Step-Out Drilling Extends Vein at Golden Triangle Silver Project

Dolly Varden Silver Corp. (DV:TSX.V; DOLLF:OTCQX) announced that step-out drilling has extended the length of mineralization in the in the Wolf vein of its Kitsault Valley project in British Columbia's Golden Triangle.

Hole DV23-368 was a 75-meter step-out along plunge from another hole, DV22-320. The new step-out hole intersected 381 grams per tonne silver (g/t Ag) over 29 meters, including 1,898 g/t Ag over 1 meter. DV22-320 had graded 321 g/t Ag over 12.85 meters.

Five rigs have now completed more than 43,000 meters of the expanded 55,000-meter campaign at the project, which includes both the Dolly Varden silver and Homestake Ridge gold-silver properties.

"As the drilling progresses at Wolf, we are seeing the continuity to depth of the high-grade silver mineralization," said President and Chief Executive Officer Shawn Khunkhun. "Drill hole DV-368 has extended the length of potentially underground bulk-mineable mineralization plunge to over 950 meters, and it remains wide open for expansion, with ongoing drilling continuing to step-out to the south."

Monday's release included assay results from 19 drill holes from early this drilling season, the company said.

Other results included holes DV23-352 in the Southwest Extension, which intersected 246 g/t Ag over 18.07 meters (12.29 meters estimated true width), including 712 g/t Ag over 2.95 meters (2.01 meters estimated true width); and DV23-339, which intersected 287 g/t Ag and 0.35 g/t gold (Au) and 22.83% lead (Pb) over 2.65 meters (1.67 meters estimated true width).

Bob Moriarty of 321gold.com, who has been a shareholder of Dolly Varden's for years, recently told Streetwise Reports that when it comes to silver, the company has made "incredible progress."

What do those grades mean? According to the Independent Speculator, 150 g/t through 350 g/t Ag is average grade, while over 350 g/t is considered "high-grade."

"I should stress that these are not international standards set by some geological authority," researcher Lobo Tiggre wrote on the site. "These are my numbers, based on what I've seen in the field. More important is that . . .  these numbers are just a starting point."

Bob Moriarty of 321gold.com, who has been a shareholder of Dolly Varden's for years, recently told Streetwise Reports that when it comes to silver, the company has made "incredible progress."

"They've had a lot of resources. Their drill results are spectacular, and I think silver is going to be the most attractive metal for investors in the near term," Moriarty said. 

The Catalyst: Pending Assays and Consistent, High-Grade Silver Mineralization

Dolly Varden said the assay results are continuing to expand the length of the Wolf Vein's mineralization with consistent, high-grade silver mineralization in the wide vein breccia.

"We believe that now is the right time for leverage in precious metals through investment in Dolly Varden Silver on 2023 results," wrote Geordie Mark of Haywood Capital Markets.

Drilling at Wolf has been ongoing since the start of the 2023 campaign and continues with infill drilling and testing for extensions to the mineralization.

Drill hole DV23-359 was a 50-meter step-out from DV22-311, which had graded 412 g/t Ag over 12.8 meters, including 1,646 g/t Ag over 2.1 meters, the company said. It intersected the Wolf vein as a 30-centimeter-wide sulfide-rich vein (2.25% Pb over 0.5 meters core length). Subsequent drilling intersected the subparallel vein splay vein on either side of DV22-311.

Those assays are pending.

Meanwhile, holes DV23-347, DV23-351, DV23-354, and DV23-356 were step-outs targeting the eastern extension of the veins. They didn't intercept mineralization, suggesting the vein may move more northeasterly.

It remains open in that direction, and the company said it will be drilled shortly.

The Right Time to Invest in DV?

Earlier results established that the Kitsol vein has a higher-grade silver shoot that is wider, longer, and extends closer to the surface than the company thought. The recognition of the higher-grade shoots in the Kitsol and Wolf veins has upped the priority of similar style exploration targets, such as the Moose Vein, and led to the extension of this summer's drill program.

"Dolly Varden is well on its way to another successful drilling season," wrote Rick Mills of the Ahead of the Herd newsletter.

"Never has this area laid witness to the scale of exploration in such an integrated fashion with an intellectual data set that affords better insights into system morphology, structural control, and genesis with the work on known systems expected to lead to new discoveries," analyst Geordie Mark of Haywood Capital Markets wrote in a research note.

"We believe that now is the right time for leverage in precious metals through investment in Dolly Varden Silver on 2023 results, and the upside potential to be germinated in the 2023 program," wrote Mark, who rated the stock Buy with CA$2 per share target price.

'Another Successful Drilling Season'

The Kitsault Valley project includes the Dolly Varden silver property and the Homestake Ridge gold-silver property. The combined 163-square-kilometer project in British Columbia's Golden Triangle hosts an indicated resource of 34.7 million ounces silver (Moz Ag) and 166,000 ounces gold (Au) and inferred resources of 29.3 Moz Ag and 817,000 ounces.

"Dolly Varden is well on its way to another successful drilling season, with initial results already showing high-grade mineralization and extending the Kitsol Vein closer to surface," wrote Rick Mills of the Ahead of the Herd newsletter on August 19.

"The fact the company has added another drill rig to what was already a bigger drill program this year should give shareholders plenty of excitement for the rest of 2023," he wrote. "More encouraging assays, perhaps exceeding those from last year, along with new discoveries, should no longer be a surprise."

Research Capital Corp. analyst Stuart McDougall noted in a research note that Dolly Varden is well-financed to advance the project forward. He rated the stock a Speculative Buy with a CA$1.35 per share target price.

"Three of the 11 reported holes have extended the high-grade Kitsol vein closer to surface, while a fourth extended the separate Torbrit Main deposit along strike to the south," McDougall wrote.

Moriarty compared the Kitsault Valley project to Eskay Creek, which historically produced 160 million ounces (Moz) Ag and 3.3 Moz Au, saying its assay results are "absolutely staggering" and the Golden Triangle is "one of the most important districts in the world."

"Dolly Varden is pure silver," he said. "The number of pure silver mines in the world is small — only 30% total."

Ownership and Share Structure

Dolly Varden reports a number of institutional investors. Fury Gold Mines Ltd. (FURY-T) owns 23.37% of the company with 59.5 million shares, Hecla Mining Co. (HL:NYSE) owns 10.62% with 27.04 million shares, 2176423 Ontario Ltd. owns 10.07% with 25.63 million shares, Fidelity Management & Research Company LLC owns 6.68% with 17.00 million shares, and ETF Managers Group LLC owns 2.83% with 7.20 million shares.

Sprott Asset Management LP owns 2.13% with 5.44 million shares, U.S. Global Investors Inc. owns 1.28% with 3.25 million shares, Mirae Asset Global Investments owns 1.16% with 2.96 million shares, DWS Investment GmbH owns 0.29% with 0.75 million shares, and Charteris Treasury Portfolio Management owns 0.2% with 0.5 million shares.

It has 255 million shares outstanding with a market cap of CA$157.68 million. It trades in a 52-week range of CA$0.355 and CA$1.24.

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1. Dolly Varden Silver Corp. is a billboard sponsor of Streetwise Reports and pays SWR a monthly sponsorship fee between US$4,000 and US$5,000.
2. As of the date of this article, officers and/or employees of Streetwise Reports LLC (including members of their household) own securities of Dolly Varden Silver Corp.
3. Steve Sobek wrote this article for Streetwise Reports LLC and provides services to Streetwise Reports as an employee.
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