Bunker Hill Mining Announces First Stope Blast on Track for Commercial Production in Q4|2026

Bunker Hill Mining Corp. has completed its first production stope blast at its 100% owned Bunker Hill Mine in Idaho, marking the transition from mine preparation and redevelopment to active underground mining operations. The company achieved a significant safety record during the restart phase, recording four consecutive years without a lost-time incident (LTI) and one full year without a recordable safety incident.

Mining utilizes transverse longhole stoping in a primary-secondary configuration, with stopes backfilled using paste backfill to ensure geotechnical stability and eliminate the need for a surface tails facility. The operation targets the production of zinc, lead, and silver concentrates.

Management confirms the company remains on track to achieve commercial production by the end of 2026. Near-term operational priorities include safely increasing underground mining rates, optimizing the processing circuit, building operating consistency, and advancing toward planned production levels.

Bunker Hill Mining Corp. (BNKR) has completed its first stope blast, an operational step that logically follows the first concentrate shipment announced on July 31, 2026. This development validates the company's execution timeline and confirms that underground development and commissioning are proceeding as planned.

The announcement does not introduce new financial guidance, change the capital structure, or alter the commercial production target. While safety milestones reinforce operational discipline, they do not directly impact near-term financials. The news is incremental, confirming management's prior statements regarding the ramp-up schedule and reducing execution uncertainty without representing a market-moving deviation from expectations.

Bunker Hill Mining Corp. is developing the historic Bunker Hill Mine in Idaho's Silver Valley, a premier polymetallic district known for high-grade silver, lead, and zinc deposits. The flagship project involves the restart of a mine that ceased operations in 1981, following over 45 years of closure and environmental rehabilitation.

The company has constructed a new 1,800 tons per day (tpd) processing facility in Kellogg, Idaho, featuring modern crushing, grinding, and differential flotation circuits. The facility is designed for future expansion to approximately 2,500 tpd with modest incremental capital.

The company recently acquired the Ranger-Page property, adding ~1,205 acres of contiguous land and historic infrastructure to its portfolio, expanding the total claim package to over 6,200 acres. The project targets a revenue mix of approximately 50% silver and 50% base metals, leveraging strong silver price environments to improve project economics.