DISCOVERY'S HIT SERIES "BERING SEA GOLD" RETURNS FOR NEW SEASON WITH CREWS VYING FOR GOLD ON FRESH GROUND

New Season Premieres Friday, August 26, at 9 PM ET/PT on the Discovery Channel

(Los Angeles) - With the 2016 ice-mining season underway, a modern-day gold rush sparks in Nome, Alaska, when Shawn Pomrenke AKA "Mr. Gold" offers the gold mining fleet access to his 160-acre claim of untouched Bering Sea floor. Rumored to contain millions of dollars in gold, the miners risk everything to try their luck on the untapped terrain. But access comes at a price. From Original Productions, creators of the multiple Emmy Award-winning series DEADLIEST CATCH, the new season of BERING SEA GOLD premieres Friday, August 26, at 9 PM ET/PT on the Discovery Channel.

Coming off a colossal 2.2 million dollar summer, Shawn Pomrenke looks toward the future and sees an empire. He just needs to build it. This season, instead of dredging, Shawn preps for a huge summer, expanding his inland operation and constructing a mega-dredge that will dwarf the Christine Rose. And while Shawn works to build the Pomrenke Empire, so does the rest of the fleet. While they're allowed to dredge Shawn's virgin Claim 38, they must hand over 20% of their gold and, most importantly, valuable GPS coordinates. This means when the ice thaws and Shawn's new mega dredge hits the water, he can get on the gold immediately.

For the fleet, Shawn's new virgin territory offers big risk and big return. Drill logs show the claim to contain upwards of 15 million dollars' worth of gold. With this in mind, Zeke Tenhoff will do whatever it takes to have a successful season, including continuing his unlikely partnership with former flame, Emily Riedel. Relying on her to handle the business so that he can focus on the mining, the explosive duo re-unite in hopes of finally striking it rich. And for Vernon Adkison, the consummate dreamer, this season represents his best and possibly final chance to make it as a gold miner.

BERING SEA GOLD is produced for Discovery Channel by Original Productions, a Fremantle Media company. For Original Productions, executive producers are Thom Beers, Philip D. Segal, Sarah Whalen, and Jeff Meredith. For Discovery Channel, Executive Producer is Kyle Wheeler. "Like" BERING SEA GOLD on Facebook at facebook.com/BeringSeaGold and follow the series on Twitter @BeringSeaGold. To learn more, go to www.discovery.com, on Facebook at Facebook.com/discovery and on Twitter @Discovery and be sure to check out old seasons of BERING SEA GOLD on Discovery GO at DiscoveryGO.com

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Discovery Communications (Nasdaq: DISCA, DISCB, DISCK) satisfies curiosity and engages superfans with a portfolio of premium nonfiction, sports and kids programming brands. Reaching 3 billion cumulative viewers across pay-TV and free-to-air platforms in more than 220 countries and territories, Discovery's portfolio includes the global brands Discovery Channel, TLC, Investigation Discovery, Animal Planet, Science and Turbo/Velocity, as well as OWN: Oprah Winfrey Network in the U.S., Discovery Kids in Latin America, and Eurosport, the leading provider of locally relevant, premium sports content across Europe. Discovery reaches audiences across screens through digital-first programming from Discovery VR, Seeker and SourceFed Studios, as well as over-the-top and TV Everywhere offerings including Eurosport Player, Dplay, Discovery K!ds Play and Discovery GO. For more information, please visit www.discoverycommunications.com.