RE:RE:RE:GGO - MAY PRESENTATIONOpen pit is still hard rock mining that requires drilling, blasting, haulage and milling, also very labor-intensive, even after moving a square kilometer of 20 foot layer of overburden ( dirt, trees, etc).
It's something you see more with lower-grade ore. They seem to have found a pocket of higher-grade for their bulk sample Do the math: Estimated 2200 oz of gold at 2300/oz. That's enough to pay for all the further exploratory drilling they want to determine the exact dimensions of the ore body. The bulk sample will also pay for an open pit later. They'll also know better where to go. It costs the same money to drill, blast and process waste rock.