Liberty Metals Confirms Hard-Rock Gold Source at Guyana Project Ahead of Drilling
Key Takeaways
- Liberty Metals' first-ever field campaign at Oko North returned a peak of 2.32 g/t Au, with four of 55 rock chip samples exceeding 1 g/t Au across quartz veins, sheared felsic rocks, and paleo-conglomerates.
- The results confirm an in situ hard-rock gold source on Liberty's own tenure — not transported alluvial material — a critical distinction for establishing a primary deposit thesis.
- Oko North directly abuts G Mining Ventures' ground, which hosts a completed Feasibility Study defining 4.64Moz Au in Probable Reserves and supports ~350,000oz per annum production over a 12.3-year mine life.
- Liberty holds a 90% interest across ~180km² and 40 granted mining permits in a district where GMIN recently acquired G2 Goldfields for approximately C$3.0 billion, consolidating 1.6Moz Au in Indicated Resources nearby.
- A maiden soil geochemical program of ~5,000 samples using DetectORE™ technology is underway across both Oko North and Oko South, with maiden drill target definition as the stated next milestone.
Maiden rock chip results confirm hard-rock gold system at Oko North
Liberty Metals (ASX: LIB) has received assay results from its maiden field campaign at the Oko North Project in the Cuyuni Mining District of Guyana, confirming in situ gold mineralisation in hard rock across multiple mineralisation styles. The first-pass program returned a peak of 2.32 g/t Au, with four samples exceeding 1 g/t Au from 55 total rock chip samples collected across priority areas.
The key interpretive finding is not just the grades themselves, but what they confirm: a proximal primary hard-rock source for the historical alluvial gold sitting within Liberty’s own tenure, not transported from elsewhere. This is the first modern systematic exploration to have been conducted at the project.
Notably, the sampling methodology was designed to produce an unbiased picture. Samples deliberately excluded visible gold, meaning the results reflect the underlying hard-rock system without the influence of coarse visible material that could skew grades higher.
Nicholas Katris, Executive Chairman, Liberty Metals
“These maiden rock chip results are a highly encouraging start to our exploration at Oko North. Returning gold grades of up to 2.3 g/t gold from our very first field campaign, with multiple samples above 1 g/t gold across quartz veins, sheared felsic rocks and paleo-conglomerates, confirms that the extensive artisanal workings and visible gold we have mapped are underpinned by a genuine hard-rock gold system…”
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What rock chip sampling means for gold explorers
Rock chip sampling is the standard first-pass tool in early-stage exploration. Geologists collect small pieces of rock from surface outcrops, existing workings, and structures like quartz veins, then send them to a laboratory for chemical assay. It is fast, low-cost, and designed to answer a simple question: is there gold in the rock here, and if so, at what grade?
The distinction between in situ and alluvial gold matters significantly for explorers. Alluvial gold is gold that has been eroded from its original rock source and deposited by water, sometimes kilometres away. Finding gold in creek sediments tells you a source exists somewhere upstream, but not necessarily on your ground. Finding gold in hard rock confirms the source is right there.
Three host rock types were identified at Oko North: quartz veins (fractures filled with mineralised quartz), sheared felsic rocks (granite that has been deformed and fractured by tectonic stress, creating pathways for gold-bearing fluids), and paleo-conglomerates (ancient sedimentary rocks with rounded clasts that can host sediment-hosted gold). Multiple mineralisation styles across a single project area is generally a positive indicator of a fertile, broadly mineralised system.
The coarse, angular morphology of gold recovered from nearby artisanal workings further supports Liberty’s interpretation. Coarse, angular gold has not travelled far. It breaks down and rounds off with distance. This physical characteristic, now backed by hard-rock assay results, supports the thesis that the source sits within Liberty’s own tenure.
