Shallow drill results show promise for expanding the San Albino mine in Nicaragua
Mako Mining’s (TSXV: MKO; US-OTC: MAKOF) shares in Toronto stayed flat Wednesday despite reporting double-ounce gold drill results at Las Conchitas near its San Albino mine in Nicaragua.
The ongoing 45,000 metres drill campaign targeted the Intermediate vein at Las Conchitas North, which is immediately next to the company’s sole operating asset. The highlight intercept was 82.6 grams gold per tonne over 2 metres at 46.5 metres depth. The company says the drill results could add to the near-term mine plan, while high-grade results from previously undrilled areas further away hold more discovery promise.
“These drill results further confirm the potential to expand high-grade mineralization in areas where we are currently mining,” CEO Akiba Leisman said in a news release. “What’s particularly exciting is the high-grade results from our regional exploration program. Most of these samples come from areas that have never been drilled before, and we’re already preparing to begin drilling these promising targets.”
In the El Golfo Area, 3 km south of San Albino, results include 62.2 grams gold and 71.2 grams silver over 1 metre, 86.80 grams gold and 111 grams silver over 1 metre, and 21.65 grams gold and 33.4 grams silver over 3 metres. In the Santa Rosa Area, 5 km east of San Albino, channel samples returned 358.6 grams gold and 87.9 grams silver per tonne over 1 metre, and 141.6 grams gold and 13.1 grams silver over 0.4 metre.
Shares gained a lacklustre 0.6% in intraday trading to C$3.15 before settling at C$3.12, giving it a market capitalization of C$245.8 million. Shares touched C$1.16 and C$3.74 in the past 12 months.
Guyana pivot
Mako operates the high-grade San Albino gold mine in Nicaragua, which recovered 34,982 oz. last year. The company intends to use San Albino cash flows to fund the 66,500 oz. per year (over 15 years) Eagle Mountain development in Guyana, which it acquired through the Goldsource Mines acquisition in March.
Mako expects to produce 42,819 oz. gold in 2024. San Albino began production in the second quarter of 2021.
Other results from the Intermediate vein also include 19.31 grams gold and 43.4 grams silver per tonne over 4 metres. In Las Conchitas South, the Las Dolores vein produced 16.83 grams gold and 26.4 grams silver over 6 metres, while the El Limon vein cut 12.27 grams gold and 7.1 grams silver over 3 metres.
The regional reconnaissance program also delivered impressive results, with samples from the El Golfo and Santa Rosa areas yielding gold grades as high as 358.6 grams gold per tonne over 1 metre.
San Albino holds a measured and indicated resource of 670,100 tonnes grading 11.6 grams gold and 16.5 grams silver for 250,200 oz. and 355,000 oz. of metal, respectively. Eagle Mountain hosts indicated resources of 31.1 million tonnes at 1.18 grams gold per tonne for 1.2 million oz of metal.
The company next plans to undertake about 10,000 metres of drilling for underground development starting later this year.