The latest round of drilling at the Contact Lake project has delivered a succession of encouraging assay results that underscore a laterally and vertically continuous gold system. Early returns include multi‑metre intervals with significant grades, and visual core inspection on holes still pending assays suggests mineralization continues beyond the currently reported intercepts. With these data in hand, Trident has revised the scale of its winter program, increasing planned metres drilled and preparing for follow-up work through the remainder of 2026.
These results are part of a broader exploration effort across the 22,790‑hectare Contact Lake gold project, which includes a past‑producing mine that yielded approximately 190,000 ounces at an average head grade of 6.16 g/t between 1994 and 1998. The new intercepts reinforce the view that the discovered gold is not isolated; rather, it appears to form a robust, cohesive system that remains open in all directions and warrants materially expanded testing.
Table of Contents:
Key drill results and notable intercepts
The program reported multiple standout holes. Hole CL26028 returned 4.61 g/t Au over 38.48 m from 77.00 m, including a higher grade core of 5.48 g/t Au over 26.14 m from 79.36 m. Within that interval, narrow, very high‑grade shoots were encountered such as 19.98 g/t Au over 5.15 m and 33.16 g/t Au over 1.89 m, both starting at 79.36 m. A separate shallow zone in the same hole graded 19.07 g/t Au over 4.25 m from 60.00 m. These multiple horizons demonstrate both broad shear-hosted mineralization and discrete high‑grade cores.
Additional highlights include CL26025, which intersected 11.97 g/t Au over 10.70 m from 324.30 m, with a narrow, very high‑grade subinterval of 39.26 g/t Au over 2.65 m (332.35–335.00 m). Hole CL26026 returned 8.18 g/t Au over 3.50 m from 279.00 m. In total, nine reported holes intersected gold, and assays remain pending for twenty more holes. The assay highlights (April, 2026) table provided by the company documents these and other intersections in detail.
Program expansion, interpretation and next steps
In response to assay results and ongoing field observations, Trident increased the winter drilling allocation from an initial 10,000 m to approximately 13,000 m. Management states the company is fully financed to continue aggressive drilling through the summer and fall of 2026 and plans to execute a larger program of 30,000 to 40,000 m during 2026 to test strike and depth extensions. This decision reflects the interpretation that Contact Lake hosts a laterally extensive orogenic system with multiple stacked shear zones and higher grade cores that can be traced along strike and down dip.
Geological context and zone targeting
Drilling to date has focused on the northeast corridor near existing underground workings and the BK3 zone beneath Contact Lake. Several holes collared on land established continuity from the M‑zone toward BK3, while ice‑collared holes (CL26027–CL26048) systematically probed the BK3 extents. The pattern of broad mineralized envelopes with embedded high‑grade splays suggests the presence of structurally controlled conduits that concentrated gold, similar in geometry to deposits in established Canadian gold belts.
Operational implications
Discovering multiple high‑grade intervals well outside historical workings materially improves the project’s upside. Expanding the meterage and testing additional targets will refine the structural model, help vector toward richer shoots, and determine continuity at depth. The company’s balance sheet position enables a sustained campaign aimed at rapidly converting exploration success into a more comprehensive resource understanding.
Quality assurance, sampling and reporting
Trident follows a disciplined QAQC protocol: all core is photographed, logged and saw‑cut, with half of each sample bagged and sent to ALS Global in Saskatoon. Gold assays use a 30 g fire assay preparation while 49 elements are analyzed by ICP with a four‑acid digestion. Selected mineralized samples and any sample reporting >3.0 g/t Au are subject to secondary metallic screen analyses to quantify the nugget effect. Field blanks, duplicates and certified standards are inserted at a rate greater than 10% to ensure data integrity, and the lab applies its internal QAQC checks.
Summary and outlook
Collectively, the drilling results show broad zones of alteration with well‑developed high‑grade cores, supporting the interpretation of a coherent and open mineralizing system. With expanded winter drilling and a planned multi‑tens‑of‑thousands‑metre campaign in 2026, Trident aims to systematically expand known mineralization and test new targets across the Contact Lake property. Ongoing assays and continued fieldwork will be key to converting exploration momentum into a clearer resource picture.
