Shallow Gold-Silver Drill Hits Strengthen Project Potential in Japan

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1.Ownership and Share Structure Information

The information listed above was updated on the date this article was published and was compiled from information from the company and various other data providers.

Irving Resources Inc. (IRV:CSE; IRVRF:OTCQX) has reported encouraging drill results from its ongoing exploration at the Omui and Omu Sinter targets, located within the Omu Gold-Silver Project in Hokkaido, Japan. The company, alongside its earn-in partner JX Advanced Metals Corporation, has completed multiple shallow diamond drill holes targeting silica-rich, gold-silver mineralization suitable for use as smelter flux in the Japanese base metal industry.

At the Omui target, five low-angle core drill holes defined a mineralized corridor approximately 200 meters long. These intercepts occur within 50 meters of surface and returned notable gold-silver values along with high silica content, making the material potentially amenable to small-scale open-pit extraction. Highlights from the 2025 drill campaign include hole 25OMI-002, which returned 26.38 meters grading 2.50 gpt gold, 22.03 gpt silver, and 78.9% silica, including a 2-meter interval grading 24.22 gpt gold and 173.40 gpt silver. All mineralized intervals show silica contents mostly ranging from 80% to above 90%, which aligns with the company's objective of finding smelter flux-compatible ore.

A separate shallow vertical hole, 25OMS-001, drilled at the nearby Omu Sinter target, intersected 41.81 meters averaging 0.54 gpt gold, 8.7 gpt silver, and 96.6% silica. The mineralized body lies only a few meters below surface and is characterized as a flat horizon deposited by ancient hydrothermal activity, with potential for lateral continuity.

Commenting on the results, Dr. Quinton Hennigh, director and technical advisor to Irving, stated in the news release, "We are very pleased to see expansive, shallow deposits of gold-silver-bearing silica emerge at both Omui and Omu Sinter. Our recent drill results indicate we are headed in the right direction."

Drill core samples were analyzed by ALS Global, and the company reported that standard industry quality control protocols were followed, including the use of blanks and standards.

Precious Metals Exploration and Smelter Flux Supply

According to a report from Excelsior Prosperity published on October 26, precious metals producers had been generating "cartoonish cashflow" amid high gold and silver prices. The report noted that "gold development projects . . .  are seeing eye-popping Net Present Values (NPVs)" at price sensitivities around US$4,100 per ounce. Although equities had seen recent pullbacks, the article described gold at US$4,126.50 as "still historically an amazing price," supporting operational strength across the sector. The silver market also experienced a significant breakout, with futures peaking at US$53.765 before settling back to US$48.388. While silver stocks corrected sharply, closing above the 50-day exponential moving average was viewed as maintaining a bullish technical posture.

On October 29, Dominic Frisby reflected on longer-term retail sentiment in the metals space, pointing out that the current environment did not mirror past tops. In contrast to historical selloffs, Frisby stated that "we are not there yet" in terms of retail divestment of physical metals. He recalled that in previous peaks such as 1980 and 2011, retail activity was marked by large-scale selling of family gold and silver, noting, "Even today, 45 years on, the silver price is lower than it was then — that's how insane that spike was."

A separate report from Pretiorates on October 29 addressed structural investment trends in the mining industry. The publication wrote that while gold and silver prices had risen sharply since the spring of 2024, passive investment vehicles such as ETFs had not followed suit, leaving many mining equities "chronically undervalued, no matter how strong their fundamentals."

The report emphasized the importance of using the price-to-cash flow ratio (P/CF) over earnings-based metrics, as mining company profits are significantly affected by fluctuating commodity prices. It added that central banks had increased their gold reserves from 30,000 to over 36,000 tons over the past 15 years, now comprising about 20% of their balance sheets — a trend signaling renewed interest in precious metals as part of the global financial system.

Pretiorates also discussed potential changes in the silver market, including a report suggesting that India may allow silver to be used as collateral in the banking system at a 10:1 ratio with gold. The analysis described the current 80:1 silver-gold market ratio as "unsustainable," given silver's geological abundance and production frequency. The publication concluded that such policy shifts could represent "a new chapter in the silver market."

Analyst Highlights High-Grade Gold and Strategic Smelter Relationship

On October 31, newsletter writer Chen Lin of What's Chen Buying? What's Chen Selling? shared a favorable assessment of the recent drill results from the Omui target. He wrote, "IRV.cn released excellent news from Omui. Remember the Omui project is in the process of permitting with Japan's largest smelter. Every gold discovered there means a lot of extra profits into the bottom line as the smelter is looking for silica."

Chen emphasized the significance of the grades encountered in multiple holes, adding, "There is high-grade gold in multiple holes. 2 meter of 24g/t gold and 173 g/t silver in hole 002 and 2.3 meter of 5.1g/t gold and 61g/ton silver in 003. It seems they hit high grades in most of the holes, this is quite impressive."

He concluded by pointing to the broader implications of the company’s permitting process, stating, "They are working on a mining license with its partner, Japan's largest smelter. Once they start mining, this gold will generate very good free cash flow."

Catalysts Section: Expanding Smelter Flux Opportunities with High-Silica Intercepts

The recent drilling has expanded the known footprint of silica-rich gold-silver mineralization at both Omui and Omu Sinter, supporting Irving's long-term strategy of identifying shallow deposits for smelter flux use. High silica content, often exceeding 80%, is essential for this industrial application, and the latest results suggest significant near-surface volumes of suitable material, as outlined in the company's investor presentation. 

The company highlighted that discussions are underway with JX Advanced Metals Corporation to plan next steps for the Omui target. Additionally, further drilling is continuing at Omu Sinter to assess groundwater conditions and test the continuity of the silica horizon. The mineralized zones at both sites remain open for extension.

With multiple broad, shallow intercepts and strong alignment with industrial-grade silica requirements, Irving's Omu Gold-Silver Project may contribute to Japan's domestic smelter flux supply. 

Ownership and Share Structure ¹

Management and directors own about 9.3% of Irving, and strategic investors Newmont and Sumitomo own 17.63% and 4.78%, respectively.

Yahoo! Finance said about 1% is owned by institutions. The rest is retail.

According to Refinitiv, top insiders include President and Chief Executive Officer Akiko Levinson with 4.88% and Hennigh with 3.1%.

Irving Resources Inc. has CA$21.67 million in market capitalization and approximately 83.36 million shares outstanding. The company's 52‑week trading range is CA$0.1450 at the low and CA$0.40 at the high.