Omineca Mining and Metals Ltd. has provided an operational update from its Wingdam underground paleoplacer project in British Columbia's Cariboo Mining District, reporting that tunnelling and placer recovery operations have recommenced following a holiday break. The company's mining contractor, D&L Mining, successfully managed challenging ground conditions at a fault zone by implementing modified grout formulations and spiling patterns, allowing operations to return to standard procedures.
This development is significant because overcoming geological obstacles like fault zones is critical for maintaining project timelines and safety in underground mining operations. The successful management of these conditions demonstrates technical capability that could reduce future operational risks and costs. With operations now proceeding in more competent compacted sand and gravel within the channel interior, the company anticipates increased tunnelling and excavation pace.
More importantly, pay gravels excavated from the initial advance into the channel interior have yielded increasing amounts of placer gold and nuggets compared to earlier bedrock contact zones. This indicates that the project is moving into potentially richer gold-bearing areas, which could translate to higher recovery rates and improved economic viability. Placer gold recoveries will be fully tabulated and reported as the crosscut progresses through the central main placer gold target.
Separately from the underground placer project, approximately 3,500 meters of core from six holes drilled during the 2025 winter drill program has been processed, with samples sent for assay. Results from this exploration work will inform future drill programs designed to follow up on findings. This parallel exploration effort is important because it seeks to identify hard rock sources of the placer gold, which could lead to additional mining opportunities beyond the current placer recovery operation.
The operational progress at Wingdam matters because it represents advancement in recovering gold from preserved paleochannel deposits, an approach that could influence mining methods in similar geological settings. The project's location along the Barkerville Highway 45 km east of Quesnel positions it within a historically significant gold region, with the property encompassing mineral tenures totaling over 61,392 hectares and more than 15 linear kilometers of placer claims. For more information about the company's operations, visit https://www.newmediawire.com.
All scientific and technical information in the update has been prepared or approved by independent qualified person Stephen Kocsis, P.Geo., ensuring compliance with National Instrument 43-101 standards. The project's progress through challenging geological conditions while reporting improved gold recovery suggests potential for more efficient resource extraction, which could impact regional mining economics and investor confidence in similar paleoplacer projects.
