) of 2.37 gpt Au, and including 6.40 metres of 5.16 gpt Au, extending mineralization an additional 175 metres below C19-39 (Figures 1, 2).
  
  
• C19-39B intersected 205 metres of near continuous downhole mineralization generating a true width greater than 110 metres. Mineralization on this section spans from near surface to over 700 metres vertical depth where it remains open.
  
  
• The wedge-shaped panel of mineralization formed by the merger of Zone 1.5 with the northern section of Zone 2.0 spans upwards of 500 metres in strike (Figure 3). Although its narrowest true width of 30 metres occurs at shallow depths, it expands to upwards of 150 metres at 800 metres vertical depth where it remains open.

Zone 3.5

• Holes C19-38 and C19-38B tested the southern extension of Zone 3.5's shallow mineralization south of previous drilling within an unexplored area of the sill (Figure 1). Both holes intersected shallow high-grade mineralization hosted by quartz veins located outside and west of the quartz diorite upper portion of the sill.
  
  
• Hole C19-38 intersected 11.20 metres of 4.41 gpt Au, including 6.60 metres of 7.09 gpt Au, and including 3.75 metres of 12.19 gpt Au, while hole C19-38B intersected 9.00 metres of 1.94 gpt Au including 5.25 metres of 3.04 gpt Au, and 6.00 metres of 3.24 gpt Au including 3.00 metres of 6.24 gpt Au, representing a new style of Colomac mineralization (Figure 4).

Note: All assays are uncut (see Table 1)

Table 1. Colomac Drill Results (uncut)

Drill Summary

Zone 2.0

In 2017, three holes were drilled from a common setup to test the north-central area of Zone 1.5 to depth. The steepest of the holes, C17-15C, intercepted 235.05 metres grading 0.99 gpt Au, with separate internal intercepts of 13.25 metres of 2.06 gpt Au, and 7.75 metres of 2.35 gpt Au (Figure 1; see press release dated September 18, 2017). The hole was drilled to a vertical depth of 800 metres and showed that the true width of the quartz diorite mineralized portion of the sill had tripled from 50 metres to 155 metres on that section. The reason for the widening of the mineralized portion of the sill to depth was not known at the time. It was looked at as either a localized anomaly or alternatively that large sections of the intrusion do increase in true width to depth. The C19-39 series holes helped address this unknown. Hole C19-39B was collared 270 metres south-southwest of C17-15C to continue testing the deposit's depth extension marginal to the Zone 1.5 - Zone 2.0 boundary fault, a subvertical northeast-southwest (070^o) fault that offsets the two zones creating a slight "dogleg" in the localized strike of the sill (Figure 1, 3). C19-39B was drilled below previously reported hole C19-39 (see press release dated October 31, 2019) and successfully extended mineralization on that section an additional 175 metres to depth by intersecting 110.50 metres of 1.89 gpt Au, including 57.00 metres of 2.37 gpt Au, and including 6.40 metres of 5.16 gpt Au, within a larger 205 metre intersect of near continuous downhole mineralization, spanning a true width in excess of 110 metres at a vertical depth of 700 metres (Figure 2).

Drilling on this section has shown that the widening of the sill does not appear to be an isolated feature, but that the entire Zone 1.5 - Zone 2.0 mineralized panel is wedge shaped and widens significantly to depth having a current strike of 500 metres with its narrowest width of 30 metres at shallow depths but expanding to upwards of 150 metres at 800 metres vertical depth where it remains open (Figure 3).        

Zone 3.5

Holes C19-38 and C19-38B were drilled to explore the projected up-plunge extension of Zone 3.5 south of previous drilling in an unexplored area of the sill (Figure 1). Both holes intersected shallow high-grade mineralization hosted by quartz veins located outside and west of the quartz diorite portion of the sill. Hole C19-38 intersected 11.20 metres of 4.41 gpt Au, including 6.60 metres of 7.09 gpt Au, and including 3.75 metres of 12.19 gpt Au hosted by quartz veins within the basal quartz gabbro phase of the intrusion at 35 metres vertical depth (Figure 4). Hole C19-38B intersected gold mineralization hosted with quartz veins within the lower gabbro phase including 9.00 metres of 1.94 gpt Au including 5.25 metres of 3.04 gpt Au, and 6.00 metres of 3.24 gpt Au including 3.00 metres of 6.24 gpt Au. This is the first documented occurrence of this type of mineralization below the quartz diorite upper portion of the sill and represents a new style of Colomac mineralization that will be followed up on in Nighthawks 2020 drill program.

Zone 3.0

Hole C19-31 was collared 520 metres northeast of the C19-38 holes to explore the central portion of Zone 3.0, an area that had seen limited drilling in the past (Figure 1). It was intended to follow-up on and undercut mineralization reported in hole C12-14C of 6.75 metres of 13.24 gpt Au, including 1.10 metres of 80.13 gpt Au (see press release dated October 10, 2012) to a vertical depth of 320 metres. Although the hole traced the mineralization to greater depth it did not encounter similar grades.

