AbraSilver Resource drills 228m at 1.79 g/t gold at Oculto
The higher-grade oxide zone lies about 50 metres below the pit design, with a resource update expected in the second quarter of 2027.
Mara Quinlan
AbraSilver Resource Corp. TSEABRA OTCMKTSABBRF reported on Wednesday that hole DDH-26-061 returned 228.0 metres grading 1.79 grams per tonne gold in oxides at Oculto East in Argentina. Its higher-grade core lies about 50 metres below the current pit design and extends outside the resource model, identifying a target for additional gold resources.
Shares of TSEABRA closed at C$11.29, up 0.53 per cent, at 4:00 p.m. EDT in Toronto on Tuesday, before Wednesday's announcement.
The interval includes 66.0 metres grading 4.04 grams per tonne gold from 263.0 metres downhole. All widths are drilled lengths, and true widths remain unknown.
The results cover four holes in the Phase VI program at AbraSilver's wholly owned Diablillos silver-gold project. An updated resource estimate and a final investment decision on the project's first phase are both expected in the second quarter of 2027.
AbraSilver called the result Oculto's best gold intercept on a grade-thickness basis. The broad interval starts at 101.0 metres downhole and includes a narrower run of 11.0 metres grading 15.97 grams per tonne gold.
The company said further drilling is needed to define continuity between the new intercept and earlier gold hits at Oculto East. Follow-up holes will test lateral and down-dip extensions, while geological modelling will help define the zone's geometry.
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"With three rigs now turning, we expect to complete the Phase VI program by year-end," chief executive John Miniotis said in the release.
Approximately 13,500 metres have been completed in 51 exploration holes since January. The original program announced on Jan. 13 called for approximately 15,000 metres and was described as fully funded.
Another 2,000 metres in 13 condemnation holes were drilled separately to support infrastructure siting. Additional exploration assays are pending, but the release gives no count of holes awaiting results.
AbraSilver reported C$8.1 million in cash and equivalents and C$15.4 million in term deposits in its June 30 financial statements. Those balances predate the July financing closings listed by the company.
The next study is a heap leach preliminary economic assessment, which the company expects to release "in the coming weeks." It evaluates a second phase processing low-grade material already included in the resource but classified as waste in the definitive feasibility study's tank-leach mine plan.
That study will assess the potential to recover additional gold and silver and reduce unit production costs. First production from the initial phase remains targeted before the end of 2029.
AbraSilver expects to finish Phase VI drilling by the end of 2026, ahead of the resource update in the second quarter of 2027.
