Auriginal Mining reports 45.5m gold intercept ahead of Roger resource update
The year-end estimate will exclude this year's drilling, which is targeted for a further resource update in the first half of 2027.
Mara Quinlan
Auriginal Mining Corp. CVEAUME reported on Thursday that hole AUR-26-12 returned 1.05 grams per tonne gold over 45.5 metres in extension drilling at its Roger project in Quebec. The program has extended mineralization at least 150 metres below historical drilling and across at least 1.4 kilometres of strike.
Shares fell C$0.005 to C$0.050 on the TSX Venture Exchange at 4:00 p.m. EDT on Wednesday, according to CVEAUME, before Thursday's release.
Auriginal reported results from four holes, completing the release of Phase 1 assays and adding the first Phase 2 result. Roger is a wholly owned gold-copper exploration project in the Chibougamau district, and Auriginal says mineralization remains open along strike and at depth.
The estimate expected before year-end 2026 will reinterpret the historical resource using a modern drill database, excluding this year's drilling. Auriginal targets a further estimate incorporating both programs and any Phase 3 drilling in the first half of 2027.
The headline intercept began at 397.0 metres down-hole and included 8.0 metres grading 4.37 grams per tonne gold. A smaller included interval returned 12.2 grams per tonne gold over 2.2 metres.
The hole also intersected 23.2 metres grading 1.35 grams per tonne gold from 111.0 metres down-hole. That shallower interval included 1.5 metres grading 16.3 grams per tonne gold.
The smaller interval within the headline intercept also carried 31.9 grams per tonne silver and 0.35 per cent copper. The reported intervals are core lengths, with true widths estimated at approximately 65 per cent of those lengths.
Hole AUR-26-10 returned 1.32 grams per tonne gold over 29.4 metres. That intercept began at 402.0 metres down-hole and included 1.3 metres grading 14.0 grams per tonne gold.
The same hole also returned 1.04 grams per tonne gold over 24.3 metres from 603.7 metres down-hole. That deeper interval included 4.0 metres grading 3.82 grams per tonne gold.
The deepest intercept reported at Roger came from hole AUR-26-09. It returned 1.22 grams per tonne gold over 4.1 metres, starting at 658.9 metres down-hole.
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"Our immediate priority is to complete the revised interpretation of the historical resource and publish the 2026 estimate before year-end," chief executive Peter Cashin said in the release.
Auriginal has drilled roughly 5,700 metres against a planned 7,300 metres across 16 holes in Phase 2. Assays are pending from hole AUR-26-20, where the company reported visible gold.
Auriginal budgeted an additional C$2.0 million for Phase 2 on July 16 and described the follow-up program as fully funded.
The next resource estimate is expected before year-end 2026, with this year's drilling targeted for inclusion in the first half of 2027.
