04:01 PM EDT, 04/27/2018 (MT Newswires) -- Kirkland Lake Gold (KL.TO) said exploratory drilling at its Macassa Mine in northern Ontario intersected areas of high-grade mineralization, with results as high as 63.8 grams per tonne of gold (gpt) over a 1.4 meter length.

The company said the program involved 17,264 meters of drilling at the mine's 5305-foot level and are outside currently known mineral-resource blocks and 550 m south-southeast of the new #4 shaft, which will be complete in 2022.

"On February 20, 2018 we announced a 58% increase in Measured and Indicated Mineral Resources at the mine, to 2.1 million ounces at an average grade of 17.1 gpt and a 48% increase in Inferred Mineral Resources, to 1.4 million ounces at an average grade of 22.2 gpt," Tony Makuch, the company's chief executive, said in a statement. "The new drill results further increase our confidence that going forward we will see a significant percentage of our Mineral Resource base converted into Mineral Reserves."

Kirkland Lake shares were last seen at $21.80 on the Toronto Stock Exchange, which closed early Friday due to technical issues. The shares touched a 52-week high of $22.28 earlier this month.

Price: 21.80, Change: +0.48, Percent Change: +2.25