SmallCapPower | February 25, 2016: February has been a big month thus far for shareholders of Gold Standard Ventures Corp. (TSXV: GSV), as Goldcorp has joined OceanaGold in taking a significant ownership stake in the gold explorer. Now, with money to do follow up drilling following encouraging past results, 2016 could turn out to be an interesting year for shareholders of Gold Standard Ventures.
So why are these two established producers interested in Gold Standard Ventures? According to the Company, GSV has three defined gold deposits as well as the second-largest land package on Nevada’s Carlin Trend, which has 20 million + ounce gold deposits within it as well as contained in surrounding trends. Nevada itself is one of the top mining-friendly districts in the world, with favorable environmental legislation and infrastructure.
Gold Standard Ventures was recently added the Ubika Gold 20 Index. (See the other component companies in the Ubika Gold 20).
Newsletter writer Thom Calandra (thomcalandra.com) has 
covered Gold Standard Ventures for more than four years, both as a business journalist as well as an investor. He told SmallCapPower recently, “Nearly every single geophysicist, geologist, engineer, property syndicator and gold miner I know in the state of Nevada considers it the premier project in their state. Much of the academic and commercial work seems to bear them out.”
He added, “The GSV complex outside Elko has everything necessary for a project at $1,200 gold: location, shallow oxide gold and hard rock gold (and silver), breadth of discovery with multiple ‘frontiers’ to feed the (mill) engines. The metallurgy looks good and mine life for the GSV District could stretch into two-plus decades.”
Resource Maven Gwen Preston, meanwhile, weighed in on Gold Standard Ventures’ drill results that were released back in November, asserting that “four of five holes testing the Dark Star structural corridor returned notable gold intercepts.” In particular, the intercept in Hole DS15-10 “suggest a new zone that is thicker and significantly higher grade than anything previously drilled at Dark Star.” She noted that the Company’s speculation of a large system of oxidized Carlin-style gold would be exciting as Newmont Mining’s most profitable Nevada operation is the Emigrant mine, a heap leach operation only a few miles north of GSV’s project.
With more than C$40 million in its treasury, Gold Standard Ventures is planning a US$13.4 million drill program for 2016, which will follow-up on 2015 drill results at the North Dark Star oxide gold discovery, expand known resources at Dark Star and Pinion, and test new targets at North Bullion and Bald Mountain.
As far as a potential takeover is concerned, Mr. Calandra see a future in which Goldcorp and OceanaGold jointly develop this project, much like Agnico Eagle and Yamana Gold are doing with the Malartic mine in Quebec. That could all change, though, following the release of additional drill results as well as what appears to be an improving gold stock investing environment, which has sent GSV’s stock surging about 30% so far in February to its current price of $1.17.
