Avion drills 21.4 g/t Au over 6.2 m at Tabakoto South

2010-09-23 07:41 ET - News Release

Mr. Michael McAllister reports

AVION GOLD CORPORATION: TABAKOTO SOUTH INTERCEPTS EXPAND EXTENT OF HIGHER GRADE GOLD ZONES

Avion Gold Corp. has provided new drill results for the area just south of the Tabakoto pit. This area hosts the Tabakoto South trend northeast-trending cross-structures that, combined, have been traced for 450 metres along strike and to 250 metres depth. Intercept highlights include the following:

• 9.09 grams per tonne gold over eight metres;
• 17.86 g/t Au over 2.4 metres;
• 21.4 g/t Au over 6.2 metres;
• 16.86 g/t Au over 5.7 metres;
• 80.86 g/t Au over 2.3 metres.

The Tabakoto South trend lies approximately 260 metres southeast and is parallel to the NE1 zone described in Avion's news release in Stockwatch dated Sept. 9, 2010. Within this trend, two coherent, partially overlapping zones of higher-grade mineralization have been identified: the Tabakoto South and Dabo zones. A summary of drill hole intercepts are presented in a table.

The Tabakoto South zone was tested with 14 holes in 2010 and has been traced for approximately 300 metres along strike to 275 metres below surface, and is open to depth. This year's program has demonstrated that higher-grade portions of the zone are predictable along a moderate-to-steep east plunge and that the zone is open downplunge. Two of the deepest holes returned intercepts of 16.86 g/t Au over 5.7 metres and 5.06 g/t Au over 5.6 metres.

The Dabo zone has been traced for approximately 250 metres along strike to 250 metres depth and is open downplunge below the deepest hole which returned 11.83 g/t Au over 9.2 metres. Drilling to extend this zone downdip and along strike to the west did not extend the zone.

The Tabakoto South and Dabo zones lie along a four-kilometre-long northerly trend that is cut by both northeast-and northwest-trending cross-structures that often host high-grade gold mineralization. These structures are the focus of Avion's Tabakoto pit area exploration plans and underground mine development at Tabakoto. Exploration in 2010 has focused drilling on seven of these cross-structures, in the immediate Tabakoto pit area. Two additional cross structures are highlighted in this release.

Subsequent exploration updates on the remaining two major cross-structures are planned once the drilling is completed and the results are available. Future Tabakoto area exploration will continue to focus on systematically defining the known cross-structures and tracing them along strike and downplunge.

Drilling also intersected several other cross-structures with an intercept of 6.8 g/t Au over four metres in hole T-10-36 and a fourth zone near the top of the hole T-10-47 where an intercept of 1.89 g/t Au over 5.7 metres was returned. Drilling will be required in order to determine the strike extent of these mineralized intercepts.

John Begeman, Avion's president and chief executive officer, stated: "As expected, the cross-structures continue to return exceptional drill results and demonstrate that the mineralized system is still open to depth and that the potential for the discovery of new zones is high. Avion's management believes that continued exploration will continue to turn up new structures that can potentially add to our ability to increase our overall resources."

In 2010, Avion has completed over 440 core and reverse circulation drill holes totalling approximately 53,300 metres of drilling at its Tabakoto and Hounde properties. This work has focused predominantly on the Dioulafoundou, Tabakoto, Djambaye II, Segala and Vindaloo areas. Drilling will recommence on the Hounde property, Burkina Faso, which Avion is in the process of acquiring (see news release in Stockwatch dated July 5, 2010), in October, 2010, with approximately 4,000 metres of drilling planned. Drilling is planned for the Kofi property, Mali, once the concession permits are transferred to Avion (see news release in Stockwatch dated March 31, 2010).

Assays presented in the table have been capped at 32 g/t Au as per the latest technical report on the Tabakoto deposit. Avion's procedures for handling core have been presented in previous news releases (see for for example Avion's news release in Stockwatch dated May 13, 2010).

Don Dudek, PGeo, the senior vice-president, exploration, of the company and a qualified person under National Instrument 43-101, has reviewed the scientific and technical information in this press release.

            AVION 2010 TABAKOTO SOUTH AREA INTERCEPTS

                             Core     True
                           length    width     Au Capped 32
Hole      From (m)  To (m)     (m)      (m)   g/t    g/t Au            Zone

T-10-25       4.5     5.2     0.7      0.4   23.5      23.5  Tabakoto South
T-10-26     245.1     247     1.9      1.4   3.17      3.17  Tabakoto South
T-10-26     264.5     266     1.5            0.86      0.86
T-10-27     130.3   138.3     8.0      5.0   9.09      8.43  Tabakoto South
T-10-28     129.6     132     2.4      1.8  17.87     17.87  Tabakoto South
T-10-29     125.3   126.8     1.5            2.42      2.42
T-10-29     130.0   132.5     2.5        2  18.51     17.21  Tabakoto South
T-10-29     182.2   183.5     1.3             2.7       2.7
T-10-29                                 NV                             Dabo
T-10-35     161.3   167.5     6.2      4.0   21.4     21.32  Tabakoto South
T-10-36     154.0     158     5.6      3.5   5.06      5.06      New zone 1
T-10-36     287.6   288.1     0.6            3.55      3.55
T-10-36     298.4   299.4     1.0            6.21      6.21
T-10-36     303.4     309     5.6      3.5   5.06      5.06  Tabakoto South
T-10-37      88.8    90.3     1.5            1.46      1.46
T-10-37     123.5   125.8     2.2            2.41      2.41
T-10-37     265.5  271.15    5.65      3.3  16.86     16.19  Tabakoto South
T-10-38     165.5   167.5     2.0            2.83      2.83
T-10-38     240.0   242.5     2.5            1.03      1.01
T-10-38     261.1   261.6     0.5      0.3   18.8      18.8  Tabakoto South
T-10-38     275.8   276.9     1.1            1.67      1.67
T-10-39      16.5    17.9     1.4            1.08      1.08
T-10-39      92.9    94.9     2.0            2.53      2.00
T-10-39     207.0     209     2.0      1.2   4.94      4.94  Tabakoto South
T-10-40     149.7   150.3     0.6            1.23      1.23
T-10-40     152.9   153.4     0.5      0.3   2.21      2.21  Tabakoto South
T-10-41      48.3   49.25    0.95            1.09      1.09
T-10-41      99.8     110    10.2            0.38      0.38
T-10-41     123.0     125     2.0            0.55      0.55
T-10-41     125.0   127.3     2.3      1.8  80.86     12.79  Tabakoto South
T-10-42     219.8   220.6     0.8            4.62      4.62
T-10-42       242   243.9     1.9      1.5    2.7      2.70  Tabakoto South
T-10-42     280.5   282.2     1.7            4.77      4.77
T-10-43     124.0  125.25    1.25             1.7      1.70
T-10-43                                 NV                   Tabakoto South
T-10-47      46.0    51.7     5.7            1.89      1.89      New zone 2
T-10-47                                 NV                             Dabo
T-10-48                                 NV                             Dabo