Apollo Silver Announces 2026 Exploration and Development Program for its U.S. based Calico Project

On December 11, 2025, Apollo Silver announced its planned 2026 exploration and project development program for its flagship Calico Silver Project in California. The program is designed to advance the project's technical understanding and includes: - A 4,500-meter core drilling program focused on gathering geotechnical and metallurgical data to support future mine design and improve on the historically estimated 65% silver recovery. - A 1,000-meter exploration core drilling program targeting the Burcham area. - Additional work including metallurgical testing, early-stage permitting activities, geophysical surveys, and geological mapping.

The program is scheduled to run throughout 2026, with drilling planned for the first half of the year. CEO Ross McElroy stated the program will strengthen the company's technical understanding of Calico and evaluate its "blue-sky potential" at a time when silver's designation as a U.S. critical mineral enhances the project's profile.

The announcement of the 2026 work program is a Routine - Positive development. Following the successful closing of an oversubscribed ~$26.8 million private placement in October 2025, this news outlines the expected and necessary deployment of that capital. It is not a discovery or a game-changing event in itself, but rather the methodical execution of a well-funded business plan.

• Positive: The program directly addresses key project risks, particularly metallurgy and mine design (geotechnical). The historic 65% silver recovery is a significant hurdle, and any improvement demonstrated by this new work would be highly material to the project's future economics. The program confirms that management is actively de-risking the project and moving it down the development path towards a Preliminary Economic Assessment (PEA).

• Routine: This is precisely the type of work the company was expected to undertake after securing substantial funding. For investors who participated in the recent financing at $3.60, this news validates that their capital is being put to work as anticipated. The market had already priced in the expectation of an aggressive work program; this release simply provides the specific details.

The progression of news in the second half of 2025 has been strong: a significantly updated Mineral Resource Estimate (MRE) in September, a major financing with strategic investors in October, and a positive macro tailwind with silver's critical mineral designation in November. This announcement is the logical and operational follow-through on that momentum. The material catalysts will be the results of this program, not its announcement.

Apollo Silver Corp. is a Canadian-based silver exploration and development company. Its flagship asset is the Calico Silver Project, located in San Bernardino County, California. Calico is one of the largest undeveloped primary silver deposits in the United States. The project is situated on a combination of private and public lands and hosts a significant resource of silver, along with barite and zinc, both of which are on the U.S. critical minerals list. The September 2025 MRE outlined a Measured & Indicated resource of 125 million ounces of silver. The company is focused on de-risking the project through technical studies and advancing it towards production. Apollo also holds an option on the Cinco de Mayo silver project in Chihuahua, Mexico.