Omineca Mining and Metals Ltd. has provided an operational update from its Wingdam underground paleoplacer project in British Columbia's Cariboo Mining District. Following a holiday break, tunnelling and placer recovery operations have recommenced at crosscut 3A, with the company's mining contractor, D&L Mining, successfully managing challenging ground conditions through modified techniques.
The company reports that additional time was required to tunnel through a fault zone at the channel periphery, where modified grout formulations and spiling patterns were implemented. Having safely managed these faulted ground conditions, D&L Mining anticipates tunnelling and excavation will now proceed at an increased pace within the more competent compacted sand and gravel of the channel interior.
As expected, pay gravels excavated from the initial advance into the channel interior have yielded increasing amounts of placer gold and nuggets compared to earlier recovery from the bedrock contact zone. Placer gold recoveries will be fully tabulated, subject to quality assurance and quality control by a Qualified Person, and reported as the crosscut progresses through the central main placer gold target and through to the opposite side of the channel.
Separate from the underground placer project, approximately 3,500 meters of core from six holes drilled during the 2025 winter drill program has been logged, split, and sent for assay. Results will be reported once received, with a follow-up drill program to be designed based on these findings. The company utilizes specialized equipment including a Brokk Electric Demolition Robot fitted with a drum cutter head for cutting into the crosscut face, and a Scooptram for mucking gravels from the face after Brokk cutting.
All scientific and technical information in the update has been prepared by or approved by Stephen Kocsis, P.Geo., who serves as an independent qualified person for the purposes of National Instrument 43-101. The Wingdam gold exploration and placer recovery projects are located along the Barkerville Highway 45 km east of Quesnel, encompassing mineral tenures totaling over 61,392 hectares and more than 15 linear kilometers of placer claims.
For business and technology leaders monitoring resource extraction innovations, this operational update demonstrates how mining companies are combining traditional placer recovery with modern exploration techniques. The successful management of challenging geological conditions through modified engineering approaches highlights the technical expertise required in contemporary mining operations. The increased gold recovery as operations advance into the channel interior suggests potential for improved economic returns, while the separate exploration program indicates a comprehensive approach to resource development that could have implications for future mining operations in similar geological settings.
