Great Western Mining Corporation PLC (AIM:GWMO) said it expects to start receiving assay results in September from a summer drilling programme at Mineral County, Nevada.
It drilled 24 holes, totalling 2,798 metres, over four separate prospects and has lodged cuttings at two separate laboratories for assay and certification.
"Our drilling programme was conducted effectively, on time and under budget with encouraging signs of mineralisation so we share investors' frustration at the delays in securing assay results, which appears to be an industry-wide problem in the area,” said chairman Brian Hall.
“We will announce the assay results as soon as available and in the meantime we are making good progress on the processing joint venture.”
A project manager has been appointed for the processing joint venture project and the first stage design of a processing mill for secondary recovery of gold and silver from mining waste is now complete and will shortly be reviewed by an independent engineer prior to formal sign-off, said the AIM-traded company.
The initial phase of the project will consist of gravity separation, followed by a contained leaching operation for tailings.
Independent certification of the design and formalisation of the processing joint venture agreement are expected in the coming weeks, following which a detailed application to construct and operate the mill will be submitted to the state of Nevada, it added.
The mill and associated facilities will have sufficient capacity to accommodate all known mining waste on claims held by the joint venture partners, with excess capacity to handle any additional material acquired from third parties in the area.