Continental Gold Begins Drilling at Buriticá Goldmine in Colombia for First Time in More Than Two Years

Toronto-based mining company Continental Gold Inc. has started drilling in an expansion phase at its Buriticá goldmine in Antioquia. This marks the first time in more than two years that the company is conducting significant exploration efforts at the site, according to Continental Gold’s chief executive.

Three rigs are now operating as a part of the Canadian company’s 15,000-meter exploration campaign, and it plans to add another two rigs to the effort in the third quarter of this year. Continental Gold is expecting to see the initial results of this drilling campaign in September.

Photo: The Higabra Valley tunnel at Continental Gold’s Buriticá goldmine in Antioquia. (Credit: Continental Gold Inc.)

The firm said that it will target locations that it believes have “high-grade gold potential” that have been previously identified by early-exploration work during the past two years. “The aim of the directional drilling program is multifold and will include infill drilling of both probable reserves and inferred resources in order to move them into higher classification categories,” said Continental Gold in a statement. It is also planning to use “step-out drilling” below its Higabra Valley tunnel while searching the nearby mineral reserve blocks.

“We are excited to have drills turning again for the first time in more than two years and expect that future results will continue to be positive,” said Ari Sussman, chief executive officer of Continental Gold. “With both the Yaraguá and Veta Sur deposits wide open for expansion, we are confident that drilling will drive shareholder value as we embark on our next phase of corporate growth.”

Based on a study done by the company, it believes it can recover nearly 3.5 million ounces of gold and more than 6.4 million ounces of silver from the 70,000-hectare Buriticá site.