Golden Star optimistic as Placer tables Omai results

While the completion date for a final feasibility study has been put back to Nov 30, partner Placer Dome Inc. (TSE) has recently announced a mineable reserve estimate from the South American property which Golden Star acquired back in June 1985.

As operator, Placer Dome is financing to the production stage a project which could produce 150,000 oz gold on an annual basis at a cost of about $200(US) per oz.

Drilling results in an area south of the Main Stock zone, which contains a mineable reserve inventory of 30.4 million tonnes grading 1.53 grams per ton, has traced what looks like a new, higher grade zone for over 600 m along strike.

So far, 1,370 m of drilling has been completed on what Placer Dome is calling the Wenot Lake zone and visible gold was identified in all six holes. According to Placer Dome, the drills have outlined at least three steeply dipping, sub-parallel silicious units, interbedded with andesitic tuffs and argillites.

Assay results include 51 m at 3.43 grams, 33 m at 0.96 grams and 36 m at 0.91 grams.

“If Placer Dome can come up with three million tonnes of three grams per tonne in the Wenot Lake zone, there would be no question of going ahead with production,” said Richard Fraser, Golden Star’s vice-president finance. “The good news is that the reserve potential appears to be there.” he said.

While Roman Shklanka, Placer Dome’s vice-president of foreign exploration, is being cautious until more results are in, the latest news from Omai gives him reason for some guarded optimism.

“We hope that it (the new zone) will provide a sweetener in the early years to enhance the economics of the operation and provide additional reserves,” Shklanka told The Northern Miner.

In a bid to evaluate the new zone, which is situated a short distance from a proposed mill site and still open at both ends, Placer Dome will do 2,400 m of diamond drilling and 1,200 m of trenching.

Scheduled to be finished by June 30, a successful drill program would add to the viability of an open pit operation which is governed, thanks to low grades, by economies of scale, Shklanka said.

Preliminary evaluations suggest that the Omai ore could be mined at a rate of around 8,200 tonnes per day or three million tonnes annually. At that rate, Placer Dome would hold a 71.25% stake, while Golden Star retains 23.75%. The Guyanese government would also be carried for a 5% net profits interest.

If the project is operated at less than one million tonnes annually, Placer Dome and Golden Star would each hold a 47.5% working interest but the low grade of alluvial material makes such a scenario unlikely, according to Shklanka.

Pending a positive feasibility study, the joint venture would spend roughly a year and a half constructing a carbon-in-pulp milling facility and bringing in the necessary power supply. Located 50 miles from the nearest town, Omai is separated by the Essequibo River from the nearest access road.

As a result, the joint venture must install a ferry system to transport equipment and personnel in and out of the project site. However, despite the obvious difficulties of working in jungle terrain with little in the way of infrastructure, Shklanka said his company is comfortable and that the local government has been both co-operative and encouraging.

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