Resource Estimate Material +

Banyan Expands Indicated and Inferred Mineral Resource Estimate and Improves Grade at AurMac Deposit, Yukon, Canada

Banyan's AurMac balloons to 8.6 Moz indicated+inferred — but the easier ounces are now in the rearview as PEA economics take center stage.

By The Northwire Desk — AI Analysis May 19, 2026 · 12:18 BYN · 1.4 Banyan Gold Corp.

Executive Summary

On 2026-05-19, Banyan Gold released an updated NI 43-101 Mineral Resource Estimate (MRE) for the AurMac Project, Yukon, incorporating 42,000 m of 2025 drilling across 178 holes.
At a 0.30 g/t Au cut-off, Indicated resources rose to 3.64 Moz Au (167.3 Mt @ 0.68 g/t), a 60% increase in contained ounces and 8% increase in grade vs. the July 2025 MRE (2.274 Moz Indicated @ 0.63 g/t).
Inferred resources at the same cut-off are 4.98 Moz Au (267.2 Mt @ 0.58 g/t) — a decline from the prior 5.453 Moz Inferred — reflecting conversion of Inferred ounces into Indicated.
High-grade subset (0.55 g/t cut-off): 2.45 Moz Indicated @ 1.00 g/t and 2.72 Moz Inferred @ 0.96 g/t — i.e., ~5.17 Moz of >0.55 g/t material across categories.
District-scale potential (0.25 g/t cut-off): 3.93 Moz Indicated + 5.72 Moz Inferred.
Pit shell optimized at a US$3,500/oz gold price; mining $2.75/t, processing $11.50/t, G&A $2.00/t.
Powerline Indicated grew 68%; Airstrip Indicated is 0.84 Moz, Inferred 0.405 Moz.
2026 drill program of 70,000 m underway with ~21,000 m completed; PEA expected H2 2026.

Material Impact

The MRE is the long-promised conversion event that the prior 12 months of news pointed to. Total resource (Ind+Inf at 0.30 cut-off) is now 8.62 Moz vs. ~7.73 Moz in the July 2025 MRE — modest aggregate growth (~12%), but a major category upgrade (Indicated +60%, from 2.27 Moz to 3.64 Moz).
The grade increase from 0.63 g/t to 0.68 g/t Indicated is meaningful for a low-grade open-pit and partially answers the persistent skeptic question on AurMac (low grade vs. Yukon costs).
The pit shell uses US$3,500/oz gold — an aggressive price assumption. Current spot is roughly that level per commentary in the file, but readers should note resource economics depend heavily on this. At a lower price assumption, ounces inside the shell would shrink.
Inferred decreased ~470 koz in absolute terms (5.45 → 4.98 Moz), but quality of the resource improved as ~1.4 Moz moved into Indicated. This is exactly what Powerline/Airstrip drilling was supposed to deliver.
It is material, but largely "in line with high-end expectations" — management telegraphed this for over a year. The market may have already priced in much of the upgrade given the 7x run from $0.21 to $1.63. Treating as Material - Positive (not Game Changer) because:
No first-time strategic investor (Sprott/Lassonde/Lundin/Gentile) is named.
No takeover, merger or change-of-control.
The PEA — which will translate ounces into NPV/IRR — is still ahead. The PEA, not this MRE, is the true valuation re-rating event.

BYN · Price

Company Overview

Banyan Gold Corp. (TSXV:BYN | OTCQB:BYAGF | FRA:BAJ) is a Yukon-focused gold (and increasingly silver) developer.
Flagship: AurMac Project (~720 km² contiguous land package combining AurMac core + Nitra + the 46 km² Trail-Minto claims acquired Dec 2025 for $1M cash + 2% NSR).
Two main deposits: Airstrip (skarn-style, near-surface high-grade) and Powerline (RIRG-style with sheeted quartz veins; also hosts a newly emerging Keno-style silver system).
Updated MRE (2026-05-19): 3.64 Moz Indicated + 4.98 Moz Inferred at 0.30 g/t cut-off; pit shell at US$3,500/oz Au.
Secondary asset: Hyland Gold Project (Kaska Nations Territory) — Indicated 337 koz Au + 2.63 Moz Ag; Inferred 118 koz Au + 0.86 Moz Ag.
Year-round road access, grid power and communications — material advantages for capex.
100% ownership of AurMac core achieved Sept 2025 after acceleration of McQuesten/Aurex earn-in.

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