
TORONTO, Sept. 9, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- Denarius Metals Corp. (Cboe CA: DMET) (OTCQX: DNRSF) ("Denarius Metals" or the "Company") announced today that it has been granted a preferential option by the Regional Government of Castilla and Leon in Spain to secure up to 28 new mining grids (the "Toral West Claims") which are located contiguous to the Company's 100%-owned Toral Project. The mining grids cover an area of approximately 800 hectares and, subject to completion of the administrative procedures associated with the award, would bring Denarius Metals' total property holdings in the Leon Mining District to approximately 3,700 hectares.
Serafino Iacono, Executive Chairman of Denarius Metals, commented, "The Toral West Claims extend the Company's property holdings along the known Toral mineralized structure to the northwest by approximately 7 kilometers, including the historic Zn-Pb Antonina Mine, a former mining operation located in the municipality of Sobrado, near Toral de los Vados. Opened in 1935 and closed in 1983, the Antonina Mine was known for the extraction of zinc, lead, copper and mercury. According to available drilling data, the ore grades in the Antonina Mine were similar to those found in our Toral Project. The reopening of the Antonina Mine could accelerate the start of mining operations at the Toral Project, initially providing access to the down-dip extension of the known mineralization below the historic mine and subsequently as a potential alternative access to the deep mineralization at Toral. In the coming months, we will advance the administrative process required to formalize the corresponding investigation permits over the awarded mining grids and will incorporate Antonina and the western extension of the Toral trend into our exploration program being planned for 2027".
Significance of the Toral West Claims
The Toral West Claims represent a strategic addition to the Company's land portfolio in the area (refer to Attachment 1) as they encompass the projected western extension of the Toral deposit. The geological interpretation indicates that the favorable host stratigraphy and mineralized structure extend westward from the existing Toral Project, providing an opportunity to evaluate the potential continuation of the known carbonate-hosted Zn-Pb mineralization over a considerably larger district-scale trend.
The Toral West Claims also include the historic Zn-Pb Antonina and Nieves mines, where previous mining activity demonstrates the presence of Zn-Pb mineralization within the same regional geological environment as the Toral deposit. Historical information suggests that the Antonina area may retain exploration potential for additional mineralization comparable in style to that identified at our Toral Project.
Historical records indicate that the Antonina Mine was operated on an industrial scale by several different companies between 1968 and 1983. Mining development is understood to have extended over approximately 700 meters of strike, with between five and seven underground levels reaching a depth of approximately 300 meters.
Importantly, the historical exploration database for the Antonina-Nieves area includes records of approximately 35 exploration drill holes. These historical drill holes provide evidence that the mineralized system is open to the west and at depth with grades similar to those for Toral, supporting the Company's view that the area warrants systematic modern exploration to determine the potential for additional mineral resources.
The expanded land package provides Denarius Metals with the opportunity to investigate a prospective mineralized corridor extending approximately 7 kilometers west of the existing Toral deposit. The Company believes this substantially enhances the long-term exploration upside of the Toral Project and reinforces its strategy of consolidating district-scale opportunities within the Leon Mining District.
NI 43-101 Mineral Resource Estimate for the Toral Project
Denarius Metals also announced today that it has completed a maiden Mineral Resource estimate (the "2026 MRE") for its 100%-owned Toral Project in Spain prepared by Resource Development Associates ("RDA") in accordance with the Canadian Institute of Mining Metallurgy and Petroleum ("CIM") Definition Standards incorporated by reference in National Instrument 43-101 ("NI 43-101") with an effective date of July 24, 2026.
Category |
Tonnage |
Grades |
Contained Metal |
|||||
(Mt) |
Zn (%) |
Pb (%) |
Ag (g/t) |
ZnEq (%) |
Zn (kt) |
Pb (kt) |
Ag (Moz) |
|
Inferred |
14.8 |
4.00 |
2.77 |
20.4 |
6.08 |
590 |
409 |
9.7 |
Notes:
- Mineral Resources are reported in accordance with the CIM Definition Standards (2014) and NI 43-101.
- The independent Qualified Person for the 2026 MRE is Scott E. Wilson, C.P.G., SME-RM, of RDA. Effective date is July 24, 2026.
- Mineral Resources are not Mineral Reserves and do not have demonstrated economic viability. There is no certainty that all or any part of the 2026 MRE will be converted into Mineral Reserve.
- All Mineral Resources are classified as Inferred. No Measured or Indicated Mineral Resources are declared. It is reasonably expected that the majority of Inferred Mineral Resources could be upgraded to Indicated Mineral Resources with continued exploration (closer-spaced infill drilling).
