Announcement • Jun 03
Yukon Metals Starts 5,000-Metre Drill Program At AZ And Birch Copper-Gold Properties
Yukon Metals Corp. started its 2026 exploration programs at the AZ and Birch copper-gold properties in Yukon, Canada. Drill rigs are on site at AZ and Birch, with the first core produced at AZ on May 28, 2026. 3D Induced Polarization geophysics in progress targeting porphyry zones at AZ. Approximately 2,000 metres of diamond drilling is planned at AZ and 3,000 metres of diamond drilling at Birch. The programs also include geophysics, drone aeromagnetic surveying, surface geochemical sampling and alteration mapping to refine geological models and vector toward copper-gold targets. Yukon and First Nations contractors engaged to perform majority of work as part of Yukon Metals’ commitment to supporting local and community ventures. The Company’s 2026 exploration programs at AZ and Birch are intended to advance Yukon Metals’ pipeline of high-priority copper-gold targets in Yukon. At AZ, work will focus on refining porphyry and skarn-style copper-gold targets supported by prior geochemistry, geophysics and technical work. At Birch, the program will build on the positive 2025 drill results which included multiple skarn zones, including a 47.4 metre section grading up to 14 grams per tonne gold averaging 0.4 grams per tonne of gold-bearing mineralization, while integrating newly optioned district-scale targets at the Sumo property. Results from the 2026 programs will be used to refine geological models, prioritize drill targets and determine next steps for each property. Diamond drilling will be completed by New Age Drilling Solutions, a Yukon-based contractor, in partnership with Vision Quest Drilling, a Kluane First Nations citizen-owned company. Camp support services for the exploration activities will be provided by Käganì, a Kluane First Nations citizen-owned enterprise in partnership with longstanding Yukon-based exploration contractor, Archer Cathro. AZ is a 13,110-hectare copper-gold property in western Yukon, approximately 36 kilometres south of Beaver Creek and 6 kilometres west of the Alaska Highway. The property hosts porphyry and skarn-style copper-gold targets associated with intrusive rocks and hydrothermal alteration. Recent soil geochemistry and Induced Polarization surveys have outlined multiple copper targets, including the Southeast occurrence, where copper-molybdenum-gold-silver soil anomalies coincide with intrusive rocks and IP chargeability anomalies. Rock-chip sampling has returned values up to 26% copper. The 2026 AZ program will focus on advancing priority targets through 2,000 metres of diamond drilling, IP surveying, drone magnetic surveying, surface sampling and alteration mapping. This work is designed to refine the property-scale geological model, vector toward the most prospective zones of copper-gold mineralization and prioritize targets for follow-up drill testing. Birch is a 7,000-hectare copper-gold property near Burwash Landing in southwestern Yukon, located close to the Alaska Highway. The property is prospective for porphyry and skarn-style copper-gold mineralization and hosts multiple copper-gold soil and rock anomalies. Exploration has outlined a copper-gold soil anomaly extending up to 1,400 metres, with rock-chip samples returning values up to 2.42% copper and 14.1 grams per tonne gold. In 2025, Yukon Metals completed 1,685 metres of diamond drilling from four pad locations, with all holes intersecting mineralized skarn horizons. The 2026 Birch program will focus on advancing priority targets through IP surveying, surface sampling, alteration mapping and approximately 3,000 metres of diamond drilling. This work is designed to refine the property-scale geological model, vector toward the most prospective zones of copper-gold mineralization and test priority targets for copper-gold mineralization.
