The Northern Miner has compiled the five projects recording the top gold intersections (grade multiplied by width) globally in December 2016, as reported publicly, using the IntelligenceMinedatabase of our sister company Infomine. All five projects and companies are different than the ones highlighted in our November report.
1. ERDENE RESOURCE DEVELOPMENT
Mongolia-focused gold explorer Erdene Resource Development (TSX: ERD) takes top spot withdrill results reported on Dec. 19 from its Altan Nar gold-polymetallic project in southwest Mongolia.
Location map of Erdene Resource Development’s Altan Nar gold-polymetallic project in southwest Mongolia. Credit: gps-coordinates.net.
Map of Erdene Resource Development’s gold targets in southwest Mongolia. Credit: Erdene Resource Development.
Hole TND-101 intersected 110 metres grading 9.3 grams gold per tonne(or 1,018.6 metres × grams gold per tonne), 32 grams silver per tonne, 1.4% combined lead-zinc including 14 metres of 55.6 grams gold, 131 grams silver and 5.56% combined lead-zinc.
“Hole TND-101 was heavily mineralized from surface to 170 metres depth, and includes the highest grades and most continuous zone, laterally and vertically, intersected to date at Altan Nar,” Erdene president and CEO Peter Akerley commented in a release. “The results are a testament to what detailed exploration can uncover as we continue to test new targets at Altan Nar and throughout the district, while advancing our flagship gold project at Bayan Khundii.”
However, Erdene makes clear hole TND-101 was drilled to test a conceptual target at the intersection of a northwest-trending fault with the main northeast-trending shear zone in the project’s Discovery zone, at a “low angle to the mineralized DZ trend” and so doesn’t represent the mineralized zone’s true width, which is unknown. Related nearby holes have indicated a true width of the northeast-trending mineralized zone of 25 to 35 metres.
Based in Halifax, N.S., Erdene has been exploring and developing precious and base metal prospects in Mongolia’s Edren Terrane since 2009.
Erdene’s Bayan Khundii, Altan Nar and Altan Arrow projects all have a 2% net smelter return royalty held by Sandstorm Gold (TSX:SSL; NYSE-MKT:SAND), with a buy-back option to reduce it 1%.
See more here in Erdene’s sleek new corporate video:
2. NEVSUN RESOURCES
Drilling at the Timok copper-gold prospect by Reservoir Minerals in 2012. Credit: Reservoir Minerals.
Map of Nevsun Resources’ Cukaru Peki copper-gold deposit at its Timok project in Serbia. Credit: Nevsun Resources.
Number two on the top gold hit list — and not even counting its high copper content — is Nevsun Resources’ (TSX: NSU; NYSE-MKT: NSU) newly acquired, prefeasibility stage Timok copper-gold project in eastern Serbia near the venerable Bor mining and smelting complex.
The Timok copper- gold project consists of the massive to semi-massive sulphide mineralized Cukaru Peki Upper Zone (100% owned by Nevsun) and the porphyry-style Lower Zone (a joint venture with Freeport-McMoRan [NYSE: FCX]).
In results released on Dec. 7, Nevsun tallied four stellar new massive and semi-massive sulphide intersections in the Upper Zone:
- 171 metres grading 4.94% copper and 5.21 grams gold per tonne (or 889.88 metres × grams gold per tonne) in hole TC160114;
- 98.8 metres of 9.82% copper and 8.86 grams gold (878.63 metres × grams gold per tonne) in hole TC160117;
- 182 metres of 4.17% copper and 4.80 grams gold (875.04 metres × grams gold per tonne) in hole TC160121 ; and
- 86 metres of 9.47% copper and 8.83 grams gold (845.55 metres × grams gold per tonne) in hole TC160119.
December 2016 drill results at Cukaru Peki at Nevsun Resources’ Timok copper-gold project in Serbia. Credit: Nevsun Resources.
Timok’s Upper Zone hosts 1.7 million tonnes of indicated resource grading 13.5% copper and 10.4 grams gold per tonne, plus 35 million inferred tonnes grading 2.9% copper and 1.7 grams gold.
Nevsun says another 18,500 metres of drilling is in progress to further improve confidence in the resource.
See more about Timok in Nevsun’s corporate video: https://vimeo.com/173926603
3. OSISKO MINING
Looking at drill core at Osisko Mining’s Windfall Lake gold project in northern Quebec. Credit: Osisko Mining.
