Lahontan Drills 9.9m Grading 2.40 g/t Au and 50.7 g/t Ag in Santa Fe Mine Stockpile
Lahontan Gold Corp. (TSXV:LG, OTCQB:LGCXF, FSE:Y2F) reported first 2026 sonic core drill results at its Santa Fe Mine Project. A historic “low-grade” stockpile returned 9.9m grading 2.40 g/t Au and 50.7 g/t Ag. The company says grades exceed expectations and supports potential lower-cost heap reprocessing. Additional holes are expected soon.
How this was made
The 30-second read
Why it matters
If the remaining holes confirm higher grades and amenability to heap leaching, it strengthens the case for lower-cost feed and can feed into the updated MRE and PEA targeted by the company for 2026.
Market read
The release provides specific drill intercept grades and states the stockpile appears higher grade than historically classified, which can shift expectations for residual-feed value ahead of the company’s 2026 MRE/PEA work.
What to watch
The article does not provide updated resource estimates, recovery economics for the specific stockpile, or quantified capex/opex impacts; the next six holes and any MRE/PEA updates are the key decision points.
Background
Lahontan is restarting the Santa Fe Mine and is drilling historic heap leach pads/stockpiles to define lower-cost residual gold and silver feed for potential reprocessing.
Ticker impact
Lahontan reports first 2026 Sonic drill results at Santa Fe, including 9.9m grading 2.40 g/t Au and 50.7 g/t Ag in a historic stockpile.
Near-term upside bias for the stock on drill-grade confirmation, with follow-through dependent on the remaining six holes and updated resource/PEA inputs.
The release is a primary exploration datapoint with specific intercept grades and a stated program conclusion, but it is still limited to one stockpile area and does not yet update resources or economics.
Market effects
Supports the broader heap-leach reprocessing and brownfield exploration narrative for Nevada gold developers, potentially improving sentiment toward similar restart stories.
Reinforces investor focus on Walker Lane Nevada projects with accessible historic heap infrastructure.
Limited direct global impact; mainly affects microcap/junior gold sentiment and reprocessing optionality.
Counterpoint
Higher grades in a single historic stockpile may not translate into mineable, economically recoverable tonnage once full drilling, metallurgical reconciliation, and permitting constraints are considered.
Key entities
- companyLahontan Gold Corp.
TSXV-listed Nevada-focused gold developer conducting Sonic core drilling at the Santa Fe Mine to evaluate residual heap-leach stockpiles.
- assetSanta Fe Mine Project
Nevada gold and silver project with historic heap leach pads and stockpiles targeted for potential future reprocessing.
- companyCorona Gold
Previous mine operator that mined the open pit and set aside the stockpile material.
