Go big or go home is the motto of Formation Metals (CSE: FOMO; FRA: VF1). Thanks to successful financing, the Canadian gold explorer can afford to expand the scope of its drilling on the advanced N2 gold project in Quebec to 7,500 meters in Phase 1. The company has working capital of approximately CAD 2.6 million. This means that it is already well financed to carry out its exploration programs to confirm a near-surface multi-million ounce resource.
The planned drilling is part of an even larger drilling plan designed for more than 20,000 meters. The N2 project comprises a historical resource of approximately 870,000 ounces, consisting of 18 million tonnes grading 1.4 g/t Au (~809,000 ounces Au) in four zones (A, East, RJ-East and Central) and 243 kt grading 7.82 g/t Au (~61,000 ounces Au) in the RJ2.4 zone.
The first phase of drilling will test targets in Zone “A”, where there is data from a total of 55 historical boreholes. This is a shallow, highly continuous, low-variability confirmed historical gold deposit with approximately 522,900 ounces. The geologists estimate that only about 35% of the strike length has been drilled to date, meaning that more than 3.1 km is still open. In the “RJ” zone, there were even 82 historical boreholes, which included high-grade sections with up to 51 g/t Au over 0.8 meters. Most of the data that Formation Metals uses as a basis for its exploration comes from the drilling that Agnico Eagle Mines carried out on the project in 2008. Since then, no further drilling has been carried out on the N2 project.
Figure 1: Formation expects the drilling program to start in July. The company submitted the application for the exploration activities planned for 2025 to the relevant authorities on June 17, 2025. The application is valid for 30 days.
In Addition to Gold, Significant Potential for Base Metals on Formation Metals N2 Project
Formation Metals is convinced that N2 has significant potential for base metals. As part of a re-evaluation of the project, significant copper and zinc intercepts were discovered in historical boreholes with known significant gold grades (>1 g/t Au). The assay results range from 200 to 4,750 ppm for copper and from 203 ppm to 6,700 ppm for zinc, suggesting strong potential for increased base metal concentrations (Cu-Zn) across the property, particularly in zones A and RJ.
Deepak Varshney, Chief Executive Officer of Formation, commented: “Summer will be a very exciting time as we begin our fully funded initial 7,500 meter drilling program at N2. Given the size of the property, the compelling geological data and the long history of the Abitibi Greenstone Belt as a hotspot for gold mining, we are confident that the program will achieve our goal of developing a near-surface multi-million ounce deposit at N2. We see the potential for a significant gold deposit at N2.”
Conclusion: It is not uncommon for exploration projects to change hands several times before their full potential becomes visible. New drilling attempts to build on the successes of its predecessors, which in the case of the N2 gold project include prominent names such as Agnico-Eagle and Cypress. However, Formation has a huge advantage over its predecessors: the gold price of almost $3,400 is more than four times the price in 2008, when Agnico last carried out drilling on the project. The best historical section on target A comprised 1.7 g/t over 35 meters. Only approximately 1.65 km of the strike has been explored to date. A further 3.1 km of the strike are to be investigated as part of the 20,000 meter program. The RJ zone hosts a historical resource of ~61,100 ounces of gold (243 kt at 7.82 g/t Au). Only about 900 meters of the strike length of this zone have been drilled, with a further 4.75 km to be tested as part of the 20,000 meter program.
