Toronto- and New York-listed i-80 Gold has released a mineral resource update for its FAD project in north-eastern Nevada, confirming significant high-grade gold, silver, lead and zinc mineralisation and supporting the company’s ongoing efforts to monetise the noncore asset.

Located immediately south of i-80 Gold’s Ruby Hill property, the FAD project hosts an indicated mineral resource of 594 000 t at 4.51 g/t gold, 209.7 g/t silver, 4.34% lead and 6.77% zinc, containing 86 000 oz of gold, four-million ounces of silver, 57-million pounds of lead and 89-million pounds of zinc. The inferred category totals 2.74-million tonnes at 5.07 g/t gold, 188.6 g/t silver, 3.69% lead and 4.42% zinc, containing 446 000 oz gold, 16.6-million ounces of silver, 223-million pounds of lead and 267-million pounds of zinc.

At current spot prices, the FAD deposit represents about 7.36-million tonnes with 895 000 oz gold, 31-million ounces of silver, 407-million pounds of lead and 678-million pounds of zinc. 

Analysis of metallurgical composites from sulphide material indicates the presence of critical metals such as gallium, indium, antimony, and tin in the zinc concentrate, offering additional upside for metallurgical processing and permitting. Oxide gold mineralisation is also present at the Gold Hill target, near surface.

“The FAD mineral resource update highlights the high-grade nature of the deposit and supports our geological understanding of the project,” said geology VP Tyler Hill.

“This resource estimate only includes drill holes where quality control measures could be validated and excludes a significant number of historical drill holes where control measures could not be verified. Even with a limited number of drill holes completed to-date, we have significantly enhanced the project through validation and organisation of historic data, and through the metallurgical testwork conducted. The deposit remains open at depth, to the east and north where several wide-spaced historic holes have intersected mineralisation.”

Hill added that i-80 believed FAD had "significant upside potential" and that the project could "benefit considerably from additional drilling, providing substantial exposure to high-grade polymetallic mineralisation in a Tier 1 mining jurisdiction".

The FAD property is a noncore asset, being considered for sale as i-80 Gold focuses on advancing its five core gold projects and refurbishing its Lone Tree central processing facility, key components in its plan to become a Nevada-focused midtier gold producer.

The project was acquired in 2023 through Paycore Minerals for $88-million in an all-share transaction. Preliminary work suggests the near-surface oxide gold at Gold Hill could be monetised through heap leaching at nearby facilities, including i-80 Gold’s Ruby Hill heap leach operation.