The fight over Ghana’s illegal gold rush exposes election risks
The environmental damage has triggered a wave of protest in the capital Accra demanding a ban on all small-scale mining operations in places like Tarkwa.
Dakota Gold’s (NYSE-A: DC) step-out drilling at the Maitland gold project has nearly doubled the strike length of modelled Homestake mine-style gold to 1,646 metres, lifting shares during early trading Tuesday.
This year’s 17,000-metre program has completed 73 holes. It returned 49 high-grade intercepts, averaging 3.8 metres at 10.11 grams gold per tonne. The company says this shows the project’s growing potential.
Important holes include MA24C-058 that cut 0.8 metre at 28.1 grams gold from 828.4 metres depth, located 710 metres northwest of the JB Gold zone discovery hole MA23C-017. Other notable results include 1.8 metres at 14.45 grams gold from 1,569.4 metres depth in hole MA23C-032D, and hole MA24C-055 which cut 11.5 grams gold over 1.6 metres from 733.9 metres depth. The mineralization remains open along strike and at depth.
“This confirms that the same mineralizing fluids responsible for the Homestake mine enriched Maitland,” COO Jerry Aberle said in a release. “We’ve surpassed expectations and identified multiple targets, including Blind Gold to the north and the North Drift Discovery to the south, which remain untested.”
The company’s Toronto-quoted shares rose nearly 4% in early trades Tuesday to C$2.19 apiece, having ranged between C$1.84 to C$3.25 over the past 12 months. It has a market capitalization of C$206.3 million.
Dakota’s exploration at Maitland builds on the Homestake District’s legacy. It is home to the historic Homestake mine, which produced over 40 million oz. of gold. It operated continuously for over a century, from 1876 until its closure in 2002, making it one of the most productive and longest-running gold mines in the US.
Dakota will add 145 new drillholes, totaling 45,517 metres, to the resource database. Then, it will release a resource update in next year’s first quarter and a preliminary economic assessment soon after.
This year’s drill campaign aims to expand on an initial resource released in April. It outlined 51.8 million indicated tonnes grading 0.8 gram gold for 1.33 million oz. and 58.1 million inferred tonnes at 0.61 gram gold for 1.1 million ounces.
With high gold prices and strong demand for domestic production, the project benefits from its location on private land that streamlines permitting.
The JB Gold zone is one of three exploration programs Dakota is advancing in the Homestake District. It’s also exploring the Richmond Hill and Unionville zones alongside the JB Gold zone. It shows potential for more mineralization styles, the company said.
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