Proactiveinvestors United Kingdom Patagonia Gold newswires

Patagonia Gold says it's on track for gold production target of 200,000 ounces a year by 2015

Wed, 25 Apr 2012 08:50:00 +0100

Patagonia Gold (LON:PGD, TSE:PAT) achieved rapid progress in 2011 and is on track towards its goal of
producing 200,000 ounces of gold per year by 2015.

So said chairman Sir John Craven, as the mining explorer unveiled results for the year to December 31 last year.

He told investors that in 2011, it completed more than 61,000 metres of drilling - double the amount drilled in 2010 and the total indicated resources were raised to 1.3 million ounces of gold equivalent.

Exploration expenditures increased to US$18.7 million in 2011 from US$7.2 mln in 2010.

"We focused exploration at our flagship Cap-Oeste Project while at the nearby high-grade COSE gold project we paved the way for an intensive mine development schedule that aims for gold production to begin in early 2013.

"Meanwhile, at our Lomada de Leiva Project, we achieved gold production at a surface mine and pilot heap leach pad and are preparing to quadruple its processing capacity in 2012 to full commercial production," he said.

The pilot project at Lomada operated successfully at an initial capacity of 50,000 tonnes last last year and during this year it will be raised to 200,000 tonnes, the firm said.

By early 2013 Lomada is expected to be producing 21,000 ounces of gold a year at an average cash cost of $325 per ounce.

At that level, it will be generating sufficient cash flow to fund all exploration drilling at the Santa Cruz properties for a mine life of at least seven years, it said.

Meanwhile, mining at the firm's second major project, after Cap-Oeste, COSE is scheduled to begin in early 2013.

This is expected to start generating revenue in Q2 2013, and over the subsequent 12 months, COSE will partly fund development of Cap-Oeste into production, said the firm.

An ambitious 80,500 metre drill program is in progress at Patagonia's properties in Santa Cruz with 40,500m planned at Cap-Oeste.

Other prospective locations within the same Tranquillo block and within mine trucking distance will be drilled, including COSE, Monte Leon, La Pampa, La Marciana, Vetas Norte and Don Pancho, said the firm.

Patagonia will also continue exploration on other prospects including La Manchuria, as well as regional targets Sarita, El Bagual and Bajo Pellegrini.

The firm posted a loss for the year of US$33.1 million compared to a loss of US$11.2 mln in 2010.

As at the 2011 year-end, Patagonia had $10.9 million in cash and cash equivalents, it said.

"Patagonia Gold is well on its way to achieving its growth objective of producing 200,000 ounces of gold a year by 2015," said chief executive Bill Humphries.

"As Patagonia Gold reaches towards its goals in 2012, we look forward to a future of achievement, prosperity and excitement."

Patagonia Gold hits 16.3m at 18.97 g/t gold at Cap-Oeste deposit

Wed, 28 Mar 2012 07:42:00 +0100

Patagonia Gold (LON:PGD) said drilling continued to hit high grade gold and silver at its flagship Cap-Oeste project in Argentina, including 16.3 metres with 18.97 grams per tonne (g/t) gold.

The company provided more results from the Phase 3 drilling campaign at Cap-Oeste, which was completed in February this year.

It also revealed results from the COSE gold and silver deposit, which lies on the same block as Cap-Oeste - El Tranquilo.

The latest highlights from the Cap-Oeste drilling along strike to the north west of the main shoot included 16.30 metres with 18.97 g/t gold and 282.51 g/t silver in hole CO-346-D.

Another hole showed a 2.55 metre interval with 19.69 g/t gold and 21.11 g/t silver of silver.

Assay results are pending for a further nine holes from Cap-Oeste and the firm has retained an engineering firm to prepare a NI43-101 resource upgrade to include the phase 3 drilling - scheduled to be completed in the second quarter of this year.

The firm has now embarked on phase 4 drilling at Cap-Oeste, aimed at extending the resource envelope and investigating the 1.8 km of unexplored strike between Cap-Oeste and COSE.

So far 16 holes have been completed.

Meanwhile, at COSE, two diamond drill holes have been recently completed for a smelter study to be carried out.

The smelter off-take marketing studies returned 7.75 metres at 34.45 g/t gold and 301.49 g/t silver from one hole and 14.10m at 34.80 g/t gold and 366.8 g/t silver from the other.

