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Nevada’s Walker Lane Gold Trend Ripe for Discovery – Gold Investing News – Tertiary Minerals #TYM
Some of the world’s most important gold mining districts are found in Nevada’s three major northwest trending belts: the Carlin trend, the Cortez trend and the Walker Lane trend.
Together these three trends have contributed the most to the nearly 170 million ounces of gold produced in Nevada between 1835 and 2018. While Nevada’s long gold mining history and prolific production may lead some to believe all the low-hanging fruit has been picked, there still exists plenty of upside and the potential for new discoveries in the Walker Lane trend.
Nevada: Where the world goes for gold
Nevada ranks as the world’s third top mining jurisdiction and fifth largest gold producer. The state owes its top dog status to its immense mineral wealth, well-established infrastructure and stable regulatory environment. Transparent, easy-to-navigate regulations and permitting processes, and an attractive tax regime with a low net profits tax and no income tax are all very inviting for the world’s gold miners. Global giants Newmont Mining (NYSE:NEM), Barrick Gold (TSX:ABX,NYSE:GOLD) and Kinross Gold (TSX:K,NYSE:KGC) all have producing mines in the state.
Walker Lane gold trend: Future of gold mining in Nevada
The Carlin trend may have generated the most heat in the Nevada desert over the past decades when it comes to gold, but most of the best properties are already controlled by majors Newmont, Barrick and Kinross. The high cost of exploring for the often blind and deeper targets that remain on the trend is a big turn off for junior explorers. Today’s mineral exploration companies looking for the next big play are staking claims in one of the state’s other prominent gold trends, the Walker Lane, which offers less expensive exploration with the added upside of plenty of blue sky potential in a relatively underexplored landscape with known high-grade potential.
The north-west trending Walker Lane, one of the largest structural lineaments in Nevada, has played an integral role in the history of the state beginning with the 1859 discovery of the Comstock Lode, representing 8.5 million ounces of gold and about 400 million ounces of silver. The lure of all that wealth led to the gold rush that would eventually build up Nevada’s population enough to earn statehood in 1864.
Unlike the Carlin trend, where most mines are producing ore of less than a gram of gold per tonne, Walker Lane stands out with exceptional high-grade assays. In fact, Walker Lane hosts a number of high-grade districts including Tonopah and Goldfield. Also in the region is Kinross’ Round Mountain mine, which produced approximately 437,000 ounces of gold equivalent in 2017. The giant gold mine’s current reserves plus past production total 29 million ounces of gold. Other prolific mines in the area include Mineral Ridge with 4 million ounces of gold and 6.4 million ounces of silver; and Bullfrog with 3.7 million ounces of gold and 4.6 million ounces of silver.
Promising projects in the Walker Lane gold trend
A few recent successes at Walker Lane include Northern Empire’s US$90 million acquisition by Coeur Mining (NYSE:CDE) in 2018 on the basis of the Sterling gold project, which hosts four distinct deposits including a fully-permitted, open-pit mine set to become one of the highest-grade heap leach mines in the Western United States.
Corvus Gold (TSX:KOR,OTCQX:CORVF) is focused on its near-term North Bullfrog and Mother Lode gold-silver mining projects near Beatty, Nevada. Results from exploration drilling at Mother Lode continue to show high potential for expanding the deposit and raising the possibility of identifying a much larger mineralization system. Corvus’ success has attracted C$2 million in additional funding for resource expansion programs at both Mother Lode and North Bullfrog.
Newrange Gold’s (TSXV:NRG,OTC Pink:NRGOF) Pamlico gold project represents another high-grade, district-scale opportunity on the Walker Lane trend. The project includes the historic Pamlico Mines on Pamlico Ridge, together with the Central, Sunset, Good Hope, Gold Bar and various unnamed mines and prospects. The 1,670-hectare property has been in private hands since 1896 with less than half of 1 percent of the property ever touched by a modern exploration drill. Newrange acquired Pamlico in 2016 and since then has launched an aggressive exploration campaign which has resulted in numerous drill intercepts of near surface oxide gold mineralization to 340 grams gold per metric tonne.
