Corks are popping at Golden Band Resources Saskatoon Headquarters today as they announced they have successfully poured their first gold bar.

The 500 ounce bar was produced at the company's Jolu (Joe-Lu) mine in the La Ronge area.

Company Chief Operating Officer Gary Haywood hopes it will be the first of many, as they plan to produce 45 thousand ounces of gold this year.

At today's market price of over 13 hundred dollars an ounce, it's plain to see why Golden Band has been working for years to transition from a gold exploration company to Saskatchewan's second gold producer.

Claude Resources is the other.  They operate the Seabee Mine in Northern Saskatchewan, and produced over 47 thousand ounces of gold in 2010.