Guyana boasts a rich history of gold mining, now shifting focus to its largely underexplored regions with significant potential for major discoveries.
The nation’s mineral wealth lies within the Guiana Shield, a vast geological formation spanning over 900,000 square kilometers across northeastern South America, renowned for its deposits of gold, diamonds, bauxite and iron ore. This formation, extending into neighboring countries like Venezuela, Brazil, and Suriname, hosts an estimated 110 million ounces of discovered gold.
This lucrative environment has attracted both large-scale international companies and small-scale artisanal miners, with the latter contributing approximately 70% of the nation’s total gold output. Noteworthy large-scale operations include Omai Gold Mines Corp’s past-producing gold mine and Zijin Mining’s Aurora project, alongside ongoing explorations by Troy Resources and G2 Goldfields Inc.
Despite its long-standing gold mining history, vast areas of Guyana remain untouched by modern exploration techniques. Coupled with a stable government and mining-friendly regulations, the country presents unique opportunities for discovering Tier-1 deposits.
In north-central Guyana, the Oko West project—recently acquired by G Mining Ventures Corp through its takeover of Reunion Gold—shows great promise. A Preliminary Economic Assessment (PEA) released in September revealed an after-tax net present value (NPV) of $1.4 billion, an internal rate of return of 21%, and a payback period of 3.8 years at a consensus gold price of $1,950 per ounce. The project is projected to average annual gold production of 353,000 ounces over 12.7 years at an all-in sustaining cost of $986 per ounce. G Mining Ventures plans to follow up the PEA with a feasibility study slated for the first quarter of 2025.
Nearby, Tajiri Resources’ Yono project has yielded promising results from recent preliminary reconnaissance sampling. Samples taken from quartz float and colluvium near inactive artisanal workings returned a range of anomalous gold values, suggesting potential mineralization in the area. In the northeast corner of Yono, gold values ranged from 0.09 grams per ton (g/t) to an impressive 800 g/t.
In southwestern Guyana, Golden Shield Resources is advancing its Marudi Mountain project, a 54-square-kilometer land package located on the prospective Marudi Greenstone Belt. The company recently reported high-grade findings from its 2024 diamond drill campaign, including 4.16 g/t of gold over 23 meters at Mazoa Hill and 3.01 g/t of gold over 25 meters at Pancake Creek.
With projects like Oko West, Yono, and Marudi Mountain demonstrating promising results, Guyana’s underexplored areas and favorable mining conditions position the country for potential world-class gold discoveries.