Newrange is advancing the project toward a resource estimate. In February 2019, the company completed preliminary metallurgical testing which achieved gold extractions as high as 97.1 percent and calculated head grades as high as 79.4 grams gold per metric tonne. These grades were substantially higher than what was originally indicated by drill sample assays, suggesting the potential for a much larger and potentially heap leachable gold system at Pamlico.
Brand Communications – Tertiary Minerals (AIM: TYM) announced that it had secured exploration rights and an option to purchase a group of claims in the Pyramid Mining District of Nevada on May 28th 2019. The project is located 25 miles northwest of Reno and is easily accessible by sealed highway. Full details here
Takeaway
The recent discoveries and continued resource expansion along Nevada’s Walker Lane gold trend is a great example of what the state’s mineral largess still has to offer for gold exploration companies and their shareholders.
The ECR Minerals investment case keeps growing as gold continues to shine in Australia – Harry Dacres-Dixon
ECR Minerals investment case keeps growing as gold continues to shine in Australia
by Harry Dacres-Dixon
- Gold prices on the up
- Australia breaks production record
- ECR Minerals promising portfolio
- New Non-Exec Director to strengthen ECR board
- A quality portfolio in a first world operating environment
Gold hits March high
Gold has extended its price gains for March, hitting $1,322.48(XAU/USD) at the end of Monday, it’s highest price since February 28th. This growth reflects safe haven demand as investors hedge against worsening global market conditions as a result of creeping concerns over an economic recession in the US, the continued contraction of the German manufacturing sector and the ongoing Brexit saga.
Image courtesy of BP Trends
Gold started 2019 strongly, rising above $1,340 on the 19th of February, before prices temporarily crashed down to $1,292 on the 1st of March. The yellow metal has since gone on to shine again, last week posting its third consecutive weekly gain. No real surprise for some though: these returns are simply in line with numerous bullish forecasts for 2019.
Asset management firm Altana Wealth wrote in a note to clients; “We are entering a period of high uncertainty for fundamentals and risk assets and if this were to heighten further, gold could break out substantially, helped by safe-haven flows, lower yields and expectations of a possible return to quantitative easing,” (Reuters).
INTL FCStone analyst wrote; “The dollar has been a bit weaker along with equities. A lot of macro numbers we have been getting have been deteriorating sharply. Central banks, which are already dovish, will be more dovish, which is good for gold,” (Reuters).
Meanwhile Business Insider revealed that central banks have bought more gold than at any time since the end of World War II, as the commodity becomes an increasingly valuable hedge against growing global instability.
2019 set be a record breaker for Australian gold production?
Australia’s gold production hit a record high of 317 tonnes in 2018, according to gold consultancy firm Surbiton Associates who valued the production at A$17.3 billion at the average spot price.
The previous record of 314.5t was set back in 1997. But with 2019 set to be another big year for Australian production, we may not be waiting long for a new record number.
While global gold production in 2019 is expected to be stable, outputs in Australia-Oceania, Europe and Africa are expected to rise.
New Australian production in 2019 is expected to come from a number of projects, including Gold Fields and Gold Road Resources new 300,000oz per annum Gruyere mine in Western Australia and Kirkland Lake Gold’s Fosterville mine in Victoria, which is en-route to a record year of around 600,000oz of gold production for 2019 (Mining Journal);
Australian gold miners have also benefited from the twin effect of rising gold prices and falling value of the Australian dollar. Evolution Mining, Northern Star Resources and Newcrest Mining have also seen their share prices pushed higher (Forbes).
Australia’s biggest gold producer, Newcrest Mining, revealed last month that it had raised its ‘underlying profit in the six months to December 31st by 104% to $168 million ($A237 million) thanks to a 6% increase in gold production and a 13% reduction in costs’ (Forbes).
ECR Minerals quality portfolio
Another company making moves in Australia is AIM listed precious metals exploration and development company ECR Minerals (AIM:ECR).
Focusing their attention on the Central Victorian Goldfields and the Yilgarn Craton in Western Australia, ECR have amassed a growing portfolio, which has not gone unnoticed by the mining industry and investing community, particularly following the appointment this month of Australian mining industry veteran Sam Garrett to the board.
