The Lucerne gold mine in Storey and Lyon
counties, Nevada. Photo courtesy Comstock
Mining Inc.
Exploration
and Mining
in NEVADA
by Simon Rees
14 www.resourceworld.com
A
side from gambling and tourism, mining is the mainstay industry in Nevada's
economy; in 2012 over 12,000 people were directly employed by the sector,
according to the Nevada Mining Association (NMA). Indirect employment is
far higher, and Nevada Business recently reported that 2,300 companies have some
connection to a mining operation within the state. The state remains a top-ranking
jurisdiction in which to explore or mine, with gold leading the way. In 2011, Nevada
produced more than 75% of the county's gold output, according to the US Bureau of
Land Management. For 2011, mining had a positive economic impact of $7.2 billion,
according to the NMA.
So far, so good – except for two developments that potentially threaten the status quo. Firstly, and of most immediate concern, are current market conditions.
Like their peers elsewhere, many Nevada-focused juniors are starting to run out of
financial options; some will either have to slash expenditure and investment or else
simply fold. The second issue revolves around Senate Joint Resolution 15. If given
final ballot clearance, this resolution could grant Nevadans an option to remove the
mining sector's historic 5% cap on tax. Worse, additional proposals might tighten
the tax screws further, according to The Economist.
But for all the headaches, Nevada remains a place of immense opportunity and
potential; and it is still capable of delivering drill results that cause one to do a double-take. For example, Barrick Gold Exploration Inc.'s recent hole SV13-621 at the
Spring Valley gold project, Pershing County, intersected 1.47 g/t (grams per tonne)
gold for 361 metres at a starting depth of 35 metres. This includes a 21-metre interval
of 7.54 g/t gold and a 23-metre interval of 3.02 g/t gold. For the resource investor,
Nevada might be considered like one of its gaudy mega-casinos an opportunity to
win big is still great only; the odds now appear just that little bit longer.
JULY 2013