The holes were positioned to intersect material considered to be "representative" of the average head grade that Patagonia intends to market as concentrate for smelter feed.

A further four step-out holes were sunk to intersect the COSE structure at various points along strike and all hit the host fault structure and demonstrated elevated gold and silver values, Patagonia added.

Following a recent resource upgrade, the firm's flagship Cap-Oeste project has a gold equivalent (AuEq) resource of 966,972 ounces in the indicated category, with a further inferred resource of 228,968 gold-equivalent ounces.

At COSE, an underground mining operation is in preparation to begin in the second quarter this year.

Patagonia Gold's chief executive buys shares in company

Wed, 07 Mar 2012 07:45:00 +0000

Patagonia Gold's (LON:PGD) chief executive has upped his stake in the company.

William Humphries bought 300,000 shares yesterday at an average price of 35.67 pence each for around £107,000, the exploration firm said in stock exchange statement.

It means he now holds around 15.4 million shares, or about 2.09 per cent of the company.

Last month, Patagonia reported good recovery levels for both gold and silver from preliminary metallurgical testing at its main Cap-Oeste project in Argentina.

Patagonia recovered 88.3 per cent and 95.5 per cent gold and silver respectively from the sulphide samples and up to 98.8 per cent gold and 97.5 per cent silver from the oxides.

The Cap-Oeste gold and silver project has a NI 43-101 compliant gold equivalent resource of 966,972 ounces gold equivalent within the indicated category, with a further inferred resource of 228,968 ounces gold equivalent.

It added that at Lomada de Leiva, work was proceeding on contracts for construction of the gold processing facility while expansion of the trial heap leach pad at Lomada is proceeding on schedule.

Patagonia Gold encouraged by Cap-Oeste metallurgy test

Tue, 21 Feb 2012 08:09:00 +0000

Patagonia Gold ( LON:PGD) today reported good recovery levels for both gold and silver from preliminary metallurgical testing at its core Cap-Oeste project in Argentina.

The tests, which were part of the development of the Santa Cruz province-based deposit, indicated high recoveries from the sulphide and oxide samples.

Patagonia recovered 88.3 per cent and 95.5 per cent gold and silver respectively from the sulphide samples and up to 98.8 per cent gold and 97.5 per cent silver from the oxides.

SGS Mineral Services in Chile tested the sulphide ore while British Columbia firm G&T Metallurgical Services tested the oxides.

G&T has been contracted to carry out further pre-feasibility level definitive testwork and optimisation studies for the Cap-Oeste sulphide and oxide material.

Testwork will include flotation rougher and cleaner tests, Knelson gravity separation tests, cyanide leaching, thickening tests, bond rod and ball tests and QEMSCAN PMA.

The tests are expected to complete in the third quarter 2012. Further testwork will be conducted based on the findings of this programme as work proceeds on the feasibility study for Cap-Oeste, Patagonia said.

It added that Phase 3 drilling campaign on the Cap-Oeste deposit, consisting of 57 drillholes totalling 20,210 metres, concluded on 3 February. Assay results are pending for 26 drill-holes.

Drilling, meanwhile, is continuing on the Cap-Oeste corridor, extending along six kilometres of strike from Pampa in the Northwest to Tango in the Southeast and includes the COSE high grade underground gold/silver project.

Patagonia added it had received bids and is in the process of choosing the contractor for the construction of the decline and the mining of the bonanza grade gold and silver COSE deposit.

The Cap-Oeste gold and silver project has a NI 43-101 compliant gold equivalent (AuEq) resource of 966,972 ounces AuEq within the Indicated category, with a further inferred resource of 228,968 ounce AuEq.

At Lomada de Leiva, work is proceeding on contracts for construction of the gold processing facility while expansion of the trial heap leach pad at Lomada is proceeding on schedule.

Patagonia Gold maintains momentum at Cap-Oeste

Thu, 12 Jan 2012 08:31:00 +0000

Patagonia Gold (LON:PGD) said today its latest drilling on the Cap-Oeste deposit in Argentina had continued to hit good grades of gold and silver.

