NexGen Energy (TSX: NXE) has released the first drill results from its 2026 summer program at the Patterson Corridor East discovery, with the results pushing the deposit’s high-grade core deeper than it sat a year ago.
The vertical extent of the high-grade subdomain grew 17% to 644 metres, while strike length held at 210 metres.
Results from the summer’s eleven holes are downhole radiometric readings, with laboratory assays still to come:
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- RK-26-293: >10,000 counts per second over a cumulative 4.7 metres, including 0.1 metres >61,000 cps, from a depth of 1,001.5 metres
- RK-26-290c1: >10,000 cps over a cumulative 19.5 metres, including 5.2 metres >61,000 cps, from a depth of 345.5 metres
- RK-26-294: >10,000 cps over a cumulative 6.9 metres, including 3.1 metres >61,000 cps, from a depth of 655.5 metres
- RK-26-296: >10,000 cps over a cumulative 3.5 metres, including 0.4 metres >61,000 cps, from a depth of 376.5 metres
The depth extension came from RK-26-293, which added 94 metres to the subdomain. RK-26-290c1, a down-plunge test, cut multiple stacked uranium veins across a 40 metre footprint and now ranks as the strongest hole drilled at the corridor since discovery on off-scale radioactivity. RK-26-294 ranks third, and sits 27 metres up dip of a hole that assayed 17.0 metres at 3.85% U3O8.
Radiometric counts are a field proxy rather than a grade, confirmed only at the lab. What they establish quickly is continuity, and the summer holes tie the shallow, middle and deep portions of the zone together rather than scattering hits across it.
“Growth of the high-grade subdomain continues to exceed expectations with expansions across the areas of focus with mineralization still open in most directions,” said Jason Craven, vice president of exploration.
The company has completed 20,138.7 metres of a planned 42,000-metre campaign, and is adding a fifth rig.
“Given today’s results at PCE, the team is adding a fifth drill rig for the remainder of the 2026 program,” Chief Executive Officer Leigh Curyer said.
NexGen Energy last traded at $15.13 on the TSX.