Following oversubscribed fundraising initiatives in 2018, coupled with expected R&D rebates from the Australian government, cash balances are strong and see ECR fully funded through to Q2 2020.
Central Victoria Projects
ECR currently holds five highly prospective projects located geologically within the major orogenic Lachlan Fold Belt in the historically prolific Central Victoria region.
These are Avoca (EL5387) and Bailieston (EL5433) held since 2016; Timor (EL006278) and Moormbool (EL006280) since 2017; and Creswick (EL006184) since early 2018. ECR also applied for three additional tenements around Bailieston and one near Creswick at the end of 2018.
ECR’s Victoria projects are sited close to mines and projects owned by some of the largest gold producers in the world. Fosterville, Australia’s fifth largest gold producer is located just 50km to the west of the Bailieston project, while Newmont Mining has applied for a mining license on ground adjacent to ECR’s Bailieston project.
Drilling Announcements
In Q1 2019, ECR currently has two ongoing drilling campaigns across three prospects in the Victoria region.
The company announced on the 28th of February that a combined 2,461 metres of reverse circulation drilling had been completed in less than a month at the Creswick and Bailieston Blue Moon prospect.
Subsequently high grade gold assay results were reported from the Blue Moon prospect at the Bailieston gold project. Significant intersections reported include 2 metres @ 17.87 g/t gold from 57 metres down hole in BBM007 within a zone of 15 metres at 3.81 g/t gold from 51 metres.
ECR CEO Craig Brown commented: “These results quantify the field geologists’ assessment of visible gold at Blue Moon during drilling of BBM007 and provide great encouragement for the Company and the Bailieston gold project
To achieve an intersection of 17.87g/t gold over 2 metres is notable. But also of significance is that this was part of an intersection of 15 metres at 3.81g/t gold from relatively shallow depth”
ECR also announced on the 4th March that an additional 250 meters of rotary air blast drilling had been completed at the Company’s Black Cat prospect in the Bailieston project area. The 10 target holes were drilled immediately south of territory included in the Newmont Mining license application.
ECR expands Windidda gold project, WA
Despite the high profile nature of their Victoria projects, ECR have remained both ambitious and strategic in their exploration plans. The company announced at the beginning of January that it had applied for 9 new exploration licences covering approximately 1600 km2 in the Yilgarn region, Western Australia.
At the time, Craig Brown said he expected the license applications to be approved within the next three to six months.
The Yilgarn Craton geology is extensively documented. The region is known to host around 30% of the world’s known gold reserves and produces two-thirds of all gold mined in Australia. Unsurprisingly the area attracts more than half of Australia’s minerals exploration expenditure.
As such, ECR have been very lucky to pick up such prospective potential undercover greenstone acreage, in one of the world’s most productive gold provinces.
Sam Garrett ECR’s new Non-Exec Director commented; “This is one of the great provinces of the world and as a consequence the ground position is pretty much flooded, it’s almost impossible to acquire ground.”
New Non-Exec Director to strengthen ECR board
As already stated, ECR announced the appointment of Sam Garrett as the new Non-Executive Director at the end of February, a move that brings substantial credibility to ECR and significantly strengthens the team led by Craig Brown.
With 30 years of exploration management, project assessment and operational experience working for large multi-national and junior mining and exploration companies in ten countries, Mr Garrett is an excellent addition.
Craig Brown commented:“Sam brings extensive geological experience onto the board, not just in Australia but also in South America and the Philippines, where the Company has existing business interests.
The timing of Sam’s appointment is key, as we look to rapidly advance our existing interests and continue to identify new strategic acquisition opportunities.”
A quality portfolio in a first world operating environment
With the yellow metal firmly back in the spotlight and likely to stay put, going digging for gold looks like a no-brainer option for investors, with Australia probably offering the richest cross section of opportunities at this time. With a highly educated workforce, the latest technology, fantastic infrastructure and a pro mining government, Australia is the premier destination for doing business when it comes to gold.
If you’re looking for a gold small cap with experienced management, strong finances and sites that have the potential to deliver big then ECR looks a great buy. Their exciting Victoria projects have already began to demonstrate their huge potential, whilst additional sites in an in demand Western Australia offer a massive opportunity and great potential upside for the company.