Significant rock chip assay results
The table below summarises the five most significant samples from the program. The full suite of 55 results is set out in Appendix B of the announcement. All coordinates are in WGS84 UTM Zone 21N.
| Sample Number | Au (g/t) | Description | Easting | Northing |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| OKRK0047 | 2.32 | Outcropping grey quartz vein, 50cm diameter | 265074 | 714549 |
| OKRK0029 | 1.94 | Sheared granite | 264804 | 714266 |
| OKRK0023 | 1.45 | Clean white quartz vein, 1.5m diameter | 267163 | 715212 |
| OKRK0054 | 1.08 | Red conglomerate with rounded quartz clasts | 262802 | 713797 |
| OKRK0020 | 0.78 | Quartz vein from mullock | 265862 | 716636 |
District context and the Oko gold camp
The Cuyuni Mining District has established itself as one of the most consequential emerging gold districts globally, with a combined endowment of approximately 9.3Moz Au delineated substantially from maiden greenfields exploration over the past five years.
The scale of adjacent activity provides important third-party context for the district’s prospectivity. G Mining Ventures (TSX: GMIN) completed a Feasibility Study in April 2025 for its Oko West Project, defining Probable Reserves of 4.64Moz Au and Indicated Resources of 5.4Moz Au (inclusive of reserves), supporting average production of approximately 350,000oz per annum over a 12.3-year mine life. To the north, the Oko-Ghanie Project, formerly held by G2 Goldfields, hosts Indicated Resources of 1.6Moz Au and Inferred Resources of 1.9Moz Au. In April 2026, GMIN announced the acquisition of G2 Goldfields for approximately C$3.0 billion (~US$2.2 billion), which completed on 29 July 2026, consolidating both projects under a single owner.
These nearby resources and transactions are not indicative of mineralisation on Liberty’s tenure and do not guarantee that Liberty will achieve any exploration success or delineate a Mineral Resource on the project.
Liberty’s strategic position within the district is nonetheless notable. Oko North directly abuts GMIN’s ground, in proximity to the New Oko Discovery. Oko South, located approximately 30km south, is interpreted by Liberty as covering the southern structural continuation of the mineralised trend. Key project characteristics include:
- ~180km² across 40 granted mining permits, Cuyuni Mining District, Guyana
- Greenstone-belt geology, hosting the same Birimian-style stratigraphy as major West African gold camps
- Oko North directly abuts GMIN’s ground, in proximity to the New Oko Discovery
- Oko South (~30km south) interpreted on the southern structural continuation of the Oko trend
- Liberty holds a 90% interest in the project through a binding option structure
Assembling a contiguous landholding of this size in Guyana is not straightforward. Mining permits are typically granted in blocks of 1 to 5km², each held by separate private citizens, making consolidation historically a significant barrier to entry. The 40-permit package positions Liberty with a meaningful landholding in a district where ground has rapidly been taken up.
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What comes next for Liberty Metals
With the maiden rock chip program complete, Liberty has a clear near-term exploration pipeline focused on building the dataset needed to define maiden drill targets at Oko North. The primary active work is a maiden soil geochemical program of approximately 5,000 samples across both Oko North and Oko South, using Portable PPB’s DetectORE™ technology to vector towards drill targets along the interpreted continuation of the Oko trend.
It is important to note that DetectORE™ results are reported in proprietary DetectORE™ Units (dU) and are not equivalent to conventional gold assays reported in parts per billion. Oko South remains in preparation, with no sampling completed there to date.
The next steps for the program are:
- Complete the maiden soil geochemical program (~5,000 samples, DetectORE™ technology) across Oko North and Oko South
- Acquire high-resolution satellite imagery across the project (underway)
- Geological mapping, structural interpretation and surface sampling across the Oko trend continuation
- Compile and reinterpret historical exploration and geological datasets
- Trenching and follow-up mapping of high-priority anomalies
- Define maiden drill targets ahead of a maiden drilling campaign at Oko North
No Mineral Resources or Ore Reserves have been estimated on Liberty’s tenure. The rock chip results and the soil geochemical program together form the systematic foundation that will be used to identify and prioritise targets before any drilling is committed.
Liberty’s activity at Oko North sits alongside a broader multi-commodity exploration push: the company recently announced a rare earth discovery in Brazil at its Paraiba Project, positioning LIB across two separate resource jurisdictions with distinct commodity exposures.
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