XXIX Expands Drill Program at Cooke and Saddle Zones Following Encouraging Early Results at Opemiska
XXIX Expands Drill Program at Cooke and
Saddle Zones Following Encouraging Early
Results at Opemiska
Highlights:
Cooke drilling outperforming expectations, with broader mineralization than the current
model.
Cooke budget and metres doubled to fast-track resource growth and test a new
mineralized horizon.
Expanded drilling at Saddle to connect and define the copper-gold zone.
Both areas lie outside the current MRE/PEA, offering meaningful step-out growth for
XXIX.
Total program now 10,000 metres, split between Cooke and Saddle.
Toronto, Ontario--(Newsfile Corp. - December 8, 2025) - XXIX Metal Corp. (TSXV: XXIX) (OTCQB:
QCCUF) (FSE: 5LW0) ("
XXIX
" or the "Company") announces an expansion of its 2025 drill program at
the Opemiska Project, driven by stronger-than-expected results from the Cooke Zone and growing
confidence in the Saddle Zone.
Cooke Zone: Outperforming Early Expectations
Drilling at Cooke has confirmed a more extensive mineralized horizon than modeled. Based on these
encouraging results, XXIX is doubling the Cooke drill budget and metre count, targeting both the near-
surface crown pillar of the former Cooke Gold Mine and step-outs along a newly identified horizon.
Cooke is not included in the current MRE or PEA and represents a significant opportunity to add new,
near-surface ounces to the project.
Saddle Zone: Advancing Toward Resource Definition
The Saddle Zone has delivered strong copper-gold intercepts in previous campaigns, but drill density
has not yet been sufficient for resource inclusion. The expanded program will increase drilling aimed at
connecting and upgrading known high-grade areas. Like Cooke, Saddle lies entirely outside the current
MRE/PEA and offers substantial upside.
Driving Growth Beyond the October PEA
The expanded drill program is designed to build on XXIX's recently announced robust PEA, which
demonstrated compelling economics and rapid payback. Resource additions from Cooke, Saddle, and
other near-pit targets have the potential to strengthen project scale and further improve the upcoming
Pre-Feasibility Study.
"Cooke continues to exceed expectations, and the identification of a new horizon adds another layer of
potential," said Guy Le Bel, CEO of XXIX. "By expanding our work at Cooke and increasing metres at
Saddle, we are positioning XXIX for meaningful near-term resource growth and long-term value
creation."
XXIX will provide further updates as drilling progresses and assay results are received.
Figure 1)
Location of Cooke Gold Zone & Chibougamau Copper Zone
Cooke drilling to date includes visible gold in two of the initial six holes.
Cooke lies 2.5 km east of the envisioned Opemiska pit and historically produced 1.97 Mt at 5.04
g/t gold and 0.66% copper.
The Saddle Zone continues to deliver strong step-out potential within the broader open-pit
environment.
A second drill rig
was mobilized end of November to accelerate progress across priority targets.
Figure 2)
Collar locations of the Cooke Mine drilling program
QP Statement
The technical information contained in this news release has been reviewed and approved by Denis
McNichols, P.Geo and géo., Vice President Exploration for XXIX Metal, a Qualified Person, as defined
in "National Instrument 43-101, Standards of Disclosure for Mineral Projects."
About XXIX Metal Corp.
XXIX is advancing its Opemiska and Thierry Copper projects, two significant Canadian copper assets.
The Opemiska Project, one of Canada's highest-grade open pitable copper deposits, spans 21,333
hectares in Quebec's Chapais-Chibougamau region, with strong infrastructure and nearby access to the
Horne Smelter. An October 2025 Preliminary Economic Assessment outlined a 12,500 tpd open pit
operation over a 17-year mine life, generating an after-tax NPV8% of $505M, IRR of 27.2%, and a 2.3-
year payback period ($4.35/lb copper price, $3,000/oz gold price, $30/oz silver price). The Thierry
Project hosts the K1 (near-surface) and the past-producing K2 (underground & surface) zones (see
XXIX news release dated October 1, 2024 for details regarding resources). Thierry has significant
infrastructure in place including an all-season road, an airport within 5km, a provincial power grid within
8km, and nearby rail. With these two high-potential projects, the Company has solidified its position as a
key player in the Canadian copper sector and has established itself as one of Eastern Canada's largest
copper developer.
For further information, please contact:
Guy Le Bel, Chief Executive Officer
Phone: 514.654.8550
Email:
www.xxix.ca
Forward-Looking Statements
This news release contains certain forward-looking statements, including statements about the
Company's belief that Opemiska has potential for continued growth, various cost, price and production
assumptions used to inform the PEA, and outstanding risk factors, including Opemiska's proximity to the
Town of Chapais, Historical Assay validation, Geotechnical considerations of open stopes in the eastern
pit wall, the Venture sill, the Gwillim fault, host rock competency and Historical Stope Modeling.
Wherever possible, words such as "may", "will", "should", "could", "expect", "plan", "intend", "anticipate",
"believe", "estimate", "predict" or "potential" or the negative or other variations of these words, or similar
words or phrases, have been used to identify these forward-looking statements. These statements
reflect management's current beliefs and are based on information currently available to management as
at the date hereof.
Forward-looking statements involve significant risk, uncertainties and assumptions. Many factors could
cause actual results, performance or achievements to differ materially from the results discussed or
implied in the forward-looking statements. Such factors include, among other things: risks related to
uncertainties inherent in drill results and the estimation of mineral resources; and risks associated with
executing the Company's plans and intentions. These factors should be considered carefully, and
readers should not place undue reliance on the forward-looking statements. Although the forward-looking
statements contained in this news release are based upon what management believes to be reasonable
assumptions, the Company cannot assure readers that actual results will be consistent with these
forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements are made as of the date of this news
release, and the Company assumes no obligation to update or revise them to reflect new events or
circumstances, except as required by law.
The reader is advised that the Preliminary Economic Assessment (PEA) summarized in this news
release is intended to provide only an initial, high-level review of Opemiska's economic potential. The
PEA mine plan and economic model include numerous assumptions and the use of inferred mineral
resources. Inferred mineral resources are considered to be too speculative to be used in an economic
analysis except as allowed for by NI 43-101 in PEA studies. There is no guarantee that inferred mineral
resources can be converted to indicated or measured mineral resources, and as such, there is no
guarantee Opemiska's economics described herein will be achieved. XXIX may be eligible for Clean
Technology Manufacturing Investment Tax Credit (CTM-ITC). This legislation has been enacted on June
20, 2024. There is no guarantee the Company will be able to access the CTM-ITC.
Non-IFRS Financial Measures
XXIX has included certain non-IFRS financial measures in this news release, such as C1 Cash Cost
which are not measures recognized under IFRS and do not have a standardized meaning prescribed by
IFRS. As a result, these measures may not be comparable to similar measures reported by other
corporations. Each of these measures used are intended to provide additional information to the user
and should not be considered in isolation or as a substitute for measures prepared in accordance with
IFRS.
Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the
policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this
news release.
To view the source version of this press release, please visit
https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/277220