Junior’s Drills Turn Within Month of Newmont Deal for Nevada Gold Project

Key Investor Takeaways

• StrikePoint Gold Inc. has started a Phase 1 program of about 15,000 meters at its Northumberland Gold Project in Nevada, meeting its goal of drilling within a month of buying the project from Newmont.
• The fully permitted program on private land is designed to expand and infill the resource and collect metallurgical samples, and more rigs are expected early in the new year to test largely untested targets.
• Northumberland hosts 2.86 million ounces gold equivalent (AuEq) in the Indicated category at 1.33 grams per tonne and 1.57 million ounces AuEq Inferred at 1.58 g/t. The deposit remains open in several directions.
• StrikePoint paid Newmont US$70 million in cash at closing and funded the deal with a CA$190 million bought-deal private placement. Two further US$25 million payments are tied to a feasibility study and production milestones.
• Tembo Capital holds about 19.9% of the company and a 0.5% net smelter return royalty on Northumberland.
• Technical analyst Stewart Thomson says StrikePoint has moved from grassroots exploration into funded, near-term development, and that a breakout over its downtrend line could ignite a new bull run.

Drills Turn at Northumberland

StrikePoint Gold Inc. (SKP:TSX.V; STKXF:OTCQB) has started drilling at its Northumberland Gold Project in Nevada, launching a Phase 1 program of about 15,000 meters, according to an October 29 release.

The program is StrikePoint’s first at Northumberland since it bought the project from Newmont Corp. (NEM:NYSE; NEM:ASX; NEM:PNGX) earlier this month. When that deal closed, President and CEO Michael G. Allen said the company expected to start drilling within a month, The Deep Dive reported, and the rig is now turning on schedule.

Allen, who had just returned from the site, called the new rig “an amazing machine” and said the early holes will be about learning the ground. “It’s the initial program into the new asset. Lots to learn, and the first few holes are going to be us getting to know the deposit,” he said.

A Fully Permitted Start

NISS Global has mobilized a core rig for the program, which is fully permitted and on private land. The first round of drilling is designed to expand and infill the existing mineral resource and to collect metallurgical samples across the Carlin-style gold system. More rigs are expected to arrive early in the new year.

Allen said in the release that the infill work should firm up the current resource. “We’re pleased to have commenced drilling at Northumberland and for the opportunity that this asset represents for our shareholders. The infill drilling is intended to upgrade our confidence in the current mineral resource estimate, which remains open to expansion in a number of directions, and provide new samples for metallurgical optimization,” he said.

The added rigs will push beyond the known resource. “As additional drills arrive, we’ll look to expand into exploration on several priority but, as yet, largely untested targets,” Allen said.

4.4 Million Ounces to Build On

Northumberland is a 100%-owned, past-producing Carlin-style gold project in Nye County, in Nevada’s Walker Lane. StrikePoint’s first resource estimate, effective July 31, 2026, outlines Indicated resources of 67 million tonnes grading 1.33 grams per tonne (g/t) gold equivalent (AuEq) for 2.86 million ounces AuEq. That includes 2.71 million ounces of gold and 11.6 million ounces of silver. Inferred resources add 31 million tonnes at 1.58 g/t AuEq for 1.57 million ounces AuEq. The estimate uses prices of US$3,500 per ounce of gold and US$55 per ounce of silver.

StrikePoint closed its purchase of Northumberland from Newmont in early October, paying US$70 million in cash at closing, with two more US$25 million payments tied to completing a feasibility study and reaching commercial production milestones, The Deep Dive reported. It funded the deal with a CA$190 million bought-deal private placement led by Canaccord Genuity. Tembo Capital took about 19.9% of the company and paid US$10 million for a 0.5% net smelter return royalty on the project. StrikePoint can buy back half of that royalty for US$25 million.

On October 13, the company hired Keith Wood as exploration manager and named Stephen Quin strategic advisor. StrikePoint also holds the Hercules project in Lyon County and the Cuprite project in Esmeralda and Nye counties, both in Nevada.

Charts and Coverage Turn Bullish

¹Technical analyst Stewart Thomson rated StrikePoint a Speculative Buy in an October 26 report, with the stock at CA$1.45 on October 23. He said the Newmont deal transformed the company. “StrikePoint is a company that has moved decisively from grassroots exploration into funded, near-term development,” he wrote.

