Jr. Miner Set to Resume Pursuit of Placer Gold-Bearing Channel

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Omineca Mining and Metals Ltd. (OMM:TSX.V; OMMSF:OTCMKTS) announced it is set to restart mining and gravel extraction at its Wingdam placer gold project in British Columbia's historic Cariboo Mining District.

The company said the steel tunnel liner plate sections needed for the restart have arrived on-site, and preparations are being made.

"Tunneling operations will be restarted in the open crosscut drift where coarse placer gold was recovered in the most recent breakthrough into the paleochannel," Omineca said in a release. "As previously reported, the dry condition of the paleochannel allows for conventional mining and tunneling methods using steel tunnel liner in place of the more complex grouted spiling ground support technique."

Omineca said this change to the steel tunnel liner provides "cost, safety, and execution time advantages, as well as additional security to year-round operations regardless of wet or dry conditions at surface."

The Saskatoon, Saskatchewan-based junior exploration company is pursuing 2.4 kilometers of a rich, placer gold-bearing channel buried 50 meters underneath Lightning Creek in Cariboo.

Geologist Stephen Kocsis has described the channel as "containing some of the highest placer gold concentrations historically reported in all of the Cariboo mining district and perhaps British Columbia that remains unmined."

Research Capital Corp. Analyst Bill Newman, in a September research report, noted the new mining method "is more efficient and cost-effective compared to the previous grouted spilling method."

"This positive development reinforces our Speculative Buy recommendation," wrote the analyst, who put a target price of CA$0.55 on the stock. "Success in this exploration could position OMM as both a placer and hard rock gold producer, significantly enhancing the project's value."

In Search of 'Juicy Targets'

In its release, Omineca said the change to steel tunnel liner provides cost, safety, and execution time advantages, as well as "additional security to year-round operations regardless of wet or dry conditions at surface."

The company said it would provide further updates as workers advance into the channel toward the central portion where the highest concentrations of placer gold are known to settle.

"The current plan is to continue tunneling and processing gold-bearing gravels across the full width of the channel followed by excavation both up and downstream within the central portion of the old riverbed," the company said.

In September, Omineca announced it had initiated its 2024 Phase 1 drilling program of about 3,000 meters in eight holes at the gold project.

In May, the company announced it had recovered gold-bearing gravels from the project: 10.25 ounces of placer gold (Au) with 90.9% Au purity from the first 2.5 meters of advance into a paleochannel.

Omineca said it has selected drill pad locations for this year that are nearer to the bottom of the Lightning Creek Valley to bring the drill rig closer to any potential lode deposit system near the paleochannel floor.

Chris Temple, author of The National Investor newsletter, wrote at the time that the company was set to "excavate on numerous fronts/areas."

"The team has learned and done a lot in this area," Temple wrote. "As (President and Chief Executive Officer Tom) MacNeill explained to me, more examination of how outcropping rock formations have 'folded,' etc., — together with what has been found more recently as D&L has excavated channels, etc. and found gold IN the bedrock and elsewhere — has suggested that juicy targets are actually somewhat lower in elevation than thought."

The Catalyst: A Good Time to Buy Gold?

Gold has had a big year so far, outperforming many other assets in recent months fueled in a large part by economic uncertainty and global instability, CBS News reported Wednesday.

After hitting a new record high last week, gold's price began to fall shortly after the U.S. presidential election.

"This post-election plunge, which marked a three-week low, caught many investors by surprise and sparked speculation about what lies ahead for gold's price," CBS' Angelica Leicht wrote. "While some investors might be wary of the price drop, viewing it as a sign of instability, others see it as a potential entry point."

Experts have agreed they don't expect the current bull market to recede. Recently polled London Bullion Market Association members indicated they believe the gold price could reach US$2,940/oz during 2025, reported Stockhead on Oct. 28.

"Combined with expectations of lower global interest rates, this further enhances gold's attractiveness as an investment," the article noted.

As for gold equities, the S&P/TSX Venture Composite Index (SPCDNX) confirmed a bull run for junior, intermediate, and senior mining stocks when it closed above 1,000 recently, Stewart Thomson with 321Gold wrote. The index is a key indicator of the health of the general gold, silver, and mining stocks market.

Ownership and Share Structure

The company is 31% owned by insiders and management, according to the company. The rest is retail.

Top shareholders include 49 North Resources Inc. with 25.31%, Sprott Asset Management LP with 5.05%, President and CEO Thomas MacNeill with 4.34% and Chief Financial Officer/Director Andrew Davidson with 2%, according to Reuters.

Omineca has 180 million shares outstanding.

The company's market cap is CA$11.8 million, and its 52-week price range is CA$0.04−0.14 per share.