Contango Silver & Gold says its 2026 exploration season delivered more drilling at its Kitsault project than planned, advanced site preparation at Johnson Tract ahead of schedule, and launched drilling in a previously untested eastern section of the Lucky Shot vein system. The update covers projects in British Columbia and Alaska, with assay results and updated project studies due over the coming months and into 2027.
The company also said it had achieved a “cleaner, unhedged” balance sheet, though it provided no financial details alongside the project update.
Kitsault: larger-than-planned drill program
- Contango completed 56,492 meters of drilling across 152 holes at Kitsault, in British Columbia’s Golden Triangle. That was about 40% more than the 40,000 meters originally planned.
- The company attributed the additional drilling to operational efficiencies, including higher rig productivity and fewer weather and mobilization delays. It said the program remained on budget.
- Drilling targeted extensions of known high-grade zones, areas where additional work could support resource conversion, and new targets identified during the 2025 season.
- Assay results are pending and are expected to be released over the next two to three months as they are received and validated.
- Contango released an updated mineral resource estimate for Kitsault on Sept. 22. It plans another estimate in the first half of 2027 that incorporates the 2026 drilling, followed by an Initial Assessment for the Kitsault Valley projects later in 2027.
- The company welcomed British Columbia’s newly elected Conservative majority government, saying its stated support for responsible resource development and reducing regulatory delays could support the project’s advancement. Contango said it remains aligned with its previously outlined timeline.
Johnson Tract: infrastructure moves ahead
- Contango completed a 2.6-mile access road from the existing camp to the proposed portal site, along with the portal laydown area. The work was completed ahead of schedule and under budget.
- The road and portal area are intended to support construction of an underground exploration drift, which is scheduled to begin in 2027. Environmental studies also continued during the season to inform ongoing permitting.
- Budget efficiencies allowed the company to build a new camp pad this year, a task originally planned for 2027. Contango has selected an engineering consultant for a new, fully winterized 60-person camp, targeted for construction in 2027.
- The camp is intended to enable year-round operations as the company advances Johnson Tract toward feasibility-level work.
Lucky Shot: completed drilling and a new eastern test
- Contango completed about 5,800 meters of surface drilling in 27 holes across five pads at the Coleman segment of the Lucky Shot vein system. The work focused on infill and step-out targets; remaining Coleman assays are expected in the fourth quarter.
- Underground drilling of the KM vein from the West Drift Extension is also complete: 943 meters across 16 holes. The program tested the vein’s geometry and continuity and its interpreted relationship to the Lucky Shot Fault and vein system. Assays are expected in the fourth quarter.
- Drilling is now underway in the 2070 East Drift, the first modern program to test the eastern extent of the Lucky Shot vein system. The update did not provide drilling totals or a results timeline for this program.
The operational changes are chiefly about project readiness: Kitsault has a larger-than-planned body of drilling to incorporate into its next resource estimate, while Johnson Tract has key access and site-preparation work completed ahead of its planned 2027 underground development work. At Lucky Shot, completed programs await assays, while the eastern test adds a new area of exploration.