- Resources are reported above an NSR cut-off of US$61/t, which is approximately equivalent to 3.05% ZnEq on a pure-zinc basis. The cut-off is based on Reasonable Prospects for Eventual Economic Extraction (RPEEE) using underground mining and Option A processing (on-site crushing, XRT ore sorting at ~45% mass rejection, grinding and dual-circuit flotation).
- Operating cost basis used for the cut-off: mining US$36.30/t + processing US$18.33/t (effective after sorting) + G&A US$6.28/t = US$60.91/t, rounded to US$61/t for reporting.
- ZnEq% = Zn% + (Pb% × 0.7482) + (Ag g/t × 0.000248).
- NSR (US$/t ROM) = (Zn%/100 × 0.81 × 2,900 × 0.85) + (Pb%/100 × 0.87 × 2,020 × 0.95) + (Ag g/t × 0.49 × (37/31.1035) × 0.95).
- Assumptions: long-term prices Zn US$2,900/t, Pb US$2,020/t, Ag US$37/oz; overall recoveries (flotation + XRT) Pb 87%, Zn 81%, Ag 49% (WAI 2022 carbonate testwork); payabilities Zn 85%, Pb 95%, Ag 95% (industry-typical pending commercial terms). It is the QP's opinion that Zn, Pb and Ag have a reasonable potential to be recovered and sold.
- Contained metal is in situ. No metallurgical recovery is applied to contained-metal figures. Metal values, if quoted, are illustrative only and are not NSR or revenue.
- Bulk density (mineralized): 2.73 + 0.022 × (Pb% + Zn%), capped at 3.50 g/cm³. Waste assigned 2.70 g/cm³.
- Numbers are rounded. Totals may not add due to rounding. All tonnes are metric.
- The mineralized structure remains open along strike to the southeast and at depth.
Following a period of project evaluation through a definitive option agreement with Europa Metals Ltd. ("Europa"), the Company acquired its 100% interest in the Toral Project from Europa in November 2024. On November 30, 2022, following completion of its 2022 drilling campaign, Europa had announced an updated JORC 2012 compliant Mineral Resource (the "Europa MRE") prepared by Addison Mining Services Ltd. ("AMS") with an effective date of November 5, 2022 comprising 7.0 Mt Indicated and 13 Mt Inferred at a 4% ZnEq (PbAg) cut-off. The 2026 MRE announced today by the Company is a new estimate, not a restatement, that has been completed by RDA in accordance with NI 43-101. Differences between the 2026 MRE prepared under NI 43-101 and the previous Europa MRE prepared under JORC 2012 arise from (i) CIM classification under NI 43-101 applied to the current drill spacing and high-nugget geometry (Inferred only), (ii) a change from median-indicator kriging to anisotropic ID³, (iii) an NSR cut-off of US$61/t using updated prices, recoveries and XRT-inclusive process assumptions, and (iv) a revised grade-dependent density assignment. The two Mineral Resource estimates are not directly comparable.
The resource estimation methodology carried out by RDA in the 2026 MRE involved the following procedures:
- Database compilation and verification;
- Construction of three-dimensional vein wireframes for five mineralized domains;
- Definition of resource domains;
- Data conditioning (2.0 m compositing and capping) for statistical analysis;
- Variography;
- Block modeling and anisotropic inverse-distance cubed (ID³) grade interpolation of Zn, Pb and Ag;
- Resource classification and validation;
- Assessment of reasonable prospects for eventual economic extraction and selection of the NSR reporting cut-off; and
- Preparation of the Mineral Resource estimate.
The 2026 MRE is supported by a validated drill-hole database of 127 diamond and reverse-circulation holes (including wedges) totaling 66,783 meters that have assay support, including the validation and infill drilling program carried out by the Company in 2023. Mineralization is hosted in five modeled veins. The estimation dataset comprises 698 assay intervals (688 meters of mineralized length) within those veins, composited to 2.0 m down-hole for a primary estimation set of 417 composites.
Grades of Zn, Pb and Ag in the 2026 MRE were interpolated independently into a 3-D block model constrained by five vein wireframes using anisotropic inverse-distance cubed (ID³) in two passes. Search orientations were taken from the directional variography (principal strike ~285°, steep north dip). Ordinary kriging was tested and rejected: kriging efficiency was persistently negative and slope-of-regression indicated conditional bias under the current drill spacing and high-nugget, narrow-vein geometry. Multiple-indicator kriging (the 2022 AMS method) was considered and not adopted for the same support reasons. 2.0 m length-weighted composites were used. Density is assigned after grade estimation using the linear formula above. Validation included global composite-versus-block statistics, nearest-neighbor comparison, swath plots and visual long-section review.
