International Prospect Ventures Announces Agreement to Acquire 50% Interest in 8 Properties in the Pilbara Craton, Western Australia

VAL-D'OR, QUÉBEC--(Marketwired - Nov. 14, 2017) - International Prospect Ventures Ltd. (TSX VENTURE:IZZ) (the "Company") is pleased to announce that it has entered into an agreement with a New South Wales, Australia company (the "Joint Owner"), pursuant to which the Company and the Joint Owner will jointly acquire certain mining claims located in Western Australia (the "Claims"), each with an undivided 50% interest. The Joint Owner will be responsible for arranging to have had the Claims acquired, registered and held in good standing. The Company will pay all of the costs of acquiring the Claims, and other related costs including the costs of initial technical compilations and program reviews. The parties will arrange for an initial technical compilation and program review on the Claims in order to allow the parties to establish a joint venture arrangement on or around December 31, 2017, if warranted.

The Company and the Joint Owner have staked 8 properties to date, in an area Southeast of Karratha, Western Australia, covering a total area of approximately 927 sq-km. The acquisition strategy involved a review of known geology and historical exploration results, and a focus on coarse-grained conglomerate host rocks at, or in proximity to, a prominent and well-documented geological unconformity.

Several early-stage gold discoveries in the area southeast of Karratha, have been reported by Novo Resources Corp. (NVO) from several properties ("Comet Well" and "Purdy's Reward"; and near Marble Bar and Nullagine at "Beaton's Creek") and separately by two Australian listed companies, De Grey Mining ("Louden's Patch") and Artemis Resources Ltd. (JV with Novo Resources and other 100% owned properties). Collectively, these gold discoveries appear to indicate a potentially gold-rich district, analogous in broad geological terms to the Witwatersrand Basin and its related clastic sedimentary-hosted gold deposits.

The Pilbara Craton

The Early to Late Archaean Pilbara Craton, a 600 kilometre-wide portion of ancient crust, underlies the northwestern region of Western Australia. Comprising igneous and metamorphic basement rocks that formed over 3.1 billion years ago, the Pilbara Craton is thought to have been previously connected with the Kaapvaal Craton that underlies much of South Africa. When connected, these two cratons formed the Vaalbara supercontinent and between 3.1 and 2.7 billion years ago, layers of terrestrial sedimentary and volcanic rocks were deposited across the Vaalbara. In South Africa, these sedimentary and volcanic rock units make up the Witwatersrand and Pongola basins and in Australia similar sedimentary and volcanic rocks make up the Hamersley Basin. Sometime following deposition (~2.7 billon years ago), the Vaalbara continent broke apart, separating the Kaapvaal Craton (South Africa) from the Pilbara Craton (Australia). While not identical, there are strong geological similarities between the South African Kaapvaal Craton/Witwatersrand Basin and the Australian Pilbara Craton/Hamersley Basin.

The Witwatersrand Basin

The primary gold-bearing clastic sedimentary rocks that make up the gold deposits of the Late Archaean Witwatersrand Basin, referred to as conglomerate, were deposited in ancient rivers, streams and oceans. Subsequent physical and chemical processes over time, introduced gold into the "reefs" that are mined in South Africa. Although there is still no consensus on how and when the Witwatersrand gold deposits formed, most geologists who have studied the Witwatersrand Basin are persuaded by the strong sedimentological controls on gold distribution and so favour palaeoplacer models for gold deposition. More than 1.6 billion ounces of gold have been mined from the conglomerate beds (gold reefs) of the Witwatersrand Basin.

The Hamersley Basin and Fortescue Group

The Late Archaean-Palaeoproterozoic Hamersley Basin and related sub-basins formed on an older granite-greenstone basement (Pilbara Craton) during the initial stages of Late Archaean continental rifting. The Fortescue Group, which ranges in age from 2.8 to 2.6 billion years, unconformably overlies the granite-greenstones of the Pilbara Craton and is commonly compared to the Ventersdorp Supergroup of the Witwatersrand Basin in South Africa. Gold-bearing conglomerates have been identified by Novo Resources Corp. at several stratigraphic levels in the Fortescue Group (e.g., within the Nullagine sub-basin). Similarities between palaeoplacer deposits hosted by conglomerates in the Fortescue Group and the gold-bearing reefs mined in South Africa have been recognized for over a century.

The Nullagine Sub-basin

The Nullagine sub-basin formed on an older granite-greenstone basement during the initial stages of Late Archaean continental rifting and formation of the more extensive Hamersley Basin. Alluvial gold was first discovered in the Nullagine sub-basin in 1886 and by 1893 the Nullagine region had become a major gold field. A hard-rock source for alluvial gold deposits at Nullagine was identified in 1895. In recent years, gold-bearing conglomerates have been identified at several stratigraphic levels in the Fortescue Group within the Nullagine sub-basin, including the recent work by Novo Resources.

In 2016, approximately 45 kilometres south of the town of Karratha, metal detectorists ("fossickers") discovered several areas that were particularly rich in gold nuggets. Metal detectorists have been active along an 8-km long corridor underlain by conglomerate horizons that are part of a 50-100 metre thick sequence of sedimentary rocks at the base of the Fortescue Group. It's interesting to note that this sequence of sedimentary rocks does not appear on most geological maps. Recently, prospectors discovered gold nuggets in-situ, within outcrops of conglomerate, verifying an origin for gold nuggets.

Dr. Scott Jobin-Bevans (Ph.D., PMP, P.Geo.), a Director of the Company, is the Qualified Person (as that term is defined in National Instrument 43-101 - Standards of Disclosure for Mineral Projects) who has reviewed this news release and is responsible for the technical information reported herein.

The Company also announces that Dimitri Maniatis has resigned as a director of the Company. The Company thanks Mr. Maniatis for his services and wishes him the best in his future endeavours.

Forward Looking Statements:

This news release contains certain statements that may be deemed "forward-looking statements. Forward looking statements are statements that are not historical facts and are generally, but not always, identified by the words "expects", "plans", "anticipates", "believes", "intends", "estimates", "projects", "potential" and similar expressions, or that events or conditions "will", "would", "may", "could" or "should" occur. Although the Company believes the expectations expressed in such forward-looking statements are based on reasonable assumptions, such statements are not guarantees of future performance and actual results or realities may differ materially from those in forward looking statements. Forward looking statements are based on the beliefs, estimates and opinions of the Company's management on the date the statements are made. Except as required by law, the Company undertakes no obligation to update these forward-looking statements in the event that management's beliefs, estimates or opinions, or other factors, should change.

Neither TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this news release.