Omai Gold Mines, which has started a 5,000-metre drilling programme in the Wenot pit in Region Seven, has announced the presence of high-grade gold in the first two holes that extend at least 100 metres below.
The announcement was made by Omai Gold Mines in a statement on Wednesday, and it follows promises from the company last year that it would conduct its drilling campaign early in 2021.
According to Omai, its current drill programme is focused on expanding the open put potential of Wenot, which has produced 1.8 million ounces of gold up to a depth of 190 metres.
Chief Executive Officer of Omai Gold Mines, Mario Stifano, was quoted as saying: “We are pleased with our assay results from the first two holes we drilled at Omai, that complement the assay results we announced in February.
“These results demonstrate that the grades and thicknesses of gold mineralisation continue at least 100 to 150 metres below the historically-producing Wenot Pit, and remain open to depth and on strike. We look forward to updating our stakeholders with further results from our 5,000-metre drill programme in the coming months,” he also said.
Omai Gold Mines Limited (OGML) which returned to the Wenot and Fennell pits at the Region Seven (Cuyuni-Mazaruni) site in 2020 after leaving Guyana in 2015, had announced in December that it would be pressing forward with the 5000-metre drilling programme.
It was only last November that Omai Gold Mines, which is aiming to reclaim its place as Guyana’s top gold producer, had announced the impending resumption of trading on the Toronto Stock Exchange, following the recent reverse takeover of Avalon Investment Holdings.
The company has also got a new Board of Directors, including Stifano, Denis Clement, Adam Spencer and Paul Fornazzari; Executive Director and Founder Harvey McKenzie; Chief Financial Officer and Secretary Denis LaPoint; Vice President of Exploration, Jason Brewster, and Vice President of Operations, Nadine Miller.
There has been a flurry of gold finds over the past few months. In February, Gold X Mining, another Canadian company, found gold in the Toroparu mine during its now concluded diamond drill programme, resulting in the company launching phase two of its drilling.
The company had said it was able to use historical drill data to encounter “significant” gold concentrations within and below the Toroparu main resource pit. According to the company, these gold structures are likely to be accessed by shallow and underground mining.
Gold X Chief Executive Officer Paul Matysek had said at the time that the results from the drill testing exceeded the company’s expectations and will form the basis for their phase 2 diamond drill programme. It is expected that results from phase two of the drilling programme would be available by the second quarter of 2021.
In November of last year, Australia-based mining company Alicanto Minerals also announced its first-ever gold find in Guyana. According to Alicanto, it discovered a maiden resource of 500,000 ounces of gold at its Arakaka gold mine, which is located in Region One.
According to the company, this works out to 1.8 grammes per tonne (g/t) of milled ore.
According to the company, previous exploration work done by Newmont and Barrick Gold Corp provided them with the necessary data inclusive of geochemistry, geophysics, and camp infrastructure. According to Alicanto, this all provided them with an excellent platform for discovering gold.
Their announcement came shortly after Troy Resources announced that it had found gold deposits underground. According to the company, it found some 15 grammes per tonne of milled ore at its Karouni, Smarts Underground Mine in Region Two.