Qualified Person and Technical Report
The resource evaluation work was completed by Mr. Scott E. Wilson, C.P.G., SME-RM, of Resource Development Associates. Mr. Wilson is an independent consulting geologist specializing in Mineral Reserve and Resource calculation reporting, mining project analysis and due diligence evaluations. Mr. Wilson conducted a personal inspection of the Toral Project on October 21-22, 2024. Mr. Wilson has over 36 years of experience in the mining industry and is a Registered Member (#4025107RM) of Society for Mining, Metallurgy and Exploration, Inc. Mr. Wilson and RDA are independent of the Company under NI 43-101.
Mr. Wilson has reviewed, verified and approved the technical information for the 2026 MRE summarized in this news release and is not aware of any significant risks and uncertainties that could be expected to affect the reliability or confidence in the information discussed herein.
The 2026 MRE will be supported by a NI 43-101 independent technical report which will be published and filed on the Company's website and SEDAR+ profile within 45 days.
About Denarius Metals
Denarius Metals is a Canadian junior company engaged in the acquisition, exploration, development and eventual operation of precious metals and polymetallic mining projects in high-grade districts in Colombia and Spain. Denarius Metals is listed on Cboe Canada where it trades under the symbol "DMET". The Company also trades on the OTCQX Market in the United States under the symbol "DNRSF".
In Colombia, Denarius Metals is producing gold and silver in an "early production" phase at its 100%-owned Zancudo Project while it completes construction of a 1,000 tonnes per day processing plant that is expected to start producing high-grade gold-silver concentrates in the fourth quarter of 2026. The Zancudo Project is a high-grade gold-silver deposit, which includes the historic producing Independencia mine, and is located in the Cauca Belt, about 30 km southwest of Medellin. Denarius Metals recently acquired a 15.3% equity interest in Copper Giant Resources Corp. gaining exposure to its Mocoa copper-molybdenum deposit located in the Putumayo Department of southern Colombia.
In Spain, Denarius Metals has interests in three projects focused on in-demand critical minerals. The Company owns a 21.8% interest in Rio Narcea Recursos, S.L. and is the operator of its Aguablanca Project, which has been recognized by the EU as a Strategic Project. The Aguablanca Project comprises a turnkey 5,000 tonnes per day processing plant and the rights to exploit the historic producing Aguablanca nickel-copper mine, located in Monesterio, Extremadura. Denarius Metals also owns a 100% interest in the Lomero Project, a polymetallic deposit located on the Spanish side of the prolific copper rich Iberian Pyrite Belt, approximately 88 km southwest of the Aguablanca Project, and a 100% interest in the Toral Project, a high-grade zinc-lead-silver deposit located in the Leon Province, Northern Spain.
Denarius Metals entered into a strategic collaboration in early 2026 as JV partners with ProGrowth Ltd. Company, a Saudi-based diversified group of companies, focused on the processing, smelting and commercialization of material sourced from the Company's projects and to identify, acquire, develop and operate gold and nickel mining concessions within the KSA.
Additional information on Denarius Metals can be found on its website at www.denariusmetals.com and by reviewing its profile on SEDAR+ at www.sedarplus.ca.
Cautionary Statement on Forward-Looking Information
This news release contains "forward-looking information", which may include, but is not limited to, statements with respect to anticipated business plans or strategies, including completion of the administrative process and the final number of Toral West Claims to be received thereunder, the exploration potential of the Toral West Claims, the comparability of the historical grades at the Toral West Claims to the Toral deposit, the potential re-opening of the Antonina Mine, the start of operations at the Toral Project and the planned exploration program for the Toral Project in 2027. Often, but not always, forward-looking statements can be identified by the use of words such as "plans", "expects", "is expected", "budget", "scheduled", "estimates", "forecasts", "intends", "anticipates", or "believes" or variations (including negative variations) of such words and phrases, or state that certain actions, events or results "may", "could", "would", "might" or "will" be taken, occur or be achieved. Forward-looking statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors which may cause the actual results, performance or achievements of Denarius Metals to be materially different from any future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by the forward-looking statements. Factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those anticipated in these forward-looking statements are described under the caption "Risk Factors" in the Company's Annual Information Form dated March 31, 2026 which is available for view on SEDAR+ at www.sedarplus.ca. Forward-looking statements contained herein are made as of the date of this press release and Denarius Metals disclaims, other than as required by law, any obligation to update any forward-looking statements whether as a result of new information, results, future events, circumstances, or if management's estimates or opinions should change, or otherwise. There can be no assurance that forward-looking statements will prove to be accurate, as actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated in such statements. Accordingly, the reader is cautioned not to place undue reliance on forward-looking statements.
SOURCE Denarius Metals Corp.
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