Disseminated on behalf of Lahontan Gold Corp. (TSX.V: LG) (OTCQB: LGCXF) and may include paid advertising.
- The plan projects estimated net cash flow of US$1.68 billion before taxes and US$1.32 billion after taxes over an 11-year active mine life.
- Output steps up to roughly 112,500 Au Eq ounces a year from Year 4 through Year 11, with four years of the plan topping 120,000 ounces.
- Nevada accounted for about 64% of U.S. gold mine production in 2025, according to the U.S. Geological Survey.
Gold is holding over US$4,100 an ounce though mid-October, a level few mine plans were built around, but higher prices don’t produce new ounces on their own. New mines take years to permit, finance and build, and the projects best placed to benefit are those with credible production plans, defined capital requirements and economics that can withstand a retreat in metal prices. Dual-listed on the TSX Venture Exchange and OTCQB, Lahontan Gold Corp. (TSX.V: LG) (OTCQB: LGCXF) just put numbers to that case.
On October 14, 2026, the company released an updated Preliminary Economic Assessment (“PEA”) for its flagship Santa Fe Mine in Nevada’s Walker Lane. The study outlines a post-tax net present value at a 5% discount rate of US$820 million and an internal rate of return (“IRR”) of 40.1% at base-case prices of US$3,600 gold and US$49 silver. That NPV is more than fourteen times the US$56.5 million figure in the 2024 PEA, though the two studies reflect different mine plans and economic assumptions, including substantially higher metal prices in the update.
The Cash-Flow Math
The plan projects estimated net cash flow of US$1.68 billion before taxes and US$1.32 billion after taxes over an 11-year active mine life. Pre-production capital is estimated at US$172 million, including a US$22.2 million contingency, with payback projected in 3.7 years.
Estimated cash costs are US$1,909 per gold ounce and all-in sustaining costs are US$2,250. At the base-case gold price, that AISC represents a spread of US$1,350 per ounce, and higher gold prices would widen it, assuming costs hold.
A Production Profile That Builds
The operation would process 4.6 million tonnes per year (12,500 tonnes per day) for the first three years, then expand to 6.2 million tonnes per year (17,000 tonnes per day). Output climbs from roughly 23,000 gold-equivalent (Au Eq) ounces in Year 1 to nearly 48,000 in Year 3, then jumps to 122,800 ounces in Year 4 as throughput and grades step up.
Across the full plan, average annual production comes to about 91,900 Au Eq ounces, made up of roughly 88,300 ounces of gold and 254,000 ounces of silver. Output steps up to roughly 112,500 Au Eq ounces a year from Year 4 through Year 11, with four years of the plan topping 120,000 ounces.
The plan draws on four deposits (Santa Fe, Calvada, Slab and York) and, for the first time, includes sulfide material from the Santa Fe pit, which would be pre-oxidized on a separate pad before leaching.
Leverage Without Dependence
The project remains sensitive to the gold market but holds up at lower prices. At US$3,000 gold and US$30 silver, roughly 28% below the recent spot gold price, post-tax NPV comes to US$476.2 million with a 27.3% IRR. At the spot case of US$4,166 gold and US$59 silver, post-tax NPV rises to US$1.13 billion and IRR to 50.4%, with payback shortening to 3.3 years.
Why Nevada Still Anchors U.S. Gold
Nevada accounted for about 64% of U.S. gold mine production in 2025, according to the U.S. Geological Survey. The country mined an estimated 160 tonnes of gold that year, worth about US$17 billion, ranking fifth worldwide. Nevada was also the leading mineral-producing state by value for the second straight year.
That concentration reflects more than geology. Nevada has a workforce, contractors and supply chains built around open-pit, heap-leach gold mining, the same approach Santa Fe used when it produced 359,202 ounces of gold and 702,067 ounces of silver between 1988 and 1995.
Lahontan has completed its environmental baseline studies, the PEA mine plan will inform the final Mine Plan of Operations to be submitted to the U.S. Bureau of Land Management, and the company expects to obtain construction permits in 2027. With gold prices reflecting uncertainty abroad, Nevada’s established mining industry and regulatory framework provide a familiar setting for development, although Santa Fe must still secure permits, financing and construction approvals before production can resume.
The Cornerstone
Founder and CEO Kimberly Ann called Santa Fe “the cornerstone of Lahontan’s strategy to become a gold and silver producer focused on Nevada, one of the world’s premier mining jurisdictions.” The company is also drilling Santa Fe’s historic heap-leach pads and advancing the West Santa Fe satellite project roughly 13 kilometers to the southwest.
The PEA remains preliminary, includes Inferred Mineral Resources and does not establish mineral reserves or guarantee economic viability. Still, it provides a detailed framework for evaluating Santa Fe’s potential production, capital requirements and cash generation as Lahontan advances permitting.
For more information, visit the company’s website at www.LahontanGoldCorp.com.
NOTE TO INVESTORS: The latest news and updates relating to LGCXF are available in the company’s newsroom at https://nnw.fm/LGCXF
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