TORONTO, Ontario — February 18, 2026 — Leads & Copy —
NiCAN Limited has announced it received additional assay results from the new near-surface gold discovery in Thompson, Manitoba, intersecting 19.45 meters (m) of 1.00g/t Au and 12.2g/t Ag. The company’s stock trades as (TSXV: NICN) (OTCQB: NILTF) (FRA: W8Y).
A total of four shallow diamond drill holes were completed late in 2025 to confirm results from a historical diamond drill hole. Diamond drill hole PIPY25-08, intersected mineralized silicified biotite gneiss and silicate facies iron formation with disseminated pyrrhotite, pyrite and significant visible galena. Individual 1.0m assays returned 1.0g/t Au, 51.4g.t Ag and 3.74% Pb.
Highlights from Diamond Drill Holes on the Pipy South Property include:
Drill Hole PIPY25-04: 20.4m-48.0m, 27.60m Length, 1.25 Au g/t, 12.5 Ag g/t
Drill Hole PIPY25-04 incl.: 21.4m-35.7m, 14.30m Length, 2.14 Au g/t, 19.8 Ag g/t
Drill Hole PIPY25-04 incl.: 33.7m-35.7m, 2.00m Length, 5.39 Au g/t, 7.1 Ag g/t
Drill Hole PIPY25-05: 9.6m-19.1m, 9.50m Length, 0.65 Au g/t, 8.4 Ag g/t
Drill Hole PIPY25-07: 30.0m-38.0m, 8.00m Length, 0.21 Au g/t, 1.2 Ag g/t
Drill Hole PIPY25-07: 81.5m-85.5m, 4.00m Length, 1.25 Au g/t, 3.64 Ag g/t
Drill Hole PIPY25-08: 6.4m-11.8m, 5.40m Length, 0.69 Au g/t, 4.5 Ag g/t
Drill Hole PIPY25-08: 17.9m-37.3m, 19.45m Length, 1.00 Au g/t, 12.2 Ag g/t
Drill Hole PIPY25-08 incl.: 31.8m-36.8m, 5.00m Length, 2.17 Au g/t, 28.7 Ag g/t
Brad Humphrey, President and CEO of NiCAN, said the company is pleased to have expanded upon a new gold discovery within the Thompson area. He added that with gold prices at or near all-time highs, this discovery adds compelling value to the Company’s exploration portfolio.
Humphrey also stated that the gold mineralization appears to be open in all directions and is notably unique within the Thompson Nickel Belt. NiCAN has initiated a geophysical program and is preparing for follow-up diamond drilling to advance and further define this emerging system.
Diamond drill holes PIPY25-07 and PIPY25-08 were drilled 25m to the south and both intersected a broad zone of silicification and varying quantities of mineralization. The mineralized zone is interpreted to strike to the north and south and remains open in all directions, dipping steeply to the west.
Diamond drill hole PIPY25-07 was drilled 25m south of PIPY25-04 and is interpreted to have overshot the zone but still returned 4.0m averaging 1.25g/t Au and 3.64g/t Ag within a pyrrhotite breccia. The hole was interpreted to be highly silicified throughout its length.
Work permit restrictions limited the drill placement at the time. The Company has applied for and received a work permit allowing for a significant number of additional drill pads in this area for follow-up drilling.
PIPY25-08 was collared at -80 degrees from the same site as PIPY25-07. The hole intersected 19.5m averaging 1.0g/t Au, 12.2g/t Ag which included 5.0m near the bottom of the hole that returned 2.17g/ Au, 28.7g/t Ag and 2.07% Pb.
The gold mineralization is largely hosted within a silicate facies iron formation and a silicified biotite gneiss, which visually contains an estimated 1% to 5% disseminated pyrrhotite as well as up to 3% galena and minor chalcopyrite. Alteration is marked by bleaching and silicification that has not been completely defined by the limited 2025 drilling.
Hole PIPY25-07 displayed alteration along its entire length of over 80m. The presence of gold mineralization in iron formation and associated alteration is analogous to other iron formation hosted gold camps including Homestake, Musselwhite, Geraldton, Back River, and several others around the world.
The iron formation hosting the gold mineralization is magnetic and can be traced throughout the property utilizing an historical airborne magnetic survey reprocessed by NiCAN. A more precise historical ground magnetic survey has been reprocessed and is being utilized in the planning of the next drill program. Additional magnetic survey work has been contracted and is scheduled to commence shortly.
This information will give the Company a better understanding of the various and extensive magnetic features in this area.
A historical diamond drill hole (17BN01) in the same vicinity returned 6.63g/t Au over 5.6m within a wider zone of 1.20g/t Au over 47.0m starting at 27.0m downhole hosted by similar rock types to those seen in the NiCAN 2025 drill program. Downhole magnetic susceptibility readings of all drill holes indicate a correlation between the gold and positive magnetic readings.
A second 2017 historical diamond drill hole, located 500m north of hole 17BN01, targeted an extensive north-south trending magnetic anomaly interpreted to be a nickel target. A garnet bearing amphibolite was encountered at a depth of 153.4m to 160.2m that contained sufficient disseminated pyrrhotite to explain the magnetic signature. No significant nickel assays were returned in the interval but a 2.0m long portion assayed 0.39g/t gold at 157.4m, indicating other gold bearing zones are present.
The Pipy Properties consist of two project areas, Pipy South and Pipy North, totaling 27.0km2 in the well-established Thompson Nickel Belt. Initial exploration activities will focus on the Pipy South Project, which is adjacent to the Mystery Lake South area, located approximately 20km northeast of the City of Thompson and Vale’s Thompson Nickel Mine, with excellent road access and local infrastructure.
Mr. Stanley Clemmer, P.Geo, an independent consultant to NiCAN, who is a qualified person under National Instrument 43-101 – Standards of Disclosure for Mineral Projects has reviewed and approved the scientific and technical information in this press release.
NiCAN Limited is a mineral exploration company, trading under the symbols “NICN” on the TSX-V, “NILTF” on the OTCQB and “W8Y” on the FRA. The Company is actively exploring two projects, the high grade nickel-copper Wine Project and highly prospective Pipy Project, both located in well-established mining jurisdictions in Manitoba, Canada.
Source: NiCAN Limited