‘The company is well resourced and planned exploration only makes a relatively small dent in funds. This implies little to no dilution in the short term. Therefore we have rated ECR Minerals as a Long position with a 12-month target price of GBP 2.5 pence’ (Hallgarten & Company).
References
- FXStreet– Gold Price Forecast: Why it is rising on US recession fears and the big levels to watch
- Bullion Vault– Gold Prices Start 4th Week of Gains as US Yield Curve Inversion Signals Recession
- Reuters– PRECIOUS-Gold hits 3-week high as global growth fears lift safe-haven appeal
- Bloomberg– Industry Insiders Bullish on Gold, Forecast of $1585
- Business Insider– Central banks are buying the most gold since the end of World War II — here’s why
- Mining Journal– New high for Australian gold output
- Kitco– Global Gold Mining Expected To Remain Stable In 2019
- Forbes– Rising Gold And Falling Currency Delivers Strong Profits For Australian Gold Miners
- Brand Communication– Gold Drilling Update – Creswick & Blue Moon Australia
- Brand Communications – High Grade Gold Assays from Drilling at Blue Moon Prospect Victoria, Australia
- Brand Communications– ECR Minerals plc (ECR) Gold Drilling Update – Bailieston Black Cat Prospect Victoria Australia
- Brand Communications– Central Victoria gold rush revival continues as ECR Minerals applies for licensing at an additional four sites following Newmont’s application a few weeks ago
- Brand Communications– Windidda gold project to further expand ECR Minerals’ #ECR Australian gold portfolio
- Brand Communications–ECR Minerals #ECR – Experienced Geologist Sam Garrett joins ECR Board as Non-Exec Director
- Hallgarten & Company– Initiation of Coverage Research Report for ECR Minerals
Windidda gold project to further expand ECR Minerals’ #ECR Australian gold portfolio
Windidda gold project to further expand ECR Minerals’ Australian gold portfolio
by Harry Dacres-Dixon
- ECR expand into Western Australia
- Yilgarn Craton: Australia’s premier mineral province
- An exciting prospect for ECR
- Independent research – 2.5p price target
At the beginning of last month the precious metals exploration and development company, ECR Minerals (AIM:ECR), revealed it had applied for 9 new exploration licences in the Yilgarn region of Western Australia.
Named the Windidda gold project, the applications represent another major push forward by ECR following their successful strategic financings in July and December last year. ECR is now fully funded to develop its burgeoning asset portfolio through to June 2020.
The Windidda land package will complement the company’s already extensive gold portfolio in Victoria, as they press forward with their mission to deliver shareholders the next multi-million ounce gold resource. The Windidda applications, which lie east of the town of Wiluna, cover a total of 523 graticular blocks representing roughly 1,600km2of the Yilgarn Craton.
The area is highlighted as holding the potential to contain significant Archean greenstones, which are known for hosting many of Australia’s and the world’s richest gold deposits.
Craig Brown, CEO of ECR said “I am particularly pleased to announce this strategic move into Western Australia, which, like Victoria, has exceptional gold exploration potential in a first world operating environment.”
“Greenstone-hosted gold trends in the Western Australian Yilgarn province are very tightly held and access to free ground, when it becomes available, is highly competitive.
“So it is very encouraging that ECR has managed to compile a large land position of contiguous tenements covering untested gravity-magnetic anomalies representative of potential greenstone-hosted gold trends.”
Previous exploration in the area has focused on base metal and manganese deposits only. However, pre-existing data from these projects will enhance ECR’s opportunities here.
“There was some work completed in the 1980s and 1990s but they were looking for nickel at the time, and they also found molybdenum. So one of the first things we’re going to do is go over that old information. Because nobody’s ever looked for gold here” says Brown.
This was in part due to the potentially mineralised rocks lying under cover, however ECR believes this cover to be shallow and are hopeful the drilling will be relatively straightforward. ECR plan to use aircore drilling across gravity-magnetic anomaly targets to allow for rapid assessment of the potential for gold mineralisation.
