Mining for precious metals has traditionally happened in very specific regions of the world. And the State of Oregon was not widely considered to be one of them due to their regulatory hostility towards the sector.
This created a situation where mining companies actively avoided Oregon, leading to a lack of exploration and no new discoveries, which reinforced the misperception.
But that is changing now. And Provenance Gold (CSE:PAU | OTCQB:PVGDF) is betting that Eastern Oregon will soon play a significant role in the future of gold exploration.
What’s happening:
- Provenance Gold is exploring a historically gold-rich parcel of land in Eastern Oregon known as the Eldorado property, which they acquired under an option to purchase from Gold Royalty (NYSE:GROY)
- The Eldorado property is within a mining friendly region with strong historical data, including over 240 drill holes that suggest it could host significant gold mineralization
- This historic data led Provenance to undertake the most significant effort to drill the Eldorado property in decades, with positive results
Why it matters:
- Paramount Gold (NYSE: PZG) recently became the first mining project in Oregon to receive a a positive completeness determination from the State authorities, enabling them to move ahead with bringing their mine into full production
- This approval marks a significant change in the regulatory attitude towards mining in Oregon and the potential for major gold discoveries to be turned into operating mines
By the numbers:
- Provenance’s flagship Eldorado property in eastern Oregon has data on 242 historical holes, historical trenches and a large number of surface samples
- Throughout the history of the Eldorado property more than 21,866 meters of drilling has occurred, plus extensive trenching, soil sampling, geophysics and more
- Provenance recently drilled 11 holes, totalling 1,446 meters
Going deeper:
- Provenance is expecting to announce the full drill summary on all 11 drill holes in the coming weeks
- Drill holes released to date have been impressive with the latest (hole 11) intersecting 118.9 meters (390 ft) of continuous strong gold mineralization starting at surface with thick high-grade gold intervals
- The drill results have been highly anticipated as they are starting to verify and expand on the voluminous historical work that outlined a pre-NI-43101 large-open-ended gold system on the property and to confirm that Eldorado could become the newest gold discovery in Oregon
Summary: A pioneer of modern gold exploration in Eastern Oregon, Provenance Gold (CSE:PAU | OTCQB:PVGDF) is well positioned to leverage the region's rich historical data and the recent positive shift in state-level regulatory support for the mining industry. With gold prices hitting all time highs and many analysts predicting a continued gold bull market, Provenance Gold could stand to benefit by entering Oregon ahead of other junior gold exploration companies, developing advanced drill projects, and building a pipeline of potential catalysts.