VANCOUVER, British Columbia — February 17, 2026 — Leads & Copy —
Westhaven Gold Corp. (TSX-V: WHN) (OTCQB: WTHVF) has started drilling at its Shovelnose gold and silver Project in the Spences Bridge Gold Belt of southern British Columbia. The drilling is expected to kick off an approximately CDN$20 million, 50,000-meter program of resource definition and exploration planned for Shovelnose in 2026, pending the outcome of today’s special meeting of Westhaven shareholders to consider the proposed transaction with Dundee Corporation (TSX: DC.A).
According to Ken Armstrong, President and CEO of Westhaven, the drilling is designed to advance the project’s high-margin, low-cost development potential while targeting additional gold and silver discoveries across the property. The team is finalizing the overall 2026 work plan in collaboration with Dundee, with the drill program alone expected to total approximately CDN$20 million and include up to four drill rigs completing 50,000 metres of drilling. Armstrong added that this represents the most extensive drilling campaign ever undertaken at Shovelnose.
Initial work will focus on resource infill drilling at the South Zone to strengthen and expand the existing resource base, with exploration drilling increasing as additional rigs are mobilized in the coming months.
Westhaven controls ~60,263 hectares within four gold properties spread along this underexplored belt. The Shovelnose gold project is the most advanced property, with a recently updated 2025 Preliminary Economic Assessment that validates the project’s potential as a robust, low-cost and high-margin 11-year underground gold mining opportunity with average annual life-of-mine production of 56,000 ounces gold and 313,000 ounces silver with a CDN$454 million after-tax net present value (at a 6% discount rate) and 43.2% IRR (base case parameters of US$2,400 per ounce gold, US$28 per ounce silver and CDN/US$ exchange rate of CDN$1.00=US$0.72).
Dundee Corporation is a public Canadian independent mining–focused holding company, listed on the Toronto Stock Exchange under the symbol “DC.A”. Dundee operates with the objective of unlocking value through strategic investments in mining projects globally.
The technical and scientific information in this news release has been reviewed and approved by Robin Hopkins, P.Geo. (NT/NU), Vice President, Exploration for Westhaven.
Source: Westhaven Gold Corp.
