White Gold findings create buzz at mining roundup

Industry delegates at this week's Mining Exploration Roundup are talking about Underworld Resources Ltd.'s White Gold property south of Dawson City, after the company issued initial estimates about the amount of gold there.

In a release Tuesday, the Vancouver-based company estimated that the property's Golden Saddle deposit has just over one million ounces of gold at 3.2 grams a tonne, as well as 400,000 ounces of gold at 2.5 grams per tonne.

Underworld officials caution that the figures are just estimates, but it has delegates like Mike Burke of the Yukon Geological Survey excited about White Gold's potential.

"A million ounces is a big milestone for any company to get to with a mineral deposit," Burke told CBC News on Tuesday.

"What people are looking at is the grade, and a grade of three grams per tonne is a really nice robust grade. So it's holding up as a higher-grade deposit, and that's a great thing to see."

Many delegates at the conference, which began Monday and runs through Thursday in Vancouver, say they have been watching Underworld's progress closely.

On Wednesday, conference organizers will honour Shawn Ryan, the Dawson City prospector who discovered the White Gold deposit, as prospector of the year for British Columbia and Yukon.

"I'm excited for Underworld, they've done a great job, and I'm excited for Shawn Ryan," said Graham Downs of ATAC Resources Ltd, which is also exploring for gold in the Yukon.

"It's those kind of discoveries that are going to keep bringing exploration dollars into the Yukon."