I-80 Gold reported final assay results from the completed 2025-2026 infill drill campaign at the upper 426 zone of the Archimedes underground project, highlighting multiple high-grade intercepts and a longer oxide interval as the company continues development work at Ruby Hill in Nevada.
The strongest result in the release was hole IAU26-11, which returned 21.9 grams per tonne gold over 20.2 meters. Other standout intercepts included 16.2 g/t over 56.4 meters in IAU26-09, 11.0 g/t over 26.1 meters in IAU26-13, 7.3 g/t over 33.1 meters in IAU26-08, and 5.4 g/t over 56.5 meters in IAU26-17. The company also reported 15.8 g/t over 6.7 meters in IAU26-23 and 15.0 g/t over 8.8 meters in IAU26-17.
The 2025-2026 upper 426 program totaled about 8,500 meters across 40 drill holes and was completed on schedule and budget. The drilling was aimed at tightening spacing to roughly 60 feet ahead of mining. Of the 20 holes listed in the final results table, two were geotechnical holes not in mineralization and two returned no significant intercepts.
Several holes showed both sulfide and oxide mineralization. IAU26-17 cut 56.5 meters of oxide grading 5.4 g/t, followed by 8.8 meters of sulfide at 15.0 g/t and another 30.8 meters of oxide at 3.2 g/t. IAU26-06 returned three intercepts, including 9.1 meters at 7.9 g/t sulfide, 3.8 meters at 6.8 g/t oxide, and 6.9 meters at 7.4 g/t oxide. IAU26-12 included 28.3 meters at 2.4 g/t oxide, 5.7 meters at 5.2 g/t sulfide, 8.7 meters at 9.0 g/t sulfide, and 16.6 meters at 10.7 g/t oxide.
The company said the new results continue to confirm high-grade mineralization and continuity within the planned mining areas, while also extending mineralization beyond the boundaries of the current resource model used for the Archimedes preliminary economic assessment. It said the drilling also intersected significant oxide material not currently included in that resource estimate.
Archimedes currently carries an indicated resource of 1.8 million tonnes containing 436,000 ounces of gold at 7.6 g/t, plus an inferred resource of 4.2 million tonnes containing 988,000 ounces at 7.3 g/t. Most of that resource sits in the Ruby Deeps zone below the 5,100-foot elevation.
A new drilling program started in the second quarter of 2026 and is targeting about 55,000 meters across 140 holes in the lower 426 zone and Ruby Deeps. Five underground rigs are already on site, with two more expected in July. The updated resource and mine plan for the Archimedes feasibility study are now expected late in the first quarter of 2027, versus the earlier broader 2027 timeframe tied to the expanding drill program.
On development timing, I-80 Gold said Archimedes remains on track to deliver first gold in the fourth quarter of 2026. The area above the 5,100-foot level is fully permitted, construction is advancing, and project costs remain in line with budget. The company also said feasibility-level technical studies for Granite Creek Underground and Cove Underground have been pushed back from the second quarter of 2026 to the third quarter of 2026.
The company’s phase 1 plan still calls for Archimedes and Granite Creek Underground to begin feeding the Lone Tree plant by late 2027, with interim material expected to be processed under a third-party toll milling arrangement until then. Following these announcements, the company's shares moved 1.74%, and are now trading at a price of $1.465. For more information, read the company's full 8-K submission here.
