Hycroft Mining (NASDAQ:HYMC) is seeking to determine whether Vortex is a feeder-type system after delivering the ‘highest grade’ intercept in the company’s history.
The company is conducting a 2025–26 exploration drilling campaign at the Hycroft mine in Nevada, US, focused on expanding and advancing the two silver systems, Brimstone and Vortex.
Hole H26D-6175A returned 19.6m @ 30.49 grams per tonne gold (Au) and 1,726.72g/t silver (Ag). This includes 1.7m @ 347.07g/t Au and 9,526.36g/t Ag.
Speaking to Mining.com.au, Executive Chairman & CEO Diane Garrett says what makes the latest intercept “unique” is that it is the best hole in the company’s history, containing the highest gold grades ever reported at Hycroft and a silver-equivalent grade more than 50% higher than the company’s previous best hole.
Garrett adds that the gold and silver at the Hycroft Mine appear to have been deposited at different times, pointing to separate mineralising events.
“We still have a lot to learn about these systems and there’s no telling how substantial and significant they will ultimately become,” Garrett says.
“We know that Vortex and Brimstone are very substantial high-grade systems as they stand today, and both are still open in all directions and at depth.”
“If we’re fortunate enough, at Vortex we’ll continue getting higher and higher grades, and we’re starting to see higher grades at Brimstone as we go deeper as well.”
Changing the trajectory of Vortex’s value
In addition to step-out drilling, Garrett says the company’s goal is to continue drilling deeper and around the hole to see if it is close to a feeder-type system at Vortex.
“Which would then mean even higher grades and longer intercepts — and you know, it just changes the economics and the trajectory of the value driver for this system significantly,” Garrett tells this news service.
Follow-up drilling is already underway, and Garrett hopes to return similar gold and silver grades from the next drill hole.
“That would give us an indication that we’ve got some continuity there and that we are headed in the right direction,” she says.
The Hycroft mine is located in Nevada’s Sulfur Mining District, encompassing 64,000 acres of patented and unpatented claims. The project has a total silver resource of 695.4 million ounces, as well as a gold resource of 21.4 million ounces.
Hycroft Mining is a US-based gold and silver explorer and developer focused on its namesake mine.
Write to Aaliyah Rogan at Mining.com.au
Main image: Hycroft Mining
