Brixton Metals (TSXV: BBB; US-OTC: BBBXF) has identified a high-grade silver target at its brownfield Langis project in Ontario, after assay results returned 20 metres averaging 5,015 grams silver per tonne in an area not mined historically.

Drill hole LM-26-377 intersected the interval from 165 metres downhole at Langis, located about 500 km north of Toronto. The intercept included 14 metres grading 7,150 grams silver per tonne from 169 metres. True widths have not yet been determined. For context, 5,015 grams per tonne is about 161 troy oz. silver per tonne, well above the former mine’s reported historical head grades.

“As far as we can find in publicly available data, hole 377 represents one of the highest reported silver intercepts globally,” CEO Gary Thompson said in a Tuesday release. “We have a lot more holes that we plan to drill at Langis.”

The result gives Brixton an unmined target adjacent to an established silver system as the company advances toward a first resource estimate. Further drilling will be required to determine whether hole 377 connects with another exceptional intercept 140 metres to the west and whether the mineralization forms a continuous, mineable zone.

Brixton shares had risen 31% since Tuesday and were trading at 78¢ per share by mid-Friday. The company’s market capitalization stood at $57 million (US$40.5 million). Over the past 12 months, its shares have traded between 45¢ and $1.45 apiece.

Follow-up drilling

Brixton has traced mineralization over at least 100 metres of strike length in the Shaft 6 Southeast area, where there are no known stopes or underground workings. The zone remains open along strike and at depth.

Results from two other recent holes indicate that elevated grades extend beyond the headline intercept. Hole LM-26-353 returned 13 metres averaging 287.8 grams silver per tonne from 144 metres downhole, including 2.15 metres at 1,634 grams from 153 metres.

Hole LM-26-352 intersected 7 metres grading 275 grams silver per tonne from 148 metres, including 0.5 metre at 2,620 grams from 151.25 metres.

Brixton is drilling between Shaft 6 Southeast and the nearby Shaft 6 South zone while also testing extensions and the geological structures that control the highest-grade mineralization. The company had completed 24,017 metres in 105 holes this year and plans to drill up to 60,000 metres at Langis. The next assays and stepout holes are important because isolated high-grade intervals typically need closer-spaced drilling before they can support a resource model.

Both areas host silver in veins and disseminated through the surrounding host rocks. This broader style of mineralization could expand the target beyond the narrow native-silver veins that accounted for much of the Cobalt camp’s historical production.

Mine history

The former Langis mine produced 10.4 million oz. silver intermittently between 1908 and 1989, with reported head grades of 20 to 25 oz. per tonne. Previous operators developed more than 10 km of underground workings and reported recoveries ranging from 88% to 98%.

Mines across the broader Cobalt camp have produced more than 445 million oz. silver. The original silver rush helped turn Cobalt, in Ontario’s remote north, into a busy city of about 12,000 people more than a century ago and eventually led to the creation of The Northern Miner to cover the mining industry.

Langis does not currently have a mineral resource. Brixton has outlined a conceptual exploration target of 1 million to 2 million tonnes grading 400 to 800 grams silver per tonne, but additional drilling is required before the company can define a resource.

The company is also separately evaluating silver remaining in the mine tailings. Brixton has drilled 261 metres and submitted samples for assay and metallurgical testing as it works toward an initial tailings resource estimate.

Investor Palisades Goldcorp (TSXV: PALI) holds 3.57 million Brixton warrants exercisable at $1 until Dec. 18, 2028. If exercised, the warrants would give the investor a 4.6% stake, linking its share-performance and outlook directly to Brixton’s results.