Brown says;“The best way to test it is to do aircore drilling. It’s very cheap at around A$40 or A$50 per metre, including assaying costs, so our plan is to do an aircore programme once we’ve reviewed the existing data.”
This under-cover greenstone gold exploration model has been successfully tested by Greatland Gold (LON:GGP) at its Ernest Giles project located approximately 125 kilometres east of ECR’s Windidda project.
Yilgarn Craton: Australia’s premier mineral province
Evidenced as containing the oldest crust on earth and abundant Archean greenstones, Australia’s Yilgarn Craton is one of the world’s most important gold provinces.
The region has had a history of significant gold production for over a century. Since the 1980s the Yilgarn Craton has re-emerged as one of the world’s premier gold-producing areas and the site of some exceptional exploration successes.
For three decades since 1979, the Archean Yilgarn Craton has sustained a tenfold increase in production and along with Nevada its growth has outperformed all other parts of the world. Across this period over 8000t gold (270 Moz) in the Yilgarn Craton have been discovered. To put this success into perspective, no region has ever had an equivalent period of gold discovery except for South Africa immediately after 1886 and again around 1930–1940s (Phillips et al, 2019).
The Yilgarn Craton is host to around 30% of the world’s known gold reserves and produces two-thirds of all gold mined in Australia. Unsurprisingly the area attracts more than half of Australia’s minerals exploration expenditure.
Many of the richest gold deposits in the world, including Kalgoorlie’s Golden Mile, are hosted in the Yilgarn’s greenstone belts. These exposed packages of ancient volcanic and sedimentary rocks have been metamorphosed over millions of years.
At almost 4km long, 1.5km wide and 500 metres deep, the world-famous Kalgoorlie Super Pit alone produces up to 800,000 ounces of gold per year. The Super Pit is owned by Kalgoorlie Consolidated Gold Mines Pty Ltd, a company owned 50:50 by the two of the world’s largest gold mining companies Barrick Gold and Newmont Mining.
Other significant gold deposits in the Yilgarn include Mount Charlotte, Norseman, Wiluna, Sunrise Dam, Sons of Gwalia, St Ives-Kambalda, Tarmoola and Wallaby
Greatland Gold’s Ernest Giles project, which at 2,000sq km extends over a slightly bigger area than ECR’s Windidda, is believed to hold the potential to deliver the discovery of large +5 million ounce gold camps and 5-10Mt nickel deposits. Meanwhile, Blackham Resources Ltd’s Wiluna mine has produced over 4 million ounces of gold from 20 open pits and 3 underground mines.
In addition to gold, the Yilgarn hosts approximately 20% of the world’s nickel reserves, 80% of the world’s tantalum reserves, and considerable iron ore, copper, zinc and minor lead reserves.
An exciting prospect for ECR
Located in the world-class mining region of Western Australia, known for holding Archean greenstones, ECR’s latest Windidda project looks an exciting addition to an already promising portfolio in Australia. The region’s rich history of producing significant gold deposits and continued expansion over the last 3 decades provides firm evidence of the ongoing potential for new entrants.
“It looks like very prospective territory. Everybody regards Western Australia as a very promising area to work in,” said Brown
The new site will compliment ECR’s Bailieston, Moormbool, Creswick, Timor and Avoca projects. ECR’s Bailieston and Moormbool projects received instant validation of their prospectivity in November after Newmont Gold applied for a license adjacent to Bailieston. ECR also announced last week that an initial four holes had been successfully drilled at its Creswick gold project, with additional drilling also underway at the Black Cat prospect within the Bailieston gold project area.
Independent research – 2.5p price target
This veritable hive of activity is further underpinned by the rising gold price. The yellow metal hit a 7 month high as it broke through the $1,300 mark last Friday, which helps put ECR’s paltry market cap of just £3.7m firmly in bargain territory.
This view is echoed by Hallgarten Equity Research, who in a research note published on February 12th 2019 said; “With over GBP 1.2m in the bank as at the end of last year and R&D rebates expected in from the Australian government, the company is well resourced and planned exploration only makes a relatively small dent in funds. This implies little to no dilution in the short term. Therefore we have rated ECR Minerals as a Long position with a 12-month target price of GBP 2.5 pence.”