Thomson noted that StrikePoint came out of its CA$190 million financing with about CA$90 million in working capital and five drill permits in hand, “with no near-term dilution need.” He also pointed to its shareholder list, with Tembo at about 19.9%, Ithaki at 13.7%, and BlackRock Advisors at 10.2%. “A strong institutional base (Tembo, Ithaki, BlackRock) underpins the re-rating,” he wrote.

On the charts, Thomson said StrikePoint has broken out of a large bull wedge pattern on its weekly chart and consolidated as volume picked up around the Newmont deal. On the daily chart, the stock is pressing against a downtrend line with oversold stochastics. “A breakout over the downtrend line likely ignites a new bull run,” he wrote. He listed key resistance zones for investors to take profits at CA$4 in the short term, CA$10 in the medium term, and CA$17 in the long term.

He sees the backdrop for the whole sector improving, with gold holding near US$4,000 and weekly stochastics near three-year lows. “A buy zone for gold is a buy zone for gold stocks,” he wrote.

Trade coverage of the Newmont deal pointed straight to the drill program now underway. Writing for The Deep Dive on October 7, the day after closing, Jay Lutz said the initial resource estimate “is viewed as a starting point,” noting that the deposit is open in multiple directions and that StrikePoint already held five drill permits. “StrikePoint doesn’t plan to wait long to get rigs turning for further exploration,” he wrote. Lutz also reported that Allen expected drilling to start within a month and that the team would evaluate several greenfield targets that could be drilled in 2027.

The project has had little attention in recent years. Northumberland hosted open-pit production until 1991 and has not been explored since about 2010, leaving numerous untested targets, Paula Fabe reported for Mining.com.au on October 7.

Gold’s Long-Term Case Holds

Gold has cooled off since its January record above US$5,500 an ounce, trading near US$4,024 on October 29, according to USAGold, after the Federal Reserve held rates steady but two officials pushed for a hike, Kitco reported. Some forecasters still see higher prices ahead. Goldman Sachs is sticking with its US$5,400 target for the end of 2027, according to InvestingLive, and expects tighter Fed policy to slow the rally rather than end it. The bank pointed to central banks buying about 90 tonnes of gold a month, compared with a pre-2022 average of 17 tonnes.

State Street Investment Management’s gold team, led by Aakash Doshi, sees a path back to US$5,000 and as high as US$5,500 by early next year, Kitco reported on October 27. The firm puts just a 35% probability on its bearish scenario of gold trading between US$4,000 and US$4,750 over the next six to nine months.

Common Questions from Investors

What did StrikePoint announce on October 29?

StrikePoint has started drilling at Northumberland with a core rig from NISS Global, launching a Phase 1 program of about 15,000 meters. It’s the company’s first drilling on the project since buying it from Newmont in early October.

What is the first phase of drilling designed to do?

The program is designed to expand and infill the existing resource and collect metallurgical samples across the Carlin-style gold system. CEO Michael Allen said the first few holes will be about getting to know the deposit.

Where is Northumberland, and what’s its history?

Northumberland is a 100%-owned, past-producing Carlin-style gold project in Nye County, in Nevada’s Walker Lane. It hosted open-pit production until 1991 and hasn’t been explored since about 2010.

How big is the resource?

StrikePoint’s first resource estimate, effective July 31, 2026, shows 2.86 million ounces AuEq in the Indicated category at 1.33 grams per tonne and 1.57 million ounces AuEq Inferred at 1.58 g/t.

How did StrikePoint pay for the project?

It paid Newmont US$70 million in cash at closing, with two more US$25 million payments tied to a feasibility study and commercial production milestones. A CA$190 million bought-deal private placement led by Canaccord Genuity funded the purchase.

What comes next?

More rigs are expected early in the new year, when StrikePoint plans to move into exploration on several priority but largely untested targets. The team will also evaluate greenfield targets that could be drilled in 2027.

What does the technical picture show?

Technical analyst Stewart Thomson said StrikePoint has broken out of a large bull wedge on its weekly chart, and that a breakout over the downtrend line on its daily chart likely ignites a new bull run.