Emperor Metals (CSE: AUOZ; Germany: 9NH) has released initial assay results from its 2025–2026 drilling program at the Duquesne West gold project in Québec. The focus is on a long section from drill hole DQ25-01: 107.7 meters at 0.5 g/t gold.
The company considers the new data to be an indication that the mineralized system may be broader and more contiguous than the higher-grade core that has been the focus to date. The drilling campaign is continuing, with only a small portion of the planned samples having been evaluated so far.
Emperor Metals has designed the current program as a comprehensive exploration initiative: 15,000 meters of new drilling is to be completed, and additional re-sampling of 8,000 meters of historical drill core is planned. Together, this will add 23,000 meters of additional data points to the further development of the geological model. According to Emperor Metals, the assays received to date cover only about 7% of the new drill meters and about 4% of the total expected analyses from the season – including the historical core resampling.
Emperor Metals: DQ25-01 Confirms 107.7 Meters at 0.5 g/t Gold in a Conceptual Open-Pit Environment
The most significant result to date comes from DQ25-01. Emperor Metals reports a contiguous section of 107.7 meters with an average grade of 0.5 g/t gold (from 155.1 to 262.8 meters) for this drill hole. Within this broad mineralization, there are several higher-grade sub-intervals, including 6.8 meters grading 1.7 g/t gold (155.1 to 161.9 m), 9.1 meters at 1.1 g/t gold (242.2 to 251.3 m), and 6.0 meters at 2.0 g/t gold (256.8 to 262.8 m). Emperor Metals also emphasizes that the mineralized intervals in the drill hole extend for a total of approximately 170 meters and comprise four clearly distinguishable zones.
From the company’s perspective, the result is particularly relevant because DQ25-01 was specifically targeted at an area that had historically been only partially sampled or incompletely evaluated. Emperor Metals states that previous programs had focused heavily on higher-grade structural corridors, while the surrounding, broader mineralized “envelope system” had not been systematically explored. The current infill drilling is intended to address precisely these gaps in order to demonstrate continuity and test additional ounce potential in a conceptual open pit scenario.
Beyond the main section, the table of highlights shows additional mineralized sections, including 5.0 meters at 1.4 g/t gold (296.0 to 301.0 m), 41.3 meters at 0.3 g/t gold (326.9 to 368.2 m) including 6.9 meters at 1.2 g/t gold (360.2 to 367.2 m), and 15.3 meters at 0.3 g/t gold (389.2 to 404.5 m). Emperor Metals notes that true thicknesses are generally estimated at approximately 90% of the drilled length due to the interpreted steeply dipping host structures.
DQ25-02 with Partial Results and Indications of Additional Bulk Tonnage Intercepts
In addition to DQ25-01, Emperor Metals also reports partial results from DQ25-02, a drill hole that was also designed as a determination hole in historically under sampled areas within the conceptual open pit envelope. According to the table, 70% of the results for DQ25-02 are available to date. A 42.8-meter section grading 0.23 g/t gold (240.0 to 282.8 m) is reported, including 4.3 meters grading 0.7 g/t gold (276.5 to 280.8 m). In addition, other shorter mineralized intervals are listed: 2.0 meters with 1.1 g/t gold (315.6 to 317.6 m) and 7.0 meters with 0.6 g/t gold (377.8 to 384.8 m). Emperor Metals emphasizes that several drill hole assays are still pending and additional results will follow in further press releases.
Although the data package is still incomplete, the company highlights that mineralized sections exceeding 50 meters have been repeatedly observed in drill cores. This is an indicator of scale and continuity and suggests that systematic follow-up drilling is necessary to adequately map the broader zones in the model.
Geological Setting, Resource Base, and Next Steps for Emperor Metals
Emperor Metals describes the broad, low-grade mineralization in DQ25-01 and DQ25-02 as disseminated pyrite, embedded in and along the margins of a larger quartz-feldspar porphyry intrusion. The surrounding mafic volcanics are heavily sheared and mineralized along the intrusion contact. This shearing shows both brittle and ductile deformation fabrics, which may have acted as permeable structures for gold-bearing fluids. Thus, Emperor Metals outlines a setting in which not only individual high-grade lenses but also broader, lower-grade zones can occur within a larger mineralized envelope.
Strategically, management integrates the new data into the goal of further developing the resource both in the conceptual open pit and prospectively in deeper areas (underground). According to Emperor Metals, the project currently has an updated inferred resource estimate of 26.9 million tonnes containing 1.46 million ounces of gold at an average grade of 1.69 g/t gold (announcement dated July 9, 2025). In addition, the company points out that high-grade lenses with visible gold have also been identified in the vicinity of the open-pit shell, including a previously reported intercept of 21.7 meters at 35.2 g/t gold (announcement dated February 25, 2025).
For the 2025/26 season, Emperor Metals is focusing on defining additional ounces through several levers: further low-grade zones within the host rock with embedded high-grade lenses, broadening high-grade lenses by including marginal mineralization, extending mineralized areas along strike and dip, and searching for new zones—with a focus on expansion to the east. The pending assays are crucial for this, as only a small fraction of the planned data volume is available so far.
