ASX Announcement — 20 August 2026
Manhattan Gold Corporation Limited (ASX: MHC) has reported an exceptional first batch of assay results from its maiden reverse circulation drilling program at the Jaws gold target within the Hook Lake Project in Nunavut, Canada.
The standout hole, JWS26006b, intersected 41.15m at 4.66g/t gold from 83.82m within the main shear zone. That broad interval included 7.62m at 18.67g/t gold from 85.34m, with individual 1.52m samples grading as high as 41.0g/t and 33.40g/t gold.
Why the result matters
The intercept is both wider and higher grade than the nearest historic hole on the section, which returned 22m at 2.41g/t gold from 100m. Manhattan said the new result materially upgrades the known scale and grade at Jaws and supports its interpretation that high-grade shoots occur within a much broader mineralised envelope.
Modern drilling has also refined the geological model. The main shear zone appears to sit approximately 20–30m northwest of the position inferred from georeferenced historic plans, giving the company a stronger basis for targeting the interpreted higher-grade cores and plunging shoots in follow-up drilling.
Broad system confirmed across the first holes
- JWS26006b: 41.15m at 4.66g/t Au from 83.82m, including 7.62m at 18.67g/t Au.
- JWS26001: 79.25m at 0.78g/t Au from 38.10m, including 33.53m at 1.04g/t Au and 9.14m at 2.54g/t Au.
- JWS26002: 9.15m at 1.99g/t Au from 153.92m, confirming the down-dip continuation of a historic footwall vein.
- JWS26003: 9.15m at 1.73g/t Au from 35.05m, confirming additional near-surface mineralisation.
Technical advisor Eric Sondergaard described the assays as “exceptional first results,” adding that the 41.15m intercept “materially elevates the scale and grade potential of the Jaws system.”
What this changes from our original research
In our original research report, we identified the lack of modern drilling at Jaws as a central geological risk. The investment case relied partly on sparse historic drilling, an older non-JORC estimate and the company’s ability to confirm the position, scale, grade and geometry of the mineralised system with a modern program.
These first results materially reduce those risks. Modern drilling has now confirmed a broad mineralised envelope, demonstrated substantially higher-grade internal shoots, exceeded the width and grade of the nearest historic intercept, and improved the spatial model used for follow-up targeting.
This is still the first assay batch, and more drilling is required to demonstrate continuity and define the size and geometry of the high-grade zones. However, if upcoming results show that these widths and grades can be repeated and extended, the combination of greater potential scale and lower geological uncertainty has the potential to support an increase to our price target. We will reassess the valuation as the remaining assays and follow-up results are released.
Read our original Manhattan Gold research report
More assays and drilling to come
The 2026 RC program has surpassed 3,000m and further assays are pending. Follow-up work will focus on defining the geometry and continuity of the high-grade shoots, extending mineralisation along strike and at depth, and testing additional targets across the district-scale Hook Lake property. The drill rig has also moved to the high-grade Spectre copper-zinc VMS target.
Jaws hosts a historic foreign estimate of 3.4Mt at 2.38g/t gold for approximately 285,000 ounces. The estimate is not reported in accordance with the 2012 JORC Code. Reported drill intervals are downhole lengths and are not necessarily true widths.