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Gold rush in Lapland

Lapland was traditionally the land of the Sami reindeer herders. Today, the area experiences a gold rush.

Finland’s Geological Survey says yet another very promising gold deposit has been found near Kittilä.

Location

The first gold bars were produced in Finnish Lapland from the mine at the Suurikuusikko gold deposit in 2009. That mine is Europe’s largest operating gold mine. Now, geologists reveal the results from the latest drilling in the neighboring areas in the Finnish wilderness.

The results will for sure put even more fire to the on-going Klondike.

- In some drilling samples, the concentration of gold in the ore has been as much as 28 g/t, says Kimmo Pietikäinen, Manager of Geological Survey of Finland’s northern office, interviewed by Helsingin Sanomat.

Standard concentration in ore from gold mines in the area is around 4 g/t.

Gold mining is very good business in the turbulent global economy. The gold price has increased from year to year and is currently record high.

BarentsObserver reported earlier that the operating mine near Kittilä got a boost in its economy last year after the startup period. The mine is operated by Canadian Agnico-Eagle and has probable reserves of 3.2 million ounces. In 2010, the mining company extracted about five tons of gold at the Suurikuusikko gold mine in the Finnish taiga forest.

There are now five operational gold mines in Lapland. In addition, private fortune hunters can be seen along the rivers of northern Finland searching for pieces of gold, most often without results.

The new area where drilling tests have proven high concentrations of gold is at Petäjäselka, east of Kittilä, most famous for its ski-resort Levi.

The new gold announcement comes in a period when the mining industry in the Barents Region are booming. Iron-ore, nickel, cobber and gold are just some of the raw-materials that are bringing rapid economical growth to all four Barents region countries in the north.

Read also:  Multi-billion investments in the Barents Region

Geological Survey of Finland informs that 200 gold deposits have been detected in Finland, mainly in Lapland. The new findings will trigger new mines, to be given to mining companies after a bid for tenders is organized, reports Helsingin Sanomat.