Sources:
Blackham Resources: http://blackhamresources.com.au/wiluna-mine/
Brand Communications:
http://www.branduk.net/ecr-minerals-ecr-drilling-update-creswick-gold-project-australia/
ECR Minerals: https://www.ecrminerals.com/investors-media/presentations/download?path=ECR%2BWindidda%2BAu%2BProject%2BPresentation.pdf
Geology for Investors: https://www.geologyforinvestors.com/gold-archean-greenstone-belts/
Greatland Gold: https://greatlandgold.com/ernest-giles/
Phillip, G., J.Vearncombe, J., Eshuys, E. (2019). Gold production and the importance of exploration success: Yilgarn Craton, Western Australia. Ore Geology Reviews. Volume 105. Pp. 137-150. https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0169136818306425
Proactive Investors: https://www.proactiveinvestors.co.uk/companies/news/211826/ecr-minerals-moves-into-western-australia-211826.html
Hallgarten Equity Research:
Many of the larger gold deposits of the Archean Yilgarn Craton (Davis et al, 2010) are associated with granite-cored domes. ‘These provided an architecture that focused fluid metals into the upper crust’s depositional sites.’
Financial Times – Wary investors drawn to gold’s allure
Central-bank buying pushes prices higher after two tough years for gold bugs
Henry Sanderson and Neil Hume JANUARY 16, 2019
If gold is anything to go by, investors are increasingly anxious about the state of the world.
Volatile equity markets and fears of a global economic slowdown have helped gold rally 10 per cent from its August lows, putting it among the best performing metals over that period.
It is a sharp contrast to much of the past two years, when rising US interest rates, a strong dollar and buoyant equity markets hurt gold bugs and the shares of miners such as Barrick Gold, Newmont Mining and Goldcorp. And when there was a correction in US stocks in early 2018, the gold price failed to benefit.
Almost a year on, the big question is whether 2019 could prove a profitable year to own gold, which is typically bought as hedge or haven by investors. The amount of physical gold in exchange traded funds has risen to 71.9m ounces, close to the record high of 72m touched in May 2018.
“We haven’t seen flows like this since the first half of 2016 — when the gold market really took off,” says Joe Foster, a portfolio manager at VanEck in New York.
“There seems to be a change in sentiment and investor psychology. People are waking up to the fact that we are late in the economic cycle and we could be ending [it] in the next year or two. That brings more risk into the system; that’s why gold is moving up.”
Those flows, along with investors covering their bets against gold, have helped the yellow metal’s price recover from the 18-month low of below $1,200 a troy ounce touched last August.
Analysts say there are a number of reasons to think the gold price can break through the $1,300 mark and push higher.
These include still-fragile stock markets, the expectation that the Federal Reserve will hold off from interest-rate increases this year, and a weaker dollar, which makes the metal more appealing. Rising US rates have been a drag on gold since the metal provides no yield.
Goldman Sachs, one of the most influential banks in commodity markets, raised its gold forecast last week and now expects a gold price of $1,425 over the next year.
“To take a view on gold, you have to first take a view on broader markets,” said Tom Holl, BlackRock portfolio manager, natural resources. “If we continue to see elevated levels of macroeconomic uncertainty and risk adversity, then gold will probably continue its positive momentum.”
Some investors believe rising concerns over US debt levels could sharpen gold’s allure, according to John Hathaway, a senior portfolio manager at Tocqueville Asset Management in New York.
Last week, Fitch Ratings warned that a continued government shutdown in the US could lead to a credit downgrade on the country’s debt, which is rated AAA by the agency.
“The US is beginning to sport a debt-to-GDP ratio worthy of any banana republic,” says Mr Hathaway. “We believe that exposure to gold is both timely and potentially rewarding.”
Higher levels of debt will also make it hard for the Fed to raise rates and tighten monetary policy, adds Trey Reik, a senior portfolio manager at Sprott Asset Management in Connecticut.
“I do think the dollar is in the midst of a long-term weakening,” he says. “You cannot raise rates with that much debt in the system without causing economic collapse.”
