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Newcore Gold - PFS Rundown & High-Grade Drill Results

The KE Report Jul 2, 2026

Summary

Newcore Gold's PFS (pre-feasibility study) puts the Enchi project's after-tax NPV (net present value) at $647 million with a 45% IRR at $4,200 gold.

Management shifted from heap leach to CIL (Carbon-in-Leach — tank-based gold recovery) for higher recoveries, accepting higher capital and operating costs.

The untelegraphed flowsheet shift, landing in a broad gold-equity selloff, drove a 25% share-price drop despite economics the CEO calls robust.

High grades front-load the mine plan: about 130,000 ounces annually over three years, cutting early AISC (all-in sustaining costs) to $1,970 per ounce.

Only 28,000 of 80,000 planned drill metres made the study; new Niam step-out holes below the reserve pits point to unmodeled upside.

Key points on Newcore Gold

  • The CEO's pre-feasibility study, released June 24, 2026, shows a $647 million after-tax NPV (5%), a 45% after-tax IRR and a 1.4-year payback at $4,200/oz gold; with a market cap of roughly $70 million US around the interview, he notes the stock traded at about 0.11-0.12 times that after-tax NPV.
  • Per the study's sensitivity table, at $5,000/oz gold the project models a $960 million after-tax NPV, a 58% after-tax IRR and a roughly 1.1-year payback, which management presents as significant leverage to the gold price.
  • The PFS shifted from the 2024 PEA's heap leach plan to a carbon-in-leach (CIL) flowsheet, whose higher capital and operating costs contributed to a roughly 25% one-day share-price drop on release, but management argues CIL delivers better recoveries and is the standard processing route in Ghana.
  • The mine plan fronts high-grade material: the first three years average about 130,000 oz of production at roughly 0.8 g/t (80-85% of year-one ore from the Boin deposit), and all-in sustaining costs of just under $2,300/oz life-of-mine fall to $1,970/oz in those early years; the $3,800 base case still carries a 37% after-tax IRR and includes a 10% royalty to the government of Ghana.
  • Only 28,000 m of the ongoing 80,000 m drill program (October 2025 cutoff) is in the PFS; 2026 step-out hits below the reserve pits, including 3.5 g/t gold over 21 m at about 220 m depth at Nyam with almost 6 g/t over 9 m within it, and up to 174 g/t over 1 m at Boin, target deeper higher-grade pits for future studies, while first-time reserves support a mining lease application planned for Q3 2026.

Cory Fleck's takeaways

  • Top takeaway The host presses the CEO on why Newcore moved from heap leach to a costlier CIL flowsheet and on the roughly 25% share-price drop after the PFS release, a question he says was raised by listeners.
  • He frames the economics as resilient at lower gold prices, noting the project still carries a 37% after-tax IRR at $3,800/oz gold alongside cash costs near $1,700/oz and all-in sustaining costs just under $2,300/oz.