So why is Gold Fields (GFI) in JV with Vena Resources (VEM.to), Otto?

Good question. Hmmmm...let's see now.

First, let's take this morning's news release about the major new gold discovery made by Gold Fields (GFI) and Buenaventura. Here's how the NR kicks off:

JOHANNESBURG, May 11, 2010 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Chucapaca's joint venture partners, Gold Fields Limited (51%) (Gold Fields) (JSE, NYSE, NASDAQ Dubai: GFI) and Compania de Minas Buenaventura S.A.A. (49%) (Buenaventura, BVN), are pleased to announce the discovery of a major gold-copper-silver deposit in their Chucapaca project area (CPA) in southern Peru.

Called the Canahuire deposit, it has a Mineral Resource estimate of 5.6 million gold equivalent ounces[1] (Table 1), with mineralisation potential beyond the extent of current drilling. The Inferred Mineral Resource for Canahuire is approximately 83.7 Mt at 1.9 g/t gold, 0.09% copper and 8.2 g/t silver for a total of 5.6 million gold equivalent (AuEq1) ounces. CONTINUES HERE

And if you do the math, 5.1m oz of that total is pure gold.

Second, let's remember what the GFI Head of Exploration said about the area in and around Chucapaca. In his opinion, what we have here is a "new district".

Third, let's check a map:

click to enlarge (gets big)

And here's a nice close-up.

Oh look! Esquilache is just 25km away from a major new gold discovery made by GFI....hoodathunkit, eh?

Fourth, let's remind ourselves of the VEM.to NR dated May 4th 2010.

TORONTO, ONTARIO--(Marketwire - May 4, 2010) - Vena Resources Inc. (TSX:VEM - News;VEM - News; FRANKFURT:V1R - News; OTCBB:VNARF - News), a Company with strong partnerships with four of the world's largest mining companies, is pleased to announce that after field reviews conducted by its partner Gold Fields Limited ("Gold Fields") (NYSE:GFINews; JSE:GFI)(NASDAQ Dubai:GFI) in the Amantina region (18,900 hectares) in southern Peru, a technical committee comprised of geologists from both Vena and Gold Fields has agreed to advance the exploration to focus on a significant diatreme breccia target that had been previously identified by Vena in 2007. LIMA: -

The explosive breccia target known as the Amantina prospect is located approximately nine kilometres east of the historic Esquilache silver mine where Vena is actively exploring and approximately 27 kilometres east of the Gold Fields / Buenaventura Chucapaca JV project. The Amantina prospect consists of a polymictic breccia with a strongly silicified chalcedonic matrix surrounded by a zone of hydrothermal heterolithic breccias developed in Tertiary aged andesitic volcanics. The core breccia measures approximately 400 x 200 metres and trends N 20 degrees E. Additional lenticular outcrops of breccia poke through the extensive soil cover approximately 250 metres to the southeast and indicate that the overall size of the diatreme pipe may be much larger than the observed outcrop. The breccia body responded as a chargeability / resistivity high (disseminated pyrite in the siliceous matrix) during the 2007 induced polarization survey conducted by Vena and two other similar targets were identified to the southwest and northeast.

Strongly anomalous mercury, arsenic, lead and antimony geochemistry combined with the chalcedonic content of the breccia matrix suggest that CONTINUES HERE

Hey, there are never any guarantees when you're out exploring for gold, but GFI didn't just pick the VEM Esquilache/Amantina concession to JV because it had some leftover geologists that wanted a new spot in the mountains to go hiking. DYODD, dude.