Cygnus Metals Limited has announced the commencement of a comprehensive exploration campaign at its Chibougamau Copper-Gold Project in Quebec, Canada. This initiative is designed to significantly increase mineral resources through targeted drilling and advanced geophysical techniques, reinforcing the company's strategic focus on growth and value creation.
Intensive Exploration Strategy Unfolds
The 2026 exploration program is a multi-faceted effort aimed at extending known mineralisation, testing newly defined targets, and identifying fresh prospects. According to Cygnus Executive Chairman David Southam, there is substantial evidence pointing to the potential for resource expansion at Chibougamau, with many areas remaining open and a robust pipeline of targets ready for evaluation.
Southam emphasized that after achieving a 29 percent resource growth last year, the company is confident that this year's strategy will yield strong results and enhance shareholder value. The exploration includes both brownfields drilling at existing deposits and the testing of new, overlooked targets.
Key Projects and Technological Advances
At the Cedar Bay deposit, Downhole Electromagnetics (DHEM) is currently underway to identify follow-up drill targets. This marks the first use of DHEM at Cedar Bay in over two decades, presenting a significant opportunity for Cygnus. Recent drilling intersections at Cedar Bay have shown promising results, including 28.9 meters at 2.5 grams per tonne gold equivalent and 10.6 meters at 4.1 grams per tonne gold equivalent.
Simultaneously, drilling has started at the Golden Eye deposit with three rigs operational. The goal is to extend the resource below the current depth of 450 meters and grow the Indicated Resource. Golden Eye, defined last year, currently holds an Indicated Resource of 0.5 million tonnes at 5.6 grams per tonne gold equivalent and an Inferred Resource of 1.2 million tonnes at 4.6 grams per tonne gold equivalent.
Discovery Potential at Joe Mann and Gwillim
At the Joe Mann site, a detailed Induced Polarisation (IP) survey is in progress to identify walk-up drill targets. These targets are analogous to the nearby Nelligan Complex deposits, which contain substantial gold resources. Additionally, permits are being submitted for drilling at the Gwillim prospect, with initial targets based on historic intersections such as 7.6 meters at 38.1 grams per tonne gold.
The Gwillim drilling will be co-funded by 50 percent joint venture partner Alamos Gold, a company with a market capitalisation of approximately C$25 billion. This collaboration underscores the high discovery potential of these areas, which have been largely overlooked for the past 20 years.
Resource Base and Future Outlook
The Chibougamau project currently boasts a Measured and Indicated Resource of 6.4 million tonnes at 3 percent copper equivalent and an Inferred Resource of 8.5 million tonnes at 3.5 percent copper equivalent. Cygnus believes there is significant room for growth, driven by the ongoing exploration efforts and the current favorable gold price environment.
With exploration now active at multiple fronts, including Cedar Bay and Golden Eye, Cygnus is poised to unlock substantial resource upside and discovery potential, positioning the company for continued success in the mining sector.
