en.Wedoany.com Reported - VR Resources Ltd. announced the completion of a VTEM+ airborne electromagnetic and magnetic survey at the polymetallic Empire Project in northwestern Ontario, Canada. The survey results will provide a basis for subsequent drilling plans and represent the final exploration milestone before the project's transfer. Athos Metals completed the VTEM+ airborne electromagnetic and magnetic survey over the Empire, Rambler, and Mack mineral claims, with final processed data expected by the end of July 2026.
The Empire Project is being transferred to Athos Metals Corp. Under the definitive agreement between VR Resources and Athos, VR will sell its 100% interest in the Empire and Silverback Projects. Athos is advancing a "going public" transaction and has received TSXV approval for the NI 43-101 technical report on the Empire District Project, with a letter dated May 26, 2026, confirming the project's listing value. On June 3, 2026, Athos entered into a definitive merger agreement with capital pool company Meed Growth Corp. (MEED.P:TSXV), with Athos expected to go public in the coming months. VR will retain 9.9% of the resulting issuer's shares upon completion of the transaction. Subsequent drilling is expected in late summer or fall 2026, pending integration of airborne geophysical data to prioritize targets, with results determining the final drilling program before the transfer.
Dr. Michael Gunning, CEO of the company, stated that the completion of this airborne geophysical survey clearly demonstrates Athos's commitment to successfully closing the Empire transaction and continues the company's district-scale Cu-Ni-PGM exploration strategy initiated two years ago. The VTEM+ survey results will enable Athos to conduct detailed studies of the correlation between magnetic and conductive characteristics within Cu-Ni-PGM-rich intrusions at the Empire and Mack Mine areas, optimizing existing drill targets. At the Rambler Mine, approximately 25 km to the north, the focus will be on untested new conductors in the northern lower greenstone belt covered by the VTEM+ survey, distributed along the northern margin of the Marmion terrane. Regarding VR's role in future projects, Gunning stated that through clear director and technical advisor roles in the resulting issuer, VR will leverage its geological, exploration, and logistical experience in the region to continue actively contributing to the discovery of new Cu-Ni-PGM mineral systems in northwestern Ontario.
VR Resources is a Canadian junior exploration company incorporated in British Columbia, focused on copper, gold, and critical metal projects in Nevada, USA. The company launched a Cu-Ni-PGM-Au strategy in western Ontario, Canada, in 2024, which has been transferred through a transaction announced on February 26, 2026.
The company recently completed a 2,900-foot drill hole intersecting multi-stage vein systems at the Jeep target within the New Boston polymetallic Mo-W-Cu-Ag porphyry-skarn project in Nevada, USA. Geochemical results are pending, with final data expected to be released in August. Planned follow-up drilling will target sheeted veins and stockworks in layered porphyry dikes and surrounding Triassic limestone. The company intends to use the results of the current drill hole as a guide to prioritize subsequent drilling within the approved drill pad array under its current NOI drilling permit.
The company recently completed an advanced 3D array DCIP geophysical survey at the Bonita copper-gold project in Nevada. The 3D resistivity model contains approximately 187,000 data points, and the IP model approximately 135,500 data points. The survey was designed to provide precise exploration vectors for porphyry copper sulfide veins encountered during initial exploration drilling at Copper Queen in 2017. Once all final data and model inversions from the recent survey are integrated with the extensive project data collected by the company since 2015, follow-up drilling will be evaluated.
Tungsten and copper are two metals that VR Resources has recently focused on as primary investments. Tungsten has the highest melting point of all metals and has critical uses in national defense. China, Russia, and North Korea produce approximately 90% of the world's tungsten. Effective January 1, 2027, a federal procurement rule will prohibit the procurement of tungsten from China, Russia, Iran, and North Korea for U.S. defense operations. The overall tungsten market is expected to grow from $5.78 billion in 2026 to $9.19 billion in 2034, with demand remaining strong after a 667% surge in early 2026. Driven by industrial demand and AI data center construction, copper futures broke through an all-time high of $14,000 per metric ton on May 12, 2026. Copper prices have risen over 10% since the beginning of the year and over 40% since the start of 2025. Total copper inventories at major global exchanges have increased by more than 500,000 metric tons since the start of the year. Chinese production fell 3% in April 2026.
In March 2026, Ben Pirie of Atrium Research believed VR was heading toward a catalyst-rich 2026 plan, including follow-up drilling at the New Boston and Bonita polymetallic porphyry systems in Nevada. On May 15, 2026, technical analyst Stewart Thomson rated the stock a "speculative buy" with a short-term technical target of C$0.75, a medium-term target of C$2.30, and a long-term target of C$3.40, noting that the company's balance volume has surged to multi-year highs and the Chaikin Money Flow indicator shows a bullish divergence with price, also at multi-year highs.
