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New Canadian company wants to build its own wharf and airstrip for gold operations
Kaieteur News – Reunion Gold, the Canadian-company holding an estimated 4.2 million ounces of gold in Guyana’s Region Seven (Cuyuni-Mazaruni), has submitted its project summary for the Oko West Gold Project Development Phase, to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
The comprehensive document outlines development, operations, and closure stages and its plans for an alternative wharf in the Essequibo River and an airstrip to support its operations. The company anticipates its pre-production phase to span from September 2025 to December 2026, with operational activities projected to extend from 2027 to 2039/41.
In a strategic move, the company favours developing a new port of entry on the Essequibo River over using the existing Georgetown port, aiming to facilitate importation.
The company stated, “The Project has considered two alternatives for importation of materials and equipment into Guyana from foreign ports: use of the existing port of entry in Georgetown, and development of a new port of entry outside of Georgetown.”
Figure 1-7 Preliminary Candidate Sites for Proposed Port of Entry Wharf and Staging Area
To this end the company said, “The preferred alternative is the development of a new port of entry outside of Georgetown. The proposed port of entry wharf and staging area will be developed on the Essequibo River. Reunion will develop the wharf and staging area facility and the Government of Guyana will establish port authority operations at the facility to facilitation importation approvals. Four preliminary candidate sites have been identified for the port of entry wharf and staging area.”
Additionally, plans include the construction of a 1,000-meter airstrip for gold export, personnel transport, and emergencies.
Reunion said, “An airstrip will be constructed in the Project area. A number of alternative locations are currently being considered. The airstrip will be designed to accommodate airplanes up to the size of a Twin-Otter or Caravan…”
Notably, the company added that an average of three or four flights per week is anticipated; these will occur during daylight hours, as the airstrip will not be lit.
The Oko West Gold Project, spanning the Cuyuni-Mazaruni Mining Districts, is currently accessible via Itabali jetty, and roads are under assessment. Reunion Gold plans to import supplies to Georgetown or the proposed Essequibo River port, estimating 15 to 20 trucks daily for mine essentials. With a 100 percent interest in the Prospect License, covering 4,400 hectares, Reunion Gold received the Prospect License (PL) issued in September 2022 by the Guyana Geology and Mines Commission (GGMC), following the relinquishment of eleven medium-scale mining permits held by two Guyanese entrepreneurs with whom Reunion had signed agreements.
Recently, the company shared promising drilling updates, revealing an initial mineral resource estimate of 2,475,000 ounces of gold in indicated resources and 1,762,000 ounces in inferred resources.
Several Canadian gold mining companies, including OMAI, have shown interest in Guyana’s mining industry. OMAI, which produced over 3.7 million ounces of gold in the past, is making a comeback in Guyana with a prospecting licence.
Guyana Goldfields Inc., led by a Chinese consortium, is another major player in the Guyanese mining sector. However, the country has experienced declines in annual gold declarations since 2017, despite billions in incentives given to the industry.
Efforts have been made to request the release of mining contracts from the Government of Guyana, particularly large-scale contracts, as per Guyana’s commitment to the Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (EITI). Despite these requirements, the administration has been slow to disclose these agreements.
Reunion previously engaged in manganese exploration in Matthews Ridge but has since shifted focus to gold.
- airstrip, Canada, Environmental Protection Agency, Oko West Gold Project Development Phase, Reunion Gold, wharf
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