Lassonde-backed Cadillac drilling points to more Ontario gold

Canadian developer Cadillac Mines (TSX: CADY) says new drilling at its past-producing Kerr-Addison property in Ontario could open the door to a larger open-pit gold resource. The stock rose.

Standout hole KAD26-428T cut about 23 metres grading 3.08 gold per tonne from 259 metres downhole, including 6.4 metres of 5.26 grams gold from 260 metres, Cadillac said late Wednesday in a statement. Hole KAD26-397, meanwhile, returned 2.13 grams gold over 38 metres from 192 metres downhole.

Toronto-based Cadillac is almost two-thirds of the way through a planned 17,850-metre infill drilling program within the Kerr-Addison open-pit resource. The latest release includes assay results from the first 29 infill diamond drill holes.

“We view the results positively as they demonstrate continuity within the open pit shell and intersect mineralization beyond the current limits, supporting potential resource conversion, expansion and grade upside” ahead of a preliminary economic assessment that’s targeted for next year’s third quarter, Desjardins Securities mining analyst Bryce Adams said Thursday in a note.

Greenstone belt

Cadillac shares rose 2.3% to $8 Thursday morning in Toronto trading, valuing the company at about $2.2 billion (US$1.5 billion). The stock has traded between $6.90 and $10.01 in the past year.

Franco-Nevada (TSX, NYSE: FNV) co-founder Pierre Lassonde is one of Cadillac’s biggest shareholders, in addition to serving as chairman. He owns 14% of the company’s equity, while Franco-Nevada owns 2% and Pan American Silver (TSX, NYSE: PAAS) owns a 6% stake.

Located 40 km east of Kirkland Lake, Ont., Kerr-Addison is Cadillac’s main project. It sits on the prolific Cadillac-Larder Lake fault in the Abitibi Greenstone belt, which has produced more than 200 million oz. gold over the past century.

Formerly known as Gold Candle, Cadillac owns one of the largest land positions on the belt, including about 40 km of strike length.

Big opportunity

Other notable intersections include hole KAD25-386, which cut 13 metres of 1.52 grams gold from 62 metres depth, Cadillac said. Hole KAD26-476 returned 1.94 grams gold over 9.2 metres from 66 metres downhole.

Cadillac is targeting several lesser-drilled footwall zones within the Kerr-Addison open pit. The structures had historically received less attention than the main break, which has accounted for more than 10 million oz. of historical production, Cadillac says.

“These initial drill results continue to highlight the significant opportunity we have to add additional high-quality mineral resources within the Kerr open pit,” CEO Rick Howes said in the statement.

“Our 2026 drill optimization program at Kerr will continue to target new areas and better define known footwall structures within the pit, as well as targeting new ounces and mineralization in our step-out program immediately to the northeast of known resource blocks.”

Eleven rigs

Cadillac plans to complete the current infill program by mid-September. Eleven diamond rigs are operating across its properties, with most focused on Kerr-Addison infill and expansion drilling.

Management has budgeted about $65 million for exploration this year. It plans to drill about 145,000 metres across its portfolio, which includes the Larder and Galloway properties.

Kerr-Addison holds 78.5 million indicated tonnes grading 1.34 grams gold for contained metal of 3.38 million oz. gold, according to a February 2026 resource. It also holds 25.9 million tonnes grading 2.66 grams gold for contained metal of 2.21 million oz. gold.