Andy Rendle's passion for Colombia is infectious. It's enthralling when he waxes lyrical about how he loves the enigmatic beauty of Salvajina lake, where gold was first discovered by the Spanish in the early 1500’s. Over the centuries many people have wanted  to explore and mine the region, more recently, from the 1960s to 2003, but this has been incredibly difficult due to Colombia’s recent history of violence. 

 

A rich gold source, as legend has it (geologists have now validated), can be found in the two prime “mountains.” On the northwest banks, up by the hydroelectric dam, is Cosigo’s family project which is owned in collaboration with SouthCorp Capital Inc. Project Luna is 5,000 hectares of leased land at the base around the main mountain peak. The mountain on the southeastern slope, on the other side of the lake, is the Tambo site.

 

Here, gold production of all different scales can be found around the lake, the area is known as the gold belt, but the most important sites for historical production and quality are within the boundary of Project Luna. Here stamp mills have been set up by informal miners, as opposed to just simple sluice operations which are found around the rest of the mountains surrounding the lake.

 

Back in 2005, Anglo Gold and Ashanti tried to stake a claim for the whole lake, but Cosigo, a family run initiative run by Andy Rendle, beat them by 9 minutes to secure the most important area for mining and future development. Though not as big as either competitor, Andy is far more determined and passionate, and he managed to get 5,000 hectares and a team together, Together we will roll out this project which is the start of an exciting future for Colombia and for those smart enough to invest in a team that is solid gold.