P2 Gold (TSXV:PGLD) - All Known Questions Answered, February 2026
By Crux Investor
P2 Gold Inc. – Gabs Project Overview
Key Concepts:
- Gabs Project: P2 Gold’s primary asset, a gold-copper-silver project located in West Central Nevada.
- Feasibility Study: Current stage of development, aiming to confirm economic viability and optimize project parameters.
- Heap Leach Processing: Initial mining method focusing on oxide mineralization, utilizing cyanide solution to extract metals.
- SAR Plant (Solvent Absorption Recovery): A plant used to recover copper and silver from the heap leach solution.
- ADR Plant (Adsorption-Desorption-Refining): A plant used to recover gold from the solution after copper and silver removal.
- Doré: A semi-pure alloy of gold and silver.
- NPV (Net Present Value): A metric used in financial analysis to estimate the profitability of an investment.
- IRR (Internal Rate of Return): A metric used in financial analysis to estimate the profitability of an investment.
- Sulfide Mineralization: A type of ore requiring milling for metal extraction.
- Dry Stack Tailings: A method of tailings storage that minimizes water usage and environmental impact.
1. Project Overview & Location
P2 Gold Inc. is focused on advancing the Gabs project, located in West Central Nevada, approximately a 2-hour drive from Reno. The project benefits from excellent infrastructure, including paved road access, proximity to the company’s office in Hawthorne (45-minute drive), and existing power lines. A previously permitted water well is also on site. The current resource estimate stands at roughly 3.12 million ounces of gold equivalent, comprised of approximately 2 million ounces of gold and just under 900 million pounds of copper, with a smaller silver contribution. Drilling programs are underway to expand this resource, targeting 3 to 3.5 million ounces of gold and 1.5 billion pounds of copper. Management and the board collectively own 50% of the company, demonstrating strong alignment with shareholder interests.
2. Economic Assessment & Metal Price Sensitivity
A Preliminary Economic Assessment (PEA) completed in October 2025 demonstrated robust project economics. Using base case metal prices of $2,350/oz gold, $4.50/lb copper, and $29/oz silver, the project yielded a 33.8% IRR and a $298 million NPV15. At spot prices at the time of the PEA (approximately $1,000 lower for gold), the IRR remained strong at 38.85%, with an NPV15 of almost $1 billion and an NPV5 of $2.04 billion. Updated calculations using current spot prices (approximately $4,900/oz gold at the time of the presentation) show a significantly improved IRR of 108%, an NPV15 of roughly $1.5 billion, and an NPV5 approaching $3.5 billion. This highlights the project’s strong leverage to rising gold and copper prices.
3. Mining & Processing Plan
The proposed mining plan involves a two-phase approach:
- Phase 1 (Years 1-5): Open-pit mining of oxide mineralization (gold, copper, silver) at a rate of 9 million tons per year. The ore will be crushed to ¼ inch, heap leached using a cyanide solution, and processed through a Solvent Absorption Recovery (SAR) plant to recover copper and silver. The remaining solution will then be processed through an Adsorption-Desorption-Refining (ADR) plant to recover gold. This process will produce a copper concentrate (approximately 55% copper) and gold doré (estimated 80-90% gold purity).
- Phase 2 (Years 6-14.2): Continued mining at 9 million tons per year, with 4 million tons of oxide ore processed via heap leaching as in Phase 1. An additional 5 million tons per year will be processed through a conventional mill, producing a copper flotation concentrate and tailings. The tailings will undergo cyanide leaching in a dry stack tailings facility to extract additional gold. This phase will yield gold doré, copper concentrate, traditional flotation concentrate, and SAR plant concentrate.
Metallurgical testing indicates 85% gold and 67% copper recovery from the heap leach process, with ongoing studies aiming to improve these recoveries. Mill processing is expected to achieve 94.5% gold and 79.9% copper recovery, with potential for further optimization.
