Full Control of B26 Positions Abitibi Metals for Resource Expansion and 2027 PEA

• Abitibi Metals has completed 100% ownership of the B26 polymetallic copper-gold deposit in Quebec, fulfilling what was structured as a seven-year option agreement with SOQUEM in approximately two and a half years - well ahead of schedule.
• The B26 deposit contains a combined resource of approximately 25 million tonnes at 2.15% copper equivalent, representing roughly 2.6 million gold-equivalent ounces, with copper, gold, silver, and zinc providing multi-commodity exposure.
• The company holds approximately $45 million in cash, fully funding an 80,000-metre drill program and all planned activities through Q1 2028, with three rigs currently operating on site and no outstanding warrants.
• A Preliminary Economic Assessment (PEA) is targeted for Q1 2027, with the company pursuing a resource expansion toward 35–45 million tonnes as the primary preceding milestone.
• Completion of the B26 acquisition also secured a 10-year right of first refusal on two adjacent government-owned properties and reduced the project royalty by half to a 1% NSR with no underlying royalties.

Abitibi Metals Corp. has reached a significant milestone in its corporate development, completing ownership of the B26 polymetallic copper-gold deposit in northern Quebec. What was structured as a seven-year option agreement with SOQUEM - a 100% subsidiary of Investissement Québec - has been fulfilled in approximately two and a half years, a timeline that management believes reflects the quality of the underlying asset. With a market capitalisation of roughly $173 million, approximately $45 million in cash, and a three-rig drill program underway, the company is now positioned to advance B26 through a defined technical study schedule while continuing to grow the resource base.

The company, led by founder and CEO Jon Deluce, recently outlined the current state of the asset, the company's financial standing, exploration priorities, and strategic context. 

A High-Grade Polymetallic System at Scale 

B26 is a volcanic-hosted massive sulphide (VMS) deposit located in the northern Abitibi greenstone belt in Quebec, approximately one and a half hours north of the Perron project being advanced by Amex Exploration. The deposit contains a combined resource of approximately 25 million tonnes at an average grade of 2.15% copper equivalent across indicated and inferred categories. On a metal-equivalent basis, the company estimates an in-situ value of approximately 2.6 million gold-equivalent ounces, with copper representing 62% of in-situ value, gold 20%, silver 9%, and zinc 9%, based on the commodity prices used in the February 2026 resource update.

At current spot commodity prices, the gold and silver weighting increases, with copper accounting for approximately 54% of in-situ value, gold at 25%, and silver at 14% - demonstrating meaningful leverage to the precious metals component. The deposit spans a 1.6-kilometre strike length and extends to approximately 1,100 metres of vertical depth. Approximately 85% of the resource is hosted in a copper-gold stringer zone, with the balance in a parallel massive sulphide zinc-silver zone.

The deposit also contains zones of varying grades, including higher-grade intervals surrounded by lower-grade material that management believes provides economic optionality as commodity prices rise and development infrastructure is put in place. Deluce has emphasised the scarcity of assets of this type: "There are very, very few of these high-grade polymetallics available across the world, but especially Canada." That rarity, combined with a Tier-1 jurisdiction, is central to the company's investment case.

Full Ownership of a Repositioned Camp Asset 

The final 20% acquisition from SOQUEM marks a structural shift in the company's position at B26. Under the terms of the transaction, Abitibi issued $5 million in cash - offset by payments owed by SOQUEM under the joint venture agreement - $1.1 million already received and a further approximately $700,000 outstanding - resulting in a net cash outlay of $3.2 million, plus $2 million worth of shares. Future performance payments are tied to a feasibility study and a construction decision, milestones that management views as appropriately deferred given the current stage of the project.

Beyond the ownership change itself, the transaction included a 10-year right of first refusal on two adjacent SOQUEM-held properties: the Lac Carheil project to the west of B26, and the Waconichi project to the northwest. Both surround the historical Selbaie mine, which operated for 20 years and produced 53 million tonnes. The Selbaie precedent is significant because it demonstrates the scale of polymetallic systems that this particular VMS camp is capable of hosting - a characteristic that is not universal in VMS districts, which more commonly host smaller 5-10 million tonne deposits.

The transaction also reduced the project's royalty burden by half, to a 1% NSR with no other underlying royalties at the project level - a meaningful improvement to the prospective economics of any future development scenario.

