SASKATOON, SASKATCHEWAN--(Marketwired - Feb 28, 2018) - Tarku Resources Ltd (TSX VENTURE:TKU) (the "Company" or "Tarku") is pleased to announce it has identified new gold-in-till zones using the preliminary results of exploration work on the Apollo and Atlas projects in the Matagami area of Québec. These results highlight a main area where samples with more than 15 gold grains are concentrated, in addition to three up-ice gold targets that may be the source of the gold grains. The three targets, Apollo XI, Apollo XII and Apollo XV, are considered priorities for the upcoming work phases. They correspond to magnetic highs associated with carbonate-hematite-magnetite alteration along or near the regional gold-bearing Rivière Waswanipi Shear Zone. Julien Davy, president of Tarku, commented "We are very encouraged by these results. They support our interpretation that the gold context of these projects is similar to those of the regional Sunday Lake Deformation Zone, host of the Detour Lake mine and Midland Exploration's new discovery, the Vortex Zone".

To validate historical gold results and to locate the source of gold mineralization, Tarku carried out a till, humus and rock sampling survey in autumn 2017. The gold grain counts for samples collected on both projects ranged from 1 to 47, with 18 samples containing more than 15 gold grains, which is above the regional background level (FIGURE 1). The results also reveal strong zoning and the presence of two areas with elevated gold grain counts (>15), with one particularly significant area in the south-central part of the Atlas Project. "From this area, it is possible to target the magnetic highs and alteration zones of Apollo XI, Apollo XII and Apollo XV which are located up ice of the last documented movement oriented N210º," explained Tarku's exploration manager, Benoit Lafrance. "These observations agree with our exploration model based on orogenic mineralization associated with alkaline rocks and porphyry intrusions."

"We acquired the Apollo and Atlas projects based on several points of geological interests. These include information provided by the most recent mapping of the area and historical results that identified gold grains in glacial deposits," commented Julien Davy, president of Tarku. "The results revealed an area with high numbers of gold grains, which allowed us to concentrate our exploration efforts on specific zones along the Rivière Waswanipi Shear Zone and other promising contacts over a distance of more than 19 kilometres."

Gold grain counting was done by optical microscope on coarse till fractions (> 50μ) and by scanning electron microscope (SEM) on fine till fractions (< 50μ) recovered by the ARTGold™ method (Advanced Recovery Techonology for Gold), an exclusive technology developed by IOS Service Géoscientifiques of Chicoutimi. The ground and helicopter-supported survey of November 2017 yielded 81 till and humus samples providing good coverage of both projects. The final results of the gold grain counts, the metal assays on fine fractions, the pebble counts, and the humus assays are expected over the next few months.

Apollo and Atlas Projects

Using an innovative approach based on exploration models that differ from the traditional approach for this area, Tarku has acquired a large land position with strong potential for gold in the Matagami base metal camp, along the northern margin of the geological Abitibi Subprovince.

The Apollo Project, 100% owned by Tarku, is adjacent to the north of the Atlas Project. It consists of 105 claims (5,550 ha) centred on the Rivière Waswanipi ductile shear zone. This regional structure is characterized by the presence of alkaline rocks, polygenic conglomerates (Timiskaming type) and porphyry intrusions bearing anomalous gold values on the order of hundreds of parts per billion (GM 52712). This corridor, altered to carbonate-hematite-magnetite, contains the Rivière Waswanipi gold showing (2.36 g/t Au over 1 m; GM 51193) hosted in a porphyritic dyke and tuffs altered to pyrite-fuchsite. Collectively, these metallotects present a favourable setting for orogenic gold mineralization associated with alkaline rocks and porphyry intrusions, which Tarku interprets as being similar to those of the regional Sunday Lake Fault, host of the Detour Lake mine. Tarku cautions that the mineralization at the Detour Lake mine or at the Vortex Zone may not be indicative of the mineralization that may be identified on the Company's Matagami projects and is used as a conceptual exploration model only.