06:35 AM EDT, 04/29/2024 (MT Newswires) -- West Red Lake Gold Mines ( WRLGF ) over the weekend said it updated its mineral resource estimate as of March 1 on its Rowan mine deposit in the Red Lake Gold District of northwestern Ontario in Canada.

The 2024 mineral resource estimate has added a significant portion of higher confidence indicated ounces at grades 40% higher than the 2022 mineral resource estimate, the company said.

Rowan's indicated resources are 476,323 tonnes grading 12.78 grams per tonne (g/t) gold for a total of 195,746 ounces of gold, a jump from nil ounces. Inferred resources are 410,794 tonnes grading 8.76 g/t gold for a total of 115,719 ounces of gold, down from from about 827,000 ounces.

The drop in inferred metal content can be attributed to conversion of inferred to indicated resources, a more rigorous modeling approach and more stringent resource estimation parameters to account for high gold grades, the company said.

West Red Lake Gold has planned a fully funded $4.5-million drill program for up to 15,000 meters of drilling at Rowan in 2024, focused on growth and resource expansion on the main Rowan mine deposit.

West Red Lake Gold gained 5.5% to $0.96 per share on Friday.