Holes C19-32 and C19-32B were drilled 110 metres northwest of C19-31 to explore an area in the sill to shallow depth that had never been drilled (Figure 1). C19-32 intersected mineralization at less than 200 metres from surface returning 16.45 metres of 1.39 gpt Au, including 10.00 metres of 1.62 gpt Au, and including 3.40 metres of 2.55 gpt Au. Hole C19-32B was successful in extending mineralization an additional 130 metres to depth where it remains open.

Hole C19-36 was spotted 150 metres north of the C19-32 holes to explore an area that had never been drilled (Figure 1). It intersected sporadic grade over its length including 1.0 metres of 16.20 gpt Au;  12.65 metres of 1.04 gpt Au, including 3.00 metres of 2.55 gpt Au; 6.00 metres of 3.07 gpt Au, including 3.00 metres of 4.91 gpt Au, and including 1.50 metres of 6.57 gpt Au; and 0.50 metres of 11.80 gpt Au. A 250-metre-long gap in drilling exists north of hole C19-36 where historical holes only tested the sill to less than 100 m depth. This 250-metre-long gap contains several near-surface historical higher-grade intercepts that will be further investigated during the Company's 2020 exploration program.

Technical Information
Nighthawk has implemented a quality-control program to comply with best practices in the sampling and analysis of drill core.  Drill core samples were transported in security-sealed bags for analyses at ALS Global Assay Laboratory in Vancouver, BC ("ALS Global"). ALS Global is an ISO/IEC 17025 accredited laboratory. Pulp and metallics assaying for gold was conducted on the entire pulverized sample.

As part of its QA/QC program, Nighthawk inserts external gold standards (low to high-grade) and blanks every 20 samples in addition to the standards, blanks, and pulp duplicates inserted by ALS Global.

About Nighthawk
Nighthawk is a Canadian-based gold exploration company with 100% ownership of a district-scale land position within the Indin Lake Greenstone Belt, located approximately 200 km north of Yellowknife, Northwest Territories, Canada. Nighthawk is focused on advancing the Colomac Gold Project with a current inferred resource of 2.6 million ounces of gold (50.3 million tonnes at an average grade of 1.62 grams per tonne gold), as well as advancing its other regional gold deposits and showings within this largely underexplored Archean gold camp.

The Company has an experienced and dedicated team and is well funded to complete its goals and objectives over the next 12-18 months.

Qualified Person
Dr. Michael J. Byron, Ph.D., P.Geo., President & Chief Executive Officer of Nighthawk, who is the "Qualified Person" as defined by NI 43-101 for this project, has reviewed and approved of the technical disclosure contained in this news release. Please refer to NI 43-101 technical report "Technical Report and mineral resource estimate update on the Colomac Property of the Indin Lake Project", dated July 26, 2018, as filed under the company's profile on www.sedar.com.

Neither the Toronto Stock Exchange has neither reviewed nor accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this news release.

Forward-Looking Information

This news release contains "forward-looking information" within the meaning of applicable Canadian securities legislation. Forward-looking information includes, but is not limited to, information with respect to the Company's continued exploration programs (including size and budget) and the ability to advance targets and the timing and results thereof; and the ability to expand the current resource at Colomac with additional drilling. Generally, forward-looking information can be identified by the use of forward-looking terminology such as "plans", "expects", or "does not expect", "is expected", "budget", "scheduled", "estimates", "forecasts", "intends", "anticipates", or "does not anticipate", or "believes" or variations of such words and phrases or state that certain actions, events or results "may", "could", "would", "might", or "will be taken", "occur", or "be achieved".

Forward-looking information is based on the opinions and estimates of management at the date the information is made, and is based on a number of assumptions and is subject to known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause the actual results, level of activity, performance or achievements of Nighthawk to be materially different from those expressed or implied by such forward-looking information, including risks associated with the exploration, development and mining such as economic factors as they effect exploration, future commodity prices, changes in foreign exchange and interest rates, actual results of current exploration activities, government regulation, political or economic developments, environmental risks, permitting timelines, capital expenditures, operating or technical difficulties in connection with development activities, employee relations, the speculative nature of gold exploration and development, including the risks of diminishing quantities of grades of reserves, contests over title to properties, and changes in project parameters as plans continue to be refined as well as those risk factors discussed in Nighthawk's annual information form for the year ended December 31, 2018, available on www.sedar.com.  Although Nighthawk has attempted to identify important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those contained in forward-looking information, there may be other factors that cause results not to be as anticipated, estimated or intended. There can be no assurance that such information will prove to be accurate, as actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated in such information. Accordingly, readers should not place undue reliance on forward-looking information. Nighthawk does not undertake to update any forward-looking information, except in accordance with applicable securities laws.

SOURCE Nighthawk Gold Corp.

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