The best of the drill holes, CO-317-D, included 37.40 metres showing 20.04 grams per tonne (g/t) gold and 206 g/t silver, with the range of the other holes in the programme between 7.7g/t and 3.4 g/t gold.

Patagonia said the drilling was concentrated on the recently discovered high grade area to the immediate north west of the main shoot. The results today were for the first 18 holes in this campaign with assay results pending on a further 22 drill-holes.

This current infill and extension drilling campaign will be closed at the end of January to allow a fourth NI 43-101 compliant resource update, which is scheduled for the second quarter of this year but Patagonia said that drilling will continue eslewhere at Cap-Oeste, which remains open along strike in both directions and down plunge.

Cap-Oeste is the group’s gold and silver project, with a NI 43-101 compliant gold equivalent resource of 966,972 ounces Indicated, with a further inferred resource of 266,968 ounces.

The prospect is situated on the El Tranquilo block that also contains Patagonia’s COSE bonanza grade gold and silver deposit, where an underground mining operation is expected to start this quarter.

Patagonia Gold mops up Cap-Oeste land rights

Thu, 05 Jan 2012 07:40:00 +0000

Patagonia Gold (LON:PGD) has acquired the outstanding land rights over its Cap-Oeste gold and silver project in Argentina.

The explorer paid $2.1 million for the Estancia 'El Tranquilo' area in the Santa Cruz province, which covers 20,000 hectares and contains the north-east sector of Cap-Oeste. Patagonia had already acquired the land rights for the south east sector in 2008.

It said that ownership of the land rights as well as the mineral rights is essential for the orderly and unencumbered development of its projects.

Patagonia Gold currently has mineral rights to over 220 properties in several provinces of Argentina and Chile covering approximately 800,000 hectares and is one of the largest landholders in the province of Santa Cruz.

It recently delineated a NI 43-101 compliant gold equivalent resource of nearly 967,000 ounces indicated at Cap-Oeste with a further inferred resource of 267,000 ounces. In total, it reported a more than 80 per cent increase on its previous resource estimate.

The El Tranquilo block also contains the COSE bonanza grade gold and silver deposit, where an underground mine is scheduled to start up this quarter, the Monte Leon and Breccia Valentina prospects and “other highly prospective gold and silver areas”, said Patagonia.

COSE, which is nearby to Cap-Oeste, is expected to begin generating free cash flow by 2013.

Shares in the explorer recently began trading on the Toronto Stock Exchange as well as on AIM.

Patagonia Gold receives final approval to list on Toronto Stock Exchange

Tue, 06 Dec 2011 09:05:00 +0000

Patagonia Gold (LON:PGD) has gained a listing in Canada after receiving final approval to list on the Toronto Stock Exchange (TSX) with trading in its shares set to begin tomorrow.

“We are pleased to gain a new listing on the TSX, which will increase Patagonia's profile in the investment community,” said chief executive of Patagonia Gold Bill Humphries.

“We look forward to benefiting from the wide range of investors and greater access to capital provided by the TSX platform.”

Shares in Patagonia will continue trading on the AIM market in London, where it has been listed 2003.

Patagonia Gold is primarily focused on the development of two properties, the flagship Cap-Oeste gold-silver project on the El Tranquilo block in Argentina and the nearby COSE project, which is expected to begin generating free cash flow by 2013.

Only last week Patagonia reported an increase of 82.4 percent in the indicated resource for Cap-Oeste, which now stands at 966,972 ounces of gold equivalent, while the inferred resource amounts to 228,968 ounces of gold equivalent.

In addition, the resource is still open along strike and down dip and infill and extension drilling is ongoing at the project.

So far, 26 drill-holes have been completed in the new programme and assay results are pending.

Metallurgical testwork programmes are in progress aimed at defining a treatment route for the oxide and sulphide material types as the firm moves towards beginning a pre-feasibility study for Cap-Oeste in the first quarter of 2012.

Drilling is also continuing at the Monte Leon prospect, which is also contained on the El Tranquilo block along with the COSE bonanza gold and silver deposit which lies 2 km from Cap-Oeste.

Patagonia Gold announces retirement of non-exec director Richard Prickett

Fri, 02 Dec 2011 07:38:00 +0000

Co-founder of Patagonia Gold (LON:PGD) and non-executive director Richard Prickett has retired from the firm's board.

