Goldgroup reports first San Francisco drill assays as restart study work continues

Goldgroup Mining reported assays from the first six drillholes of its ongoing 26,000-metre diamond drilling program at the formerly producing San Francisco Gold Project in Sonora, Mexico. The September 8 news release, filed on Form 6-K on September 11, described higher-grade intervals alongside broader zones of gold mineralization within areas of known mineralization. The company said the results are being incorporated into geological and resource models to support a detailed technical study evaluating a potential restart and optimization of the operation (Form 6-K AccNo 0001104659-26-107104).

Assay highlights from the first six holes

The release's assay highlights include 16.8 metres grading 4.36 grams per tonne of gold in hole GGD-178, including 10.9 metres grading 6.34 g/t. A separate interval in that hole returned 10.0 metres grading 2.00 g/t, including 2.2 metres grading 7.83 g/t. GGD-174 returned 23.4 metres grading 1.71 g/t, including 6.4 metres grading 4.84 g/t. GGD-179 delivered a broader interval of 51.0 metres grading 0.58 g/t, including 3.9 metres grading 2.53 g/t.

Downhole lengths and pending assays

Those measurements are downhole core lengths, and the reported gold grades are uncapped. The company provides estimated true widths in its results table; downhole lengths should not be read as the thickness of the mineralized zones. The first six holes were drilled within the existing pit. Assays have been received for GGD-172, GGD-173, GGD-174, GGD-176, GGD-178 and GGD-179, while assays for all other holes drilled in the program remain pending.

Program objectives and study context

Goldgroup outlined three objectives for the program: improving resource definition and geological confidence; informing mine planning and technical studies, including pit designs, pushbacks and potential restart scenarios; and testing extensions and additional structures for resource expansion. Drilling is also supplying rock-quality, structural and geotechnical information for the San Francisco and La Chicharra pits. The company said higher-grade intervals help inform its understanding of gold distribution and continuity, while broader intervals help define mineralized geometry and scale.

What the assays do and do not settle

The practical significance is additional evidence for the study, rather than a completed resource update or a restart decision. Goldgroup is evaluating these results alongside its historical database and ongoing drilling. The initial assays do not establish when a restart might occur, what it would cost or what a future operation could produce. Remaining assay results and the outcome of the technical evaluation are still unknown.

QA/QC and company background

The release describes sampling under qualified geological personnel, typically with core halved using a diamond saw, chain-of-custody procedures and certified reference materials, blanks and duplicates. Selected results are based on ALS Global work, with preparation in Hermosillo and analysis in Vancouver using a 30-gram fire assay with an atomic absorption finish. Goldgroup also references the Don David mine laboratory in Oaxaca. In its corporate background, the company identifies operating mines at Don David and Cerro Prieto, alongside San Francisco and the Back Forty development project in Michigan.