Osisko Mining’s (TSX: OSK) early stage Windfall Lake gold project in northern Quebec’s Urban Township slides into third spot, with results released on Dec. 5 from an ongoing 150,000-metre drilling program.
The best new hole was W-16-760, which intersected 5.7 metres (from 226 metres) grading an uncut 148.00 grams gold per tonne (843.60 metres × grams gold per tonne), or 65.00 grams gold when cut to 100 grams gold per tonne.
The latest round of drilling is part of an expansion program that includes step-out drilling up to 800 metres northeast of the main deposit.
See a 3D visualization of the Windfall Lake deposit in Osisko’s corporate video:
Drilling at Osisko Mining’s Windfall Lake gold project in northern Quebec. Credit: Osisko Mining.
Map of Osisko Mining’s Windfall Lake gold project in northern Quebec. Credit: gps-coordinates.net.
Osisko plans to carry out 250,000 metres of drilling in 2017, which would bring total drilling at the project to 400,000 metres.
Osisko raised another $14 million in mid-December by private placing 4.43 million flow-through shares at a price of $3.15 per share, with Dundee Securities acting as sole agent.
4. GOLDEN STAR RESOURCES
Golden Star Resources drilling at a gold property in Ghana in 2014. Credit: Golden Star Resources.
Golden Star Resources (TSX: GSC; NYSE-MKT: GSS) takes fourth spot with a golden intercept at its operating Wassa gold mine in southwestern Ghana, which has been transitioning from an open-pit mine to a high-grade underground operation. Golden Star started mining from underground in July 2016 and declared first commercial production effective Jan. 1, 2017.
As announced on Dec. 5, the first nine holes of an in-fill drilling program targeting the high grade B Shoot zone of Wassa Underground returned an intersection of 31.7 metres (from 297 metres) grading 23.75 grams gold per tonne (752.88 metres × grams gold per tonne) in hole BS16DD009.
Other highlights are 8 metres (from 57 metres) of 13.9 grams gold in hole BS16DDD002 and 18.7 metres (from 323 metres) of 4.25 grams gold in hole BS16DD004.
Location map of Golden Star Resources’ Wassa gold mine in Ghana. Credit: gps-coordinates.net.
The Toronto-based firm anticipates that gold production will continue to ramp up during 2017 as mining begins to access the higher-grade B Shoot area of the Wassa Underground orebody.
Golden Star expects to have produced at least 100,000 oz. gold in 2016, but will release its full year results later in January, as well as new reserve and resource number during the first quarter of 2017.
5. OCEANAGOLD
OceanaGold’s new Haile gold mine in South Carolina. Credit: OceanGold.
Global gold miner OceanaGold (TSX: OGC) tabled some strong drill results from its new Haile open-pit gold mine in South Carolina as part of a wider report on its exploration activities in the U.S., New Zealand and the Philippines.
In the Dec. 12 press release, the company highlighted a recently completed 66-hole infill drilling program at the Horseshoe deposit at Haile with significant intercepts including: 16.6 metres (from 439 metres) grading 29.90 grams gold per tonne (496.34 metres × grams gold per tonne) in diamonds drill hole 578; 72.3 metres (from 403 metres) at 5.0 grams gold in hole 557; and 43.1 metres (from 392 metre) at 9.5 grams gold in hole 573.
OceanaGold says the results of the exploration program at Haile will be a major input into an optimization study currently underway and on schedule for completion in mid-2017.
A cross-section of OceanaGold’s Haile gold mine in South Carolina and its various gold zones, looking northwest. Credit: OceanaGold.
Location map of OceanaGold’s Haile gold mine in South Carolina. Credit: gps-coordinates.net.
The company started milling ore at Haile on Dec. 29, and plans to produce 150,000 to 170,000 oz. gold at Haile in 2017 at all-in sustaining costs between US$500 and US$550 per oz. gold.
As of late December there were 675,000 tonnes of ore stockpiled on surface including 275,000 tonnes grading 2.3 grams gold of sulphide ore, 245,000 tonnes grading 0.6 gram gold oxide ore and 155,000 tonnes grading 1.1 grams gold of transitional material.
The company has also announced the permanent closure of its Reefton gold mine in New Zealand, which had been put on care and maintenance in early 2016. Reclamation activities at the site will take several years to complete, the company says.