Vista Gold initiates drilling program to increase Sulawesi gold resources

Colorado-based mining company Vista Gold Corp. said on Monday it had initiated a core drilling program at the Awak Mas gold deposit in Sulawesi designed to upgrade inferred gold resources to the measured and indicated categories and add to the resources, if possible.

The company said it had commissioned a resource modeling study to review past work and upgrade the tenor of the ore through elimination of dilution where possible.

The Awak Mas, which is held under a Contract of Work with the government, Ccurrently contains a measured/indicated resource of 1.656 million ounces of gold and a 259,000-ounce inferred gold resource.

A feasibility study showed that current resources could support mining of some 3 million metric tons of ore annually. (alex)