Highlights
- Kootenay Silver Inc. (TSXV: KTN; OTCQX: KOOYF) has reported assay results from 42 holes at its Columba High-Grade Silver Project in Chihuahua, Mexico, part of an ongoing 60,000-metre drill program with more than 29,700 metres completed so far.
- The results extended the D Vein to roughly 1,320 metres of strike length and to depths of 600 metres, and identified several “blind” veins not previously known from surface, including one intercept grading 703 grams per tonne silver.
- No new resource estimate was released; assays from 14 additional holes, plus a separate batch from the adjacent Lupe/B2 vein system, remain pending.
Kootenay Silver Inc. (TSXV: KTN; OTCQX: KOOYF) reported assay results on September 16, 2026, in a release distributed via PRNewswire, from 42 drill holes completed along the D Vein at its Columba High-Grade Silver Project in Chihuahua, Mexico. The results come from an ongoing 60,000-metre program, of which more than 29,700 metres have now been drilled, with assays from another 14 holes still pending.
Columba already carries an inferred resource of 54.1 million ounces of silver, from a maiden estimate the company filed in 2025. An inferred resource is the lowest-confidence category under Canada’s NI 43-101 reporting rules: enough drilling to suggest continuity of mineralization, but not enough to support mine planning on its own. This release doesn’t add to that estimate directly. Instead, it reports on step-out drilling meant to test whether the vein keeps going past the resource’s current edges, and so far, the company says it does.
D Vein Keeps Growing
The current phase of drilling stepped out from the known resource in roughly 100-metre increments, and Kootenay says the vein remains open in two or three directions. Combined with prior work, this batch of holes has traced the D Vein across about 1,320 metres of strike length and to depths of 600 metres below surface.
Some of the stronger intercepts came from hole CDH-26-253, which returned 274 grams per tonne silver over 6.28 metres (3.33 metres estimated true width), including a higher-grade section of 509 g/t silver over 2.40 metres. A separate zone in the same hole ran 94 g/t silver over 31 metres. Hole CDH-26-243 combined silver with visible gold, an unusual pairing for this system: 178 g/t silver and 0.1 g/t gold over 17 metres, including 291 g/t silver and 0.28 g/t gold over 5.5 metres.
“Blind” Veins Add New Targets
The more interesting news for exploration purposes involves veins with no surface expression at all. Geologists found these structures only because a drill hole happened to cross them, not because they could be mapped or sampled from the surface first. Since they weren’t previously known to exist, they represent new ground to test rather than simple extensions of what was already being tracked.
The best of these came from hole CDH-26-248, which intercepted 703 g/t silver combined with 1.46% lead and zinc over 1.0 metre, inside a broader 4.0-metre interval averaging 288 g/t silver. Hole CDH-26-250 returned a wider but lower-grade blind zone: 83 g/t silver over 22 metres, including a higher-grade core of 265 g/t silver over 2 metres.
“Systematic drilling of known mineralized structures along D and Lupe trends has identified additional hanging-wall and footwall structures blind to surface, representing new potential exploration targets,” said Roberto Jordan Balbastro, Kootenay’s Senior Geological Engineer, in the release.
A Second Vein System, More Results to Come
Several holes also clipped the nearby Lupe/B2 vein system, which runs roughly parallel to the D Vein and converges with it within about 50 metres at the property’s eastern end. Those intercepts included 520 g/t silver over 0.96 metres and 816 g/t silver over 0.4 metres, both narrow but high-grade. Kootenay says a separate release focused specifically on Lupe/B2 drilling is coming within the next few days.
Silver has traded above $60 an ounce through much of September, more than 50% above where it stood a year ago, and that backdrop has put extra attention on high-grade discoveries like Columba’s. Kootenay compares the district’s scale and geology to other Mexican silver camps such as Las Chispas and Panuco, a comparison drawn by the company rather than an independent source, though both districts are recognized in the sector for large, high-grade vein systems.
Dale Brittliffe, Kootenay’s Vice President of Exploration, reviewed the technical information in the release as the company’s named Qualified Person under NI 43-101. The release states plainly that he is not independent of Kootenay, since he holds a management role there rather than working as an outside consultant.
Columba is the fourth silver deposit Kootenay has advanced in Mexico since 2006, and the company says it is fully funded to complete the current program. Part of the property saw small-scale mining twice before, in the early 1900s and again around 1958 to 1960, but the area went roughly 40 years with no exploration before Kootenay arrived. Those historic production figures come from old, unverified accounts and don’t represent any current resource.
Kootenay’s President and CEO, James McDonald, said in the release that the company’s focus is now shifting toward other priority veins on the property, including Lupe/B2, J, and La Preciosa, with the next batch of results expected from Lupe/B2.
Sources
Editorial Disclosure
This article is based on a press release issued by Kootenay Silver Inc. on September 16, 2026, and distributed via PRNewswire. Securities discussed: Kootenay Silver Inc. (TSXV: KTN | OTCQX: KOOYF). Mining Markets Report has not received compensation from Kootenay Silver, its management, investor relations representatives, or any third party for the creation of this specific coverage. No staff member, principal, or affiliate of Mining Markets Report holds a position, option, or interest in this security as of the publication date. Drill results, resource figures, and statements regarding future exploration programs, including the pending Lupe/B2 assay batch and the company’s shift toward additional target veins, are forward-looking and subject to geological, operational, and market uncertainties; actual results may differ materially. The technical information in this release was reviewed by Kootenay’s Vice President, Exploration, who is not independent of the company. Mineral exploration and micro-cap mining stocks carry an extremely high degree of financial risk. Early-stage exploration companies often have no revenues, are speculative in nature, and can result in the total loss of invested capital. This overview is published strictly for informational, news-reporting, and educational market context purposes only. It does not constitute an investment recommendation, endorsement, or professional financial, legal, or tax advice.
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