Toronto, Ontario — February 26, 2026 — Leads & Copy —
Metal Energy Corp. (TSXV: MERG) (OTCQB: MEEEF) has announced an update on its 2026 exploration program at the fully permitted NIV copper-gold-molybdenum project in British Columbia’s Toodoggone District.
The initial drill program is scheduled to begin in June and will consist of between 4,000 and 8,000 meters of drilling. The company has outlined multiple deposit-scale target areas.
Metal Energy is fully funded for 2026, with approximately $10 million in cash. Centerra Gold and Teck Resources each own 9.9% of Metal Energy.
The NIV project covers 12,500 hectares within the Toodoggone District, approximately 32km south of Centerra Gold’s Kemess mine complex. The project is underlain by Triassic-Jurassic geology similar to that hosting nearby copper-gold porphyry deposits held by Centerra, Amarc Resources, and TDG Gold.
The NIV property exhibits anomalous soil geochemistry (greater than 100 ppm copper, greater than 75 ppb gold, greater than 4 ppm molybdenum) over broad areas along a five-kilometer trend. These geochemical anomalies coincide with geophysical responses, including IP (Induced Polarization) chargeability and resistivity, and airborne MT (Magnetotellurics) extending to depths of several hundred meters. The company believes these coincident anomalies suggest the potential for a large-scale porphyry copper-gold system at depth.
Neither the NIV nor West NIV property has been drill-tested previously. The initial drill program will test multiple porphyry Cu-Au-Mo targets along the 5 km trend of geochemical and geophysical anomalies, with each target tested by multiple drill holes.
Final drill site selection will be informed by ongoing compilation and interpretation of geological, geochemical, and geophysical data. Geological ground-truthing and possible additional geophysics may be conducted to further refine drill sites concurrent with the start of the drill program.
Metal Energy intends to mobilize drill crews in June 2026, with contractors engaged and logistical planning underway.
Centerra and Teck’s 9.9% ownership stakes represent the technical and commercial validation of NIV’s prospectivity, made without any prior drilling at NIV, according to the company.
Metal Energy Corp. is a critical metals exploration company focused on copper and gold assets in Canada. Metal Energy’s portfolio includes the NIV Project, the Highland Valley Project (Cu-Mo-Ag-Au-Re) in British Columbia, and the Manibridge Project (Ni-Cu-Co-PGE) in Manitoba.
Roy Greig, Ph.D., P.Geo., an independent Qualified Person as defined by National Instrument 43-101, has reviewed and approved the technical information in this release.
Source: Metal Energy Corp.