Managing director Bill Humphries said Prickett had played an "outstanding role" over the last 14 years.

"Richard has helped raise over £60 million to fund our drilling campaigns and bring Patagonia Gold to a point where we can see a world class mining proposition emerging," he said in a statement this morning.

Prickett added: "I am very proud of what we have achieved in Patagonia Gold. It has been a great privilege to work with some of the very best people in the mining industry."

Prickett was also a founder of Brancote Holdings - the company's forerunner - and one of the first companies to join the AIM market in 1995.

In 2002, Brancote was successfully sold for around US$370 million.

Founded initially as HPD Exploration, which joined AIM in 2003, it became Patagonia Gold in January 2004. As HPD exploration it began trading at 1.5 pence per share with a market cap of less than £2 million, the firm said.

Today, the share price is around 52 pence and it has a market cap of more than £380 mln.

On Wednesday this week, the firm announced an 82.4 per cent increase to its indicated gold equivalent resource for its flagship Cap-Oeste gold-silver deposit in Santa Cruz province, Argentina.

Total gold equivalent (AuEq) ounces in the indicated category now stand at 966,972 - an increase of 82.4 per cent compared to the previous model in 2009.

The inferred resource now stands at 228,968 ounces AuEq, Patagonia said in the statement.

In addition, the resource is still open along strike and down dip and infill and extension drilling is ongoing.

Patagonia Gold unveils 82.4 per cent increase in indicated resources at flagship Cap-Oeste deposit

Wed, 30 Nov 2011 08:55:00 +0000

Patagonia Gold (LON:PGD) revealed this morning an 82.4 per cent increase to its indicated gold equivalent resource for its flagship Cap-Oeste gold-silver deposit in Santa Cruz province, Argentina.

The firm has completed an updated resource model and NI 43-101 estimate for Cap-Oeste, which lies on the 80 sq km El Tranquilo block.

Total gold equivalent (AuEq) ounces in the indicated category now stand at 966,972 - an increase of 82.4 per cent compared to the previous model in 2009.

The inferred resource now stands at 228,968 ounces AuEq, Patagonia said in the statement.

In addition, the resource is still open along strike and down dip and infill and extension drilling is ongoing at the flagship project.

So far, 26 drill-holes have been completed in the new programme and assay results are pending.

Metallurgical testwork programmes are in progress aimed at defining a treatment route for the oxide and sulphide material types as the firm moves towards beginning a pre-feasibility study for Cap-Oeste in the first quarter of 2012.

Drilling is also continuing at the Monte Leon prospect, which is also contained on the El Tranquilo block along with the COSE bonanza gold and silver deposit which lies 2 km from Cap-Oeste.

Patagonia released today extracts from the report which accompanied the updated resource estimate.

Part of it read: "Cap-Oeste definitely merits further exploration for additional gold silver mineralisation in an epithermal setting."

Patagonia Gold appoints two non-exec directors as it grows in Argentina

Wed, 02 Nov 2011 07:28:00 +0000

Patagonia Gold (LON:PGD) has appointed two new non-executive directors as the company grows in Argentina.

Edward Badida and Gary Sugar, who both have experience of the mining sector, have been appointed to the board with immediate effect.

Accountant Badida, 68, has more than 40 years of financial management and corporate governance experience and is currently the CFO of Temex Resources Corp and Escape Gold Inc - both listed on the TSX Venture Exchange.

Sugar, 62, is an investment banker who retired this year as a managing director of RBC Capital Markets, where he worked since 1979 and specialised in the mining sector.

Chairman of Patagonia Sir John Craven said today that the firm was very fortunate to welcome two new independent board members with such extensive knowledge and experience in important areas of the mining industry.

"We will benefit from their input as the company progresses with its growth strategy in Argentina," he said.

On Monday this week, Patagonia revealed that work has started at the COSE bonanza gold and silver deposit in Santa Cruz province, Argentina, in preparation for an underground mine.

It is fast tracking the development and mining of COSE to provide funding to progress its flagship Cap-Oeste deposit, which lies two kilometres to the North West.

In an update, the firm told investors that COSE's underground mine design was now complete and the tender process for construction had begun. The start of the access decline expected in the first quarter of 2012.

