Cora Gold Reports 34m at 6.78 g/t Gold from Drilling at Sanankoro, Mali

en.Wedoany.com Reported - On September 7, Cora Gold announced the first batch of assay results from the 2026 Mineral Resource update drilling program at the Sanankoro Gold Mine in southern Mali. Hole SC0716 in the Zone B Central area intersected 34 meters at an average gold grade of 6.78 g/t from 117 meters depth, including a high-grade mineralized interval of 9 meters at 23.91 g/t gold from 128 meters. This hole is located outside the mineralized envelope of the current Mineral Resource model and was drilled beneath the 2025 open-pit shell with reasonable prospects for eventual economic extraction.

Other results from the same batch include hole SC0712, which intersected 22 meters at 2.24 g/t gold from 12 meters depth; hole SC0718, which intersected 54 meters at 1.06 g/t gold from 144 meters depth, including 8 meters at 5.68 g/t gold; and hole SC0709, which returned a mineralized interval of 7 meters at 1.05 g/t gold from 37 meters depth. A total of 10 holes for 1,272 meters have been completed in Zone B Central during this phase, of which SC0711, SC0714, and SC0715 did not report mineralized intersections meeting the disclosure criteria for this release.

Cora's 2026 Resource growth drilling program totals over 12,000 meters, utilizing a combination of diamond drilling and predominantly reverse circulation drilling, with resource extension drilling underway at 4 of the 5 existing deposits at Sanankoro. As of September 7, a cumulative total of 10,656 meters had been completed in this phase, representing approximately 89% of the planned program; the 1,272 meters reported here represent only the first batch of assay results returned. Assay results from Selin, Dakounkoura South, Zone A, and Zone C remain pending, while drilling continues at TRA07, Kary, and the remaining holes in Zone B.

Zone B comprises three ore bodies—Zone B South, Zone B Central, and Zone B North—all located within the same mineralized structural corridor associated with the main Sanankoro shear zone, with a combined strike length of approximately 3.7 kilometers. The main Zone B body has a strike extent of over 2 kilometers, with Zone B North extending a further approximately 1.7 kilometers. As the current Resource model is constrained by insufficient historical drill coverage along strike and at depth, Zone B received the largest drilling meterage allocation in this program.

The 34-meter mineralized interval in hole SC0716 lies outside the mineralized envelope of the current Resource, and the high-grade core of 9 meters at 23.91 g/t gold still has scope for further testing down-dip. Cora has indicated that deeper drilling can subsequently continue to test the down-dip extension of this high-grade mineralized core. Some of the newly added mineralization from this drilling program will also be assessed for potential reclassification from Inferred to Indicated Resources and incorporated into subsequent Ore Reserve and mine life updates.

Sanankoro currently has JORC Mineral Resources of 31.4 million tonnes at an average gold grade of 1.04 g/t, containing 1.044 million ounces of gold, comprising Indicated Resources of 19.0 million tonnes at 1.13 g/t gold for 689,000 ounces and Inferred Resources of 12.4 million tonnes at 0.89 g/t gold for 354,000 ounces. Current Probable Ore Reserves stand at 531,000 ounces of gold, with a reserve-based mine life of 10.2 years as defined by the 2025 Definitive Feasibility Study.

The project plans to construct a 1.5 million tonne per annum gold processing plant, with pre-production capital expenditure of approximately $124 million as defined by the 2025 Definitive Feasibility Study, and planned gold production of approximately 482,000 ounces over the mine life, with average annual production of approximately 64,000 ounces over the first five years. Front-end engineering design (FEED) for the proposed processing plant is currently underway, and all drilling areas in this phase are within short haul distance by road of the planned processing facility. Cora secured $120 million in gold stream financing in April 2026 and continues to advance the Sanankoro mining permit process.