Omai Gold logs high grades as resource update looms

Recent drilling by Omai Gold Mines (TSXV: OMG; US-OTC: OMGGF) returned results as high as 27.5 metres grading 2.63 grams gold per tonne in the Wenot deposit at its Omai project in central Guyana.

That assay, in hole 25ODD-116 from 115 metres depth included 9.5 metres at 4.68 grams gold and 8.3 metres grading 1.15 grams gold, representing a newly discovered gold zone, Omai reported on Thursday. The company’s namesake project is about 165 km south-southwest of the capital Georgetown.

“We are excited that we are still discovering new gold zones around our large Wenot deposit,” Omai CEO Elaine Ellingham said in a release. “The [25ODD-116 discovery] effectively extends the known gold mineralization to the northwest and opens the possibility of extensions both east and west into areas that have seen little drilling.”

High grade momentum

The discovery follows similarly high grades reported earlier in the spring and in advance of a resource update for Wenot expected in the third quarter.

The zone pierced by hole 25ODD-116 from the south side of the western portion at Wenot starts at a vertical depth of 315 metres and lies outside the area delineated by last year’s resource estimate.

Since a significant amount of the Wenot resource sits inside the western area, it could be suitable for a starter pit if it goes into production, according to the company.

Another noteworthy result, in hole 25ODD-106 at Central Wenot, cut 21 metres grading 2.64 grams gold from 133 metres depth, including 16.5 metres at 1.62 grams gold and 17.1 metres grading 1.18 grams gold.

Drilling also intersected 9.5 metres at 4.87 grams gold from 260 metres depth at Central Wenot, including 9.9 metres grading 1.45 grams gold.  

The results are from 15,639 metres of drilling across 24 holes this year, more than the initial 15,000 metres the company had planned. Drilling is ongoing with two rigs at Wenot and one further north at Gilt Creek.

Significant resource

Wenot hosts 17.5 million indicated tonnes grading 1.48 grams gold for 834,000 contained oz., and 25.18 million inferred tonnes at 1.99 grams gold for 1.6 million ounces, according to the resource from January 2024.

Omai envisions Wenot as a potential open pit mine with 1.84 million oz. of production over a 13-year life and 142,000 oz. per year, according to a preliminary economic assessment released in April last year.

At a spot gold price of $2,200 per oz., the project would have an after-tax net present value (at a 5% discount) of $777 million, a 24.7% internal rate of return, and a payback period of 3.5 years. Initial capital costs are pegged at $375 million and sustaining capital at $172 million over the mine’s life.

Omai shares fell 1% to 46¢ apiece on Thursday morning in Toronto, for a market capitalization of $280.9 million. The stock has traded in a 12-month range of 10¢ to 51¢.