SOMA GOLD DISCOVERS NEW VEIN IN UPPER ATENAS ZONE OF THE CORDERO MINE
Soma reports high-grade near-mine vein intersections at Cordero, though the results are insufficient to alter the company's distressed producer narrative.
Soma Gold Corp. (SOMA) has released surface drilling results from the Cordero Mine in Antioquia, Colombia, focusing on the Upper Atenas Zone. The company also announced the discovery of a new high-grade vein zone, designated as the upper Upper Atenas vein (uUAV).
The company completed 16 drill holes for a total of 1,838 meters. Assays were received for 14 of these holes, while two holes, MATDDH-26-002 and MATDDH-26-003, remain pending. A total of 811 samples were collected, with 47 samples returning grades greater than 2.5 g/t Au and 20 samples exceeding 10 g/t Au. Additionally, 29 composites reported grades above 1.0 g/t Au.
The highest recorded composite grade was 28.2 g/t Au. The maximum individual interval reported was 167.2 g/t Au over a true width of 0.47 m.
The newly identified uUAV vein is located approximately 20 meters above current conventional mining operations in the hanging wall of the upper Atenas Zone. The vein has a reported strike length of 175 meters and remains open to the north-northwest. Its dip extent has been established for 30 meters down-dip, while it remains open up-dip. Historical holes down-dip appear to close off the vein, but an unsampled 10-meter interval containing sulphide-bearing veins is currently being re-sampled.
Key reported intercepts include:
- BASDDH-25-038: 15.3 g/t Au over 6.05 m true width from 86.5 m, including 60.5 g/t Au over 0.64 m.
- UATDDH-26-008: 28.2 g/t Au over 3.0 m true width from 96.7 m, including 167.2 g/t Au over 0.47 m.
- UATDDH-26-011: 20.6 g/t Au over 3.8 m true width from 68.75 m, including 94.5 g/t Au over 0.8 m.
- UATDDH-26-006: 8.0 g/t Au over 3.18 m true width from 86.2 m.
- UATDDH-26-010: 13.7 g/t Au over 1.58 m true width from 85.65 m.
Soma Gold Corp. (SOMA) is an established small producer rather than a pre-resource explorer, meaning the materiality of its drill results is generally lower than that of an early-stage discovery company. The company’s equity story has recently been dominated by operational challenges, including revenue of C$22.5 million and a net loss of C$2.1 million in Q1 2026, followed by revenue of C$20.4 million and a net loss of C$3.9 million in Q2 2026. During this period, the average grade at the Cordero mine fell from 5.55 g/t in Q2 2025 to 3.99 g/t in Q2 2026. Cash resources declined to C$7.2 million as of June 30, 2026, and the stock price dropped from approximately C$2.46 in late January 2026 to between C$0.63 and C$0.66 by July and September 2026.
In this context, while a near-mine high-grade vein is useful, it does not address core issues such as low production, grade variability, high costs, labour disruptions, liquidity concerns, and dilution risk. Positive aspects of the recent exploration include high-grade gold intersections located within approximately 20 meters of existing workings, credible true widths, and robust QA/QC protocols. These findings offer the potential to add ounces close to existing infrastructure.
However, significant limitations remain. The vein is currently small, measuring 175 meters in strike and 30 meters down-dip, with historical holes down-dip appearing to close it off. The best composites are bonanza-driven, and no resource or reserve update is yet possible from this data. The current share price is already depressed by operational and financial news. The result is not a miss and is not materially below current depressed market expectations, representing a solid incremental exploration update at an existing operation.
Soma Gold Corp. is a TSXV-listed gold producer and explorer focused on Antioquia, Colombia. Its core assets include the El Bagre Gold Complex with the El Bagre Mill operating at approximately 450 tpd, and the Cordero Mine, which serves as the main underground feed source. The company has restarted the El Limon Mill, targeting 200 tpd with potential to reach 400–425 tpd through ore sorting. Other operations include the Aurora Mine, which has a permitted increase to 75 tpd to feed El Bagre, and the Escondida Mine, a small underground operation currently undergoing an exploration drilling program.
The company has submitted a permit application for the Nechi Project, targeting 250 tpd and approximately 25,000 AuEq ounces per year. Additional exploration efforts include the Machuca project, featuring the Psyche 2 copper anomaly, and an exploration property near Tucuma, Brazil, which is under option to Ero Copper Corp.
Resource data from the April 2026 presentation indicates that the El Bagre deposit contains Indicated resources of 355 Kt at 6.9 g/t Au for 78 koz, and Inferred resources of 761 Kt at 7.9 g/t Au for 192 koz. The Nechi deposit holds Indicated resources of 310 Kt at 4.9 g/t Au for 49 koz, and Inferred resources of 405 Kt at 6.5 g/t Au for 85 koz.
Production history shows 18,670 AuEq ounces produced in 2025. Sales for Q1 2026 were 3,788 AuEq ounces, representing a decline of about 45% year over year. Q2 2026 production reached 3,783 AuEq ounces, generating C$20.4 million in revenue. The company reported a net loss of C$3.9 million for the quarter, with a gross margin of 10%. As of June 30, 2026, working capital stood at C$12.9 million, with short-term cash resources totaling C$7.2 million.