The buying of gold by central banks is also at its highest level since 2015, as many authorities remain keen to diversify away from the dollar. Standard Chartered estimates that central banks bought 500 tonnes of gold last year. China was among the buyers, adding almost 10 tonnes, following more than two years of unchanged holdings.
“While Russia, Kazakhstan and Turkey dominate central bank purchases, a host of other central banks entered the official sector gold market last year,” says James Steel, chief precious metals analyst at HSBC.
Mr Steel notes that the list includes Hungary, which had been out of the gold market for decades, with the exception of modest purchases in 2017. The central bank of Poland also purchased gold for the first time in many years, he adds.
However, the multiple disappointments for gold bulls over the past year leave some wary. Gold has not breached the $1,300 level since June.
While ETF holdings have risen to their highest level in five years, traders in the futures markets have not yet placed significant bets on higher prices, according to ICBC Standard Bank, a unit of China’s largest lender.
“On the one hand this does present an opportunity for gold prices to move higher still, if investor length now comes into the market,” says ICBC analyst Marcus Garvey.
“However, on the other, it begs the question as to why this has not yet happened, given the number of catalysts already present. If any of the recent tailwinds for gold were to abate, it increases the likelihood for a period of price consolidation.”
Central Victoria gold rush revival continues as ECR Minerals applies for licensing at an additional four sites following Newmont’s application a few weeks ago.
- Newmont Mining and ECR Minerals join Central Victoria gold rush revival
- Fosterville mine in Victoria expected to break production record
- Untouched potential in Victoria
- ECR Minerals fully funded through to June 2020 following strategic financing round
In recents weeks it was revealed that world’s second largest gold producer Newmont Mining (NYSE:NEM) had applied for the licensing of a large area of land in Victoria, bordering ECR Minerals (AIM:ECR) Bailieston and Moormbool gold projects.
ECR have responded by announcing four new license applications that will expand two of their existing holdings in the Victoria region. These include three strategically placed sites in the Bailieston/Moormbool project area which lie south and south west of the area Newmont recently applied for. It also includes an area that will expand the highly promising Creswick project over a southern portion of the Dimocks Main Shale (DMS) – which is believed to sit between two historically significant mining areas, estimated to have produced 15 million ounces of gold.
For ECR, Newmont’s application to move in next door was without a doubt further encouragement of the huge potential of their existing sites and appears to have encouraged them to move fast and extend licensing in strategic areas in the Victoria region.
ECR CEO Craig Brown said that the application submitted by Newmont bordering Bailieston and Moormbool gold projects “is an important ratification of our strategic Australian gold positioning.”
The presence of Newmont certainly adds weight to the potential prospectivity of the area. Brown added that ECR’s exploration work at Bailieston “has recently demonstrated gold prospectivity as highlighted by the results of our Bailieston sampling programme announced on 28 September 2018 with gold grades up to 67.4g/t.”
Victoria Gold Rush Revival
While the licenses all remain pending, the moves support what appears to be a highly promising revival for gold mining in the Victoria region.
Early this year Melbourne Mining Club chairman Richard Morrow told the The Australian Mining Review “The success of Kirkland Lake Gold at Fosterville has really lifted the profile of Victoria as a place to find gold, especially high-grade, underground mineable gold” (Australian Mining Review). The statement came after an estimated 1.7 million ounces worth approximately $2.85 billion was discovered at the mine in 2017 (Premier).
In November, Kirkland Lake Gold revealed the Fosterville mine located just 30km away from ECR’s Bailieston project had produced “exceptionally high grades”, with the mill grade in Q4
2018 averaging over 35.0 grams per tonne. Fosterville is now expected to break its own record quarterly production in the fourth quarter of 2018, pushing full-year predictions up to 330,000 ounces (Mining.com). Beyond this, it expects to achieve over 500,000 ounces per year by 2020.
Fostervilles ongoing success and the latest applications from ECR and Newmont certainly seem to support Richard Morrow’s statement. If accepted they will continue to push Victoria back into the spotlight amongst gold miners – a position it’s not held since the famous Victoria gold rush in the early 1850s.