COSE lies within the El Tranquilo block, which covers 80 sq km and includes the Cap-Oeste gold and silver project and numerous other prospects.

The firm also said in the statement that three long lead items of critical mining equipment had been purchased and received and that Stephen Ball had been hired as underground mine manager.

Patagonia Gold begins work for underground mine at COSE gold-silver deposit

Mon, 31 Oct 2011 07:41:00 +0000

Work has started at Patagonia Gold's (LON:PGD) COSE bonanza gold and silver deposit in Santa Cruz province, Argentina, in preparation for an underground mine.

The firm is fast tracking the development and mining of COSE to provide funding to progress its flagship Cap-Oeste deposit, which lies two kilometers to the north west.

In an update today, Patagonia said that COSE's underground mine design was now complete and the tender process for construction had begun. The start of the access decline expected in the first quarter of 2012.

A seventy-man camp with kitchen and dining facilities has also started and is due to completed by the end of the year.

COSE lies within the El Tranquilo block, which covers 80 sq km and includes the Cap-Oeste gold and silver project and numerous other prospects.

A resource estimate in March this year for COSE showed 20,637 tonnes in the indicated category and 13,758 tonnes of inferred - both at 60.06 grams per tonne (g/t) gold and 1,933.07 g/t silver for a combined total of 106,393 ounces of gold equivalent.

Meanwhile, a preliminary economic assessment (PEA) estimated a base case NPV (net present value) of US$ 93.8million, using a gold price of US$1418 per ounce and silver US$ 35 per ounce over a life of mine of 23 months.

The firm told investors today that preparation for the underground access decline had begun, and the start of work on the decline was expected to start in Q1 next year.

It also revealed that three long lead items of critical mining equipment had been purchased and received and that Stephen Ball had been hired as underground mine manager.

Ball will oversee all the development and mining at COSE over the next two years.

Patagonia expands footprint in prospective district of Santa Cruz province

Wed, 26 Oct 2011 07:35:00 +0100

Patagonia Gold (LON:PGD) has formalised an agreement, which sees it expand its footprint in the prospective Deseado Massif in the Santa Cruz province of Argentina

The shareholders agreement is with Foment Miner de Santa Cruz Societal del Estado (Fomicruz) - a well established mining firm owned by the government of the province.

It details the management and development of the firm's Patagonia Gold SA, which holds the firm's mining properties - El Tranquilo, La Paloma and La Manchuria, including the advanced gold and silver projects of Cap Oeste-COSE, Lomada de Leiva and La Manchuria Main Zone.

Patagonia is to hold a 90 per cent interest with the remaining 10 per cent in the hands of Formicruz.

President of Formicruz Miguel Angel Ferro said: "We are delighted with being partners of a well known and respected local business group and part of a successful exploration Company such as Patagonia Gold SA."

He added that he was confident that Patagonia would apply its experience in the Deseado Massif to identify high grade gold and silver deposits on the Fomicruz Properties, as well as on the prospective properties currently held by Patagonia in the Santa Cruz province.

Fomicruz will contribute the rights to explore and mine approximately 100,000 hectares of its mining properties - Manchuria, Kaiken, La Marcelina, San Vicente, El Cóndor, La Australiana, La Esperanza and La última in the Deseado Massif, which are close to Patagonia's El Tranquilo and La Manchuria block of properties.

Key terms of the agreement are that Patagonia will fund 100 per cent of exploration on the Patagonia properties to the pre-feasibility stage with no dilution to Formicruz.

It will also invest US$5 million on exploration on the Fomicruz properties over five years and manage the exploration and potential development of the Patagonia properties.

Patagonia Gold hits 0.7m with 80.30 g/t gold and 16 g/t silver at Monte Leon prospect

Mon, 24 Oct 2011 08:44:00 +0100

Patagonia Gold (LON:PGD) today unveiled remaining results from initial drilling at the Monte Leon prospect in Argentina, including a high grade intersection containing 80.30 grammes per tonne gold (g/t) and 16 g/t silver.

This was found in a 0.70 metre section in hole MLN-014-D on the prospect, which lies on the firm's El Tranquilo block in Santa Cruz province, said the firm.