4. Production Profile & Life of Mine
Over a 14.2-year mine life, the project is projected to produce 1.55 million ounces of gold, 213,000 tons of copper, and 2.2 million ounces of silver. Average annual production is estimated at approximately 110,000 ounces of gold, 15,000 tons of copper (roughly 33 million pounds), and 175,000 ounces of silver. The initial years will feature higher gold production from the high-grade oxide material, followed by a production increase in year six with the commissioning of the mill.
5. Optimization Studies & Potential Enhancements
P2 Gold is actively evaluating several optimization strategies:
- Accelerated Mill Start-Up: Moving the mill start-up from year six to year three, leveraging the current high metal price environment to fund construction from operating cash flow.
- Increased Throughput: Increasing the processing rate from 9 million tons per year to 12 million tons per year, contingent on expanding the resource base through ongoing drilling. This could increase average annual gold production to approximately 150,000 ounces and copper production to 45-50 million pounds.
- Leach Cycle Optimization: Reducing the cyanide leach cycle from 150 days to the observed 58-110 days based on recent metallurgical testing, potentially reducing capital costs.
- Mine Plan Optimization: Refining the mine plan to further enhance project economics.
6. Capital Expenditure & Operating Costs
Initial capital expenditure (CAPEX) is estimated at $382.7 million for the heap leach facility. Life-of-mine sustaining capital costs are projected at $571.8 billion, primarily for the mill construction. At current spot metal prices, the initial CAPEX is projected to be paid back within six months, and the total CAPEX (including mill construction) within two years. Operating costs are estimated to be typical for a new Nevada mine, with heap leach processing costs slightly higher (approximately $4-5/ton) due to the SAR plant and cyanide usage, offset by copper and silver recovery.
7. Resource Expansion Potential
The Gabs project encompasses approximately 16 square miles of mineral claims containing four known deposits (Sullivan, Lucky Strike, and two smaller deposits). All deposits outcrop, indicating potential for expansion at depth and along strike. The current infill and expansion drilling program is targeting 3 to 3.5 million ounces of gold and 1.5 billion pounds of copper. The southern portion of the claim block presents potential for discovering additional blind deposits.
8. Timeline & Key Milestones
Key milestones for 2026 include:
- Filing of the draft Mining Plan of Operations (completed January 2026).
- Advancing water permitting.
- Ongoing geotechnical and infill/expansion drilling (targeting completion by late June 2026).
- Metallurgical program completion.
- Updated Mineral Resource estimate (targeted for August 2026).
- Feasibility Study completion (targeted for year-end 2026).
- Environmental studies (critical path, targeting completion by mid-2027, with a contingency to mid-2028).
- Potential commencement of construction in Q4 2027, with gold production targeted for late 2028.
9. Management Team & Capital Structure
The P2 Gold team has a proven track record of successfully advancing mining projects, including the Brucejack mine with Pretium Resources. The company has a fully diluted share structure of approximately 334 million shares, with management owning 15%. Current cash reserves exceed $10 million, sufficient to fund the feasibility study and initial drilling programs.
"We’ve worked together at these companies. Ken and I have worked together since the mid-90s. Michelle joined us in the early 2000s. We were at Silver Standard, ran CAM plants. Had a big success with Predium where we took preium from discovery. Ken Ken's team discovered the the uh Bruce Jack mine at for Predium and uh we took it from discovery through to production in under eight years. So, we know what it takes to really push hard and deliver on moving a mine forward and that's what we're planning to do with P2 Gold and that's what we're working on right now." – Joe Olenik, President and CEO of P2 Gold, Inc.
Conclusion:
The Gabs project represents a compelling development opportunity with robust economics, significant resource expansion potential, and a strong management team. The project’s leverage to rising gold and copper prices, coupled with ongoing optimization studies, positions P2 Gold for substantial value creation. The key to success lies in securing environmental permits and advancing the project towards production within the projected timeline.
Chat with this Video
AI-PoweredHi! I can answer questions about this video "P2 Gold (TSXV:PGLD) - All Known Questions Answered, February 2026". What would you like to know?