Untouched potential in Victoria area
The 1850’s gold rush saw production skyrocket in Victoria as thousands of miners moved to the area after strong mineralisation was discovered in Ballarat in 1851. Levels were so significant that for a number of years gold output in Victoria exceeded that seen anywhere else in the world, bar the more extensive fields of California. Victoria’s greatest yield for one year was in 1856, when 3,053,744 troy ounces of gold were extracted.
However, by the early 1860s most diggers had moved North to New South Wales, then Queensland and across to Western Australia (WA), which now produces the majority of Australia’s gold. Despite this short period of extensive mining the state has still produced over 2,400 tonnes of gold or 32 percent of all the gold mined in Australia and 2 per cent of all the gold ever mined in the world. While WA has produced more, with 3,275.8 tonnes, much of this has been thanks to the booms of the last two decades where new technology has enhanced the discovery and extraction of gold.
WA has also undergone six separate development phases since the 1890s compared to Victoria’s initial rush in the 1850s as well as its current phase. However, contrasted on a yield per area basis, Victoria has an order of magnitude greater than any other Australian state producing an average of 10.8kg of gold / km2. Generating these significant levels of gold in such a period of time, without much of today’s technology would suggest the area remains full of potential – as the recent reports from Fosterville and ECR suggest.
If the old saying ‘the best place to find gold is in the shadow of the headframe of an old mine’ holds true then ECR are ideally placed to make the most of this golden opportunity. As well as Bailieston, they have licences granted in Avoca (EL5387), Timor (EL6278), Moormbool (EL6280) and Creswick (EL6184). As seen on the map above, all of these projects lie within close, if not direct proximity to historical sites known for significant levels of gold mining since the 1850s. These include; Ballarat, which ‘at its peak between 1852-1853 was recognised as probably the richest alluvial goldfield in the world, the Mt Alexander field at Castlemaine which in December 1851 was yielding 23,000 oz of gold a week, Creswick as already highlighted, as well as, Maryborough and Maldon (Earth Resources).
ECR Minerals fully funded through to June 2020
ECR has kicked off 2019 in style, signalling it’s ambitions to become a major Australia gold explorer with the announcement on January 2nd 2019 that it has applied for nine new exploration licences in an area called the Windidda gold project in Yilgarn, Western Australia. The Yilgarn Craton contains evidence of the oldest crust on Earth, and at almost 4km long, 1.5km wide and 500m deep, it’s world-famous Super Pit produces up to 800,000 ounces of gold per year alone.
There appears to be an overwhelming tide of evidence, both current and historical supporting further exploration and development at Central Victoria. While the Newmonts and Fostervilles will continue exploration and production at their own rate, based on the recent reports of high yields and strong yield per area results, it is ECR Minerals with 5 licensed sites and a host of additional plots pending that could be the investment opportunity of the century, and in pole position to capitalise on the untouched potential of Central Victoria. Clearly investors and shareholders think so too: ECR announced a strategic financing round, which together with warrants and shares totalling GBP1.77m will see the company fully funded to pursue operations through to June 2020. Directors Craig Brown and David Tang
both participated in the financing round. Either way, ECR investors could be sitting on a gold mine in the not so distant future.
By Harry Dacres-Dixon
References:
Australian Mining Review – http://australianminingreview.com.au/mining-in-victoria-good-as-gold/
Brand Communications – http://www.branduk.net/ecr-minerals-ecr-new-licence-applications-australian-gold-portfolio/
Earth Resources – http://earthresources.vic.gov.au/earth-resources/geology-of-victoria/exhibitions-and-Imagery/ history-mining-victoria
Mining.com – http://www.mining.com/kirkland-lake-golds-aussie-operation-breaks-production-record/ Premier – https://www.premier.vic.gov.au/bendigos-billion-dollar-gold-rush/
Value the markets – http://www.valuethemarkets.com/index.php/2018/11/15/exclusive-newmont-mining-secures-li cense-area-next-ecr-minerals-baileston-gold-project/
Geology for Investors – https://www.geologyforinvestors.com/gold-archean-greenstone-belts/
Kirkland Lake Gold – https://www.klgold.com/news-and-media/news-releases/default.aspx
Other companies http://kzr.com.au/wp-content/uploads/austocks/kzr/2018_06_20_KZR_1529488920.pdf