Other highlights from the first pass drill programme included 1.5 metres with 21.20 g/t gold and 321 g/t silver from 122 metres, and 2.15 metres with 16.73 g/t of the yellow metal with 16 g/t silver from 31.0 metres.

Monte Leon lies 11 kilometres to the south east of the Cap-Oeste deposit - the firm's flagship project - and within the same structural corridor.

The drilling campaign here began in May this year and consisted of 15 diamond drill-holes for 3,953 metres on six sections along 1 km of the geophysical anomaly.

Drilling hit wide, near-surface intervals of potentially bulk mineable gold and silver low grade mineralisation.

It also intersected multiple near-vertical high grade gold-silver bearing structures in the deeper portions of 5 of the initial holes drilled

Initial metallurgical test-work carried out on the low grade wide intervals of near surface mineralisation returned encouraging recoveries of gold in the oxide material. However recoveries of both gold and silver are low in the sulphide material, said Patagonia.

The company also revealed today that a second programme of 4,000 metres has now begun on Monte Leon.

This work is designed to test multiple high grade gold-silver vein structures along a 500 metres strike of the Monte Leon corridor, the firm said in the update.

Patagonia Gold pleased with 'significant progress' at flagship Cap-Oeste gold project

Wed, 28 Sep 2011 09:45:00 +0100

Following successful fundraisings, South American operating gold miner Patagonia Gold (LON:PGD) is preparing to continue its extensive drilling programme, which is expected to result in resource upgrades at its core projects at the end of the year.

In today’s interim report, Patagonia provided investors with a summary of its plans for the second half of the year, while reiterating its goal of becoming a 200,000 ounce per annum gold equivalent producer by 2015.

The company plans more drilling at the Cap-Oeste project on the El Tranquilo block in the Santa Cruz province of Argentina, where a resource upgrade is currently scheduled for the fourth quarter.

Cap-Oeste currently contains resources of 655,930 ounces of gold equivalent, 88 percent of this in the indicated category.

The company has so far spent US$8.01 million on exploration during the first half of the year, nearly double the US$4.12 million spent on exploration during the first half of 2010.

The total drilling budget for 2011 amounts to US$18.2 million with Patagonia planning to drill a total 70,500 metres.

Patagonia has the funds to cover its planned exploration expenses. At the end of June, Patagonia Gold had US$32.2 million in the bank, up US$16.3 million compared to a year earlier after raising US$39.2 million.

In addition to the Cap-Oeste upgrade, Patagonia also plans to update the resource at the Lomada de Leiva project on the La Paloma property block, also in Santa Cruz, which currently has a gold resource of 235,000 ounces.

“Through the efforts of our outstanding team we continue to make significant progress on our flagship project, Cap-Oeste, together with the development of our COSE and Lomada projects,” said managing director of Patagonia Gold Bill Humphries.

The exploration campaign planned for this year will also include drilling of other targets on El Tranquilo including Monte Leon as well as exploration drilling on the Sarita and El Bagual prospects.

Four delineated gold resources – which are compliant with the NI43-101 standard - on Cap-Oeste, COSE, La Manchuria and Lomada properties currently stand at 866,030 ounces of gold equivalent in the indicated category and 277,732 ounces of inferred resource.

Meanwhile, construction at COSE is set to begin in the final quarter of the year.

Besides going ahead with its exploration programme, the company also plans to pursue to list on a North American stock exchange.

Patagonia Gold: Cap-Oeste drilling results continue to be ‘extremely encouraging’

Thu, 08 Sep 2011 07:56:00 +0100

Patagonia Gold reported bonanza grades at Cap-Oeste in Argentina, found in a newly discovered zone, of 70.9 grams per tonne gold and 518 g/t silver over 8.91 metres. This bonanza section even contained nearly a metre at 434.4 g/t gold and 2,362 g/t Ag.

Patagonia Gold appoints new CFO

Wed, 08 Jun 2011 10:14:00 +0100

Patagonia Gold (LON:PGD) has appointed Philip C. Yee as chief financial officer.

Yee is a Canadian chartered accountant and was formerly vice president finance for the Kumtor gold mine in the Kyrgyz Republic, the flagship gold project for Centerra Gold (TSE:CG).

Earlier this week, Patagonia told investors that drilling at the Monte Leon prospect in the Santa Cruz province of Argentina intersected wide near surface zones of potentially bulk mineable gold and silver mineralisation.