Funded Through 2028 Without Market Dependence 

With approximately $45 million in cash, Abitibi Metals is fully funded through its planned activities to the end of Q1 2028. This includes the full 80,000-metre drill budget and all associated technical, metallurgical, and environmental work. The company has structured its capital position deliberately, with management noting the importance of not being compelled to raise capital under unfavourable market conditions.

Deluce addressed this directly: 

"Getting ahead of our financing is exactly why, in times like today where we're seeing a bit of a consolidation in the market, it doesn't affect us. We continue to execute on our business plan." 

The company has no outstanding warrants, and its fully diluted share count stands at approximately 248 million shares.

Ownership is concentrated among aligned parties. The CEO and a family office hold a combined position of approximately 21%.  Management estimates that more than half of the company's shares are held by a small group of long-term institutional and strategic investors, many of whom participated in recent financing rounds including one led by Discovery Silver.

Drilling Toward a Definable Mine Plan 

Three drills are currently operating at B26, with drilling divided across resource improvement, deposit expansion, and regional grassroots targets. Early results from the 2025 program have included a 150-metre depth extension of the deposit at strong grades and widths, as well as upgrades of previously modelled lower-grade blocks to higher-grade intervals. One highlight hole returned 4.5% copper equivalent over 21 metres within a broader interval of 1.7% over 70 metres - consistent with the bulk-tonnage underground target management is seeking to define.

The company's near-term goal is to bring the resource toward 35 to 45 million tonnes ahead of its next update. A PEA is targeted for Q1 2027, supported by ongoing mine optimisation work that includes geotechnical studies, metallurgical testwork, and environmental baseline activities. Management notes that at the current $100 per tonne NSR cut-off, significant marginal material exists that would be economic once underground development infrastructure is in place, providing additional leverage within the existing resource envelope beyond what exploration alone may deliver.

The deposit also benefits from existing infrastructure in the surrounding area, including a power line and substation that runs through the project - a factor management expects to have a positive bearing on the capital cost assumptions in the forthcoming PEA.

A Scarce Asset in an Active Consolidation Market 

In assessing relative valuation, management points to a current in-situ value of 10 cents per pound copper equivalent, which it views as a discount to more advanced-stage polymetallic developers in Canada. The company frequently references Foran Mining as a comparable, citing similarities in deposit type, tonnage potential, grade profile, and Quebec jurisdiction. Foran's trajectory - from prefeasibility study to commercial production in four years, with $150 million in federal government grants secured along the way - is cited as a potential template for B26's development path.

The broader M&A context is relevant. Several multi-million ounce equivalent developers in Quebec have been acquired over the past two years, and management believes consolidation activity will continue. Deluce explained the dynamic: 

"There are producers just printing record levels of cash flow that are still behind the eightball of replenishing exploration and development targets." 

Against that backdrop, the company believes its positioning - a high-grade, multi-commodity, scalable deposit in a Tier-1 jurisdiction with a defined development pathway - places it in the field of candidates for producer interest as it advances through technical milestones.

The recent strategic investment by Discovery Silver is cited by management as providing third-party validation of both the asset quality and the remaining exploration upside at B26.

Conclusion

The structural demand for copper - driven by energy transition infrastructure, EV adoption, and grid build-out - continues to underpin a sustained bull case for high-grade copper assets. Simultaneously, elevated gold prices have increased the economic attractiveness of copper-gold deposits specifically, as producers seek dual-commodity exposure that hedges across commodity cycles. In Quebec, a politically stable and infrastructure-rich mining jurisdiction, a wave of M&A activity over the past two years has reduced the pool of development-stage assets of meaningful scale.

Major producers generating record free cash flow face a structural pipeline deficit, creating persistent demand for near-development candidates. Abitibi Metals sits at the intersection of these dynamics, offering rare grade, a scalable resource, and a Tier-1 address. As Deluce noted, "There are producers just printing record levels of cash flow that are still behind the eightball of replenishing exploration and development targets" - a structural imbalance that favours advanced developers with credible assets.

TL;DR

Abitibi Metals has achieved 100% ownership of the high-grade B26 copper-gold deposit in Quebec - one of the few polymetallic assets of its scale and grade in Canada - completing a seven-year option in just two and a half years. With $45 million in cash, three drills running, and a PEA targeted for Q1 2027, the company has a clear, fully funded pathway from resource growth to technical study. A 10-year right of first refusal on adjacent government-owned properties and a royalty reduction to 1% NSR meaningfully improve the long-term project economics. Against a backdrop of active M&A by cash-generating producers and a depleted pipeline of Tier-1 development assets in Quebec, Abitibi Metals offers a well-resourced development story with defined near-term catalysts.

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