Bema Gold Corp. said Tuesday that drilling on the newly discovered 650 zone at its Kupol project in Russia has produced more high-grade results. The company also reported that part-owned Russian subsidiary Chukotka Mining has acquired two new licenses near the project.

Bema said testing at the 650 zone found continuous high-grade mineralization over 625 meters (2,050 feet) with several parallel to sub-parallel veins in zone. High-grade intersections of gold and silver also were found at the site, the company said.

The Vancouver-based miner said its Chukotka Mining and Geological Co., 75 percent owned by Bema and 25 percent owned by the government of Chukotka, has been awarded two new licenses surrounding, and adjacent to Kupol.

The acquisition of the Kupol West and Kupol East licenses increases Chukotka Mining's overall land position in the Kupol area to about 425.5 square kilometers (264.4 square miles) from 17.5 square kilometers (10.9 square miles).

Development and construction of the Kupol Mine continues to progress on schedule, Bema said, with production to begin in mid-2008.

Shares of Bema rose 8 cents to close at $4.42 on the New York Stock Exchange.