The results included intersections of 1.5 metres at 21.21 g/t gold and 321 g/t silver, 29.4 metres at 1.39 g/t gold, 7 metres at 1.44 g/t gold and 1,018 g/t silver, 74 metres at 1.07 g/t gold and 102 g/t silver and 43 metres at 1.04 g/t gold.

Last week, Patagonia reported that its 2010/11 drill programme at Cap-Oeste was now 95 percent complete. Drilling continued to intersect high grade gold and silver – with 13.30 metres grading 8.58 grams per tonne (g/t) gold and 508 g/t silver encountered on the ‘E Shoot’ part of the project.

Cap-Oeste is PGD’s flagship project, it currently has a 762,325 ounce gold resource but the company has been very active with the drill bit lately.

Both Monte Leon and Cap-Oeste are located within the El Tranquilo property block.

Drilling at Patagonia Gold’s Monte Leon prospect intersects wide gold and silver zones

Mon, 06 Jun 2011 08:15:00 +0100

Patagonia Gold (LON:PGD) reported that drilling at the Monte Leon prospect in the Santa Cruz province of Argentina has intersected wide near surface zones of potentially bulk mineable gold and silver mineralization.

Geological interpretation has indicated that the wide zones may become more focused at depth, while the mineralization remains open along strike to the north and south and down plunge. A substantial follow-up drill programme is set to begin in the third quarter to infill the current drilled area and test for extensions.

The results included intersections of 1.5 metres at 21.21 g/t gold and 321 g/t silver, 29.4 metres at 1.39 g/t gold, 7 metres at 1.44 g/t gold and 1,018 g/t silver, 74 metres at 1.07 g/t gold and 102 g/t silver and 43 metres at 1.04 g/t gold.

Patagonia has initiated an induced polarisation (IP) geophysical survey to cover the area from the Cap-Oeste project to Monte Leon, a distance of 10 kilometres, and from Monte Leon to the Marciana prospect, a further 7 kilometre to the south east, giving a total IP coverage of 24 kilometres.

Last week, Patagonia reported that its 2010/11 drill programme at Cap-Oeste was now 95 percent complete.

Patagonia told investors that drilling continued to intersect high grade gold and silver – with 13.30 metres grading 8.58 grams per tonne (g/t) gold and 508 g/t silver encountered on the ‘E Shoot’ part of the project.

Cap-Oeste is PGD’s flagship project, it currently has a 762,325 ounce gold resource but the company has been very active with the drill bit lately.

Both Monte Leon and Cap-Oeste are located within the El Tranquilo property block.

Patagonia Gold continues to find high-grade gold at Cap-Oeste, drilling 95 pct complete

Wed, 01 Jun 2011 07:54:00 +0100

Patagonia Gold (LON:PGD) said that its 2010/11 drill programme is now 95 percent complete at the Cap-Oeste project in Santa Cruz, Argentina.

Drilling is expected to run until the end of June, and after that the data will be incorporated into a new JORC resource update which has been pencilled in for the third quarter.

In this morning’s drill report PGD told investors that it continues to intersect high grade gold and silver – with 13.30 metres grading 8.58 grams per tonne (g/t) gold and 508 g/t silver encountered on the ‘E Shoot’ part of the project. The company also highlighted that the E shoot, the B and C shoots and the main shoot remain open at depth.

The current drill campaign was designed to infill a potential open pit area, - 1,200 metres long x 150 metres deep - and to extend the known shoots within the deposit area down plunge below the 150 metre level.

PGD added that drilling will also continue through the Austral winter months. It is aiming to extend the ‘shoots’ as well as testing the La Pampa, Tango and other prospects – that are found along the 6 kilometre strike extension of the Cap-Oeste Project.

Cap-Oeste is PGD’s flagship project, it currently has a 762,325 ounce gold resource but the company has been very active with the drill bit lately. Indeed the three rig programme has been running continuously since the fourth quarter of 2010.

So far 102 holes have been drilled for a total of 20,646 metres. At the moment assays are pending for 20 drill holes, and another 21 holes are being prepared for assay.

The project is just one part of the El Tranquilo block which covers 80 square kilometres and is about 120 kilometres away from the group’s other key project, the Lomada de Leiva gold project, where a heap leach operation is currently in progress.

Patagonia begins testing Lomada pad in Argentina with plans to expand trial

Wed, 18 May 2011 07:49:00 +0100

Patagonia Gold (LON:PGD) announced that it has successfully begun testing the Lomada heap leach pad in Argentina - with around 2,500 ounzes of gold expected to be produced in 120 days.

Construction of the heap leach project in Santa Cruz province began in October last year and was completed within time and budget.

Now the company plans to expand the scale of the current trial to produce around 8,000 ounzes of gold, it said.

Work has begun on this expansion, the firm said in today's progress report on the Lomada gold project, which also revealed that Patagonia Gold SA has recently competed an extension and infill drilling campaign at Lomada aimed at enlarging the resource and moving the inferred part into the indicated category.

The Lomada heap leach project is on the La Paloma block around 40km south of the town of Perito Moreno and currently contains an NI 43 -101 resource of 161,346 ounces of gold in the measured and indicated categories with a further inferred 73,725 ounces of gold.

Patagonia said that before construction of the full Lomada project, it had elected to construct and operate a 50,000 tonne 6 metre high trial heap leach pad to test and optimise construction methods together with the irrigation and processing facilities.

"The trial is now in full operation with gold being accumulated onto activated carbon," it said.

"The trial is expected to yield approximately 2,500 ounces of gold in 120 days. Patagonia is investigating several options for the production of gold bars. This includes stripping of the above carbon to produce Dore for refining into pure gold by a third party or stockpiling the carbon until Patagonia has its own gold room which is currently in the planning stage."

The company now says it plans to raise the pad from the current 6 metres height to 12 metres to test the kinetics of the piling.

"This will expand the trial from 50,000 tonnes to 180,000 tonnes. The expanded trial is expected to yield approximately 8,000 ounces of gold."

Construction has begun, with ore loading and irrigation expected to begin in the third quarter of 2011.

Meanwhile, Patagonia said the recent drilling, which included 35 diamond drill holes for 4,441 metres was aimed at enlarging the resource and advancing the inferred part of the resource into an indicated category.

"The upgraded resource, together with the results from the trial Lomada project, will be used to revise the 2009 scoping study of the Lomada project prior to the commencement of the main heap leach project," it said.

Patagonia Gold hails exploration success in 2010

Mon, 09 May 2011 09:55:00 +0100

Patagonia Gold (LON:PGD) has reported on its activities in 2010, calling it a year of exploration success at its properties in the Santa Cruz province of Argentina.

Shareholders were clearly encouraged by the progress made during the year and this was reflected in the significant appreciation of Patagonia’s share price, which jumped from below 20 pence at the beginning of 2010 to nearly 60 pence in late December.

In September, Patagonia announced the La Manchuria maiden resource which took our Resource base to over 1 million ounces of gold equivalent. Post period, the release of the COSE resource in March further elevated our Resource base to 1,143,759 ounces gold equivalent.

This was achieved in four years since the acquisition of the Santa Cruz properties.

Patagonia also noted the completion of the construction and commissioning of the large trial heap leach operation at its Lomada project, calling it an important step towards becoming a gold producer.

“All of the projects concerned have significant potential for growth. In addition the Lomada de Leiva project is about to move into gold production having been constructed and mined on time and within budget,” said non-executive chairman John Craven. He also noted that the price of gold, which currently stands above US$1,500/oz, makes its low cost projects more valuable.

“With the accelerated pace of our drilling programme in Santa Cruz shareholders will have noticed an increase in the newsflow as we endeavour to announce material developments as promptly as possible,” said Craven.

On the financial front, the company incurred direct exploration costs of £4.7 million, reflecting the level of activity hat has been carried out on its portfolio of Santa Cruz properties. This brought the company’s losses for the year to £7.3 million.

The exploration activities were funded via equity share placements in April 2010. Further fundraising, which have just been completed, garnered the company another £24.25 million to fund the drilling programme at the flagship Cap-Oeste gold and silver project. Furthermore, it will allow the company to begin the development and construction works for the high grade COSE gold and silver project.

From now on, the company, which currently does its books in sterling, will be reporting its results in US dollars as the gold market is denominated primarily in the American currency.