Brazilian gold developer AIM:SRB is advancing its 2026 brownfield drilling program at the Palito Complex and Coringa Mine. The company aims to expand its total gold inventory to exceed 1.5 million ounces through targeted exploration across its Brazilian assets.
The 1.5 million ounce inventory target
AIM:SRB is currently executing a Phase II organic growth strategy designed to push its total Group mineral inventory beyond the 1.5 million ounce threshold. This ambitious goal relies heavily on the success of brownfield exploration, which focuses on expanding known deposits rather than discovering entirely new ones. As reported in the company's update, this strategy is already showing significant momentum.
The company's existing resource base has already seen substantial growth due to previous exploration efforts. According to the technical data provided, the 2025 program successfully increased the consolidated Measured and Indicated (M&I) resource base to 730,800 ounces of contained gold. This current inveentory is based on approximately 2.48 million tonnes of ore at an average grade of 9.1 g/t, providing a strong foundation for the current 2026 drilling campaign.
High-grade intercepts including 37.10 g/t Au
Recent drilling results at the Coringa Mine have revealed exceptional gold concentrations that validate the company's geological models. Specifically,hole 26-SR-055 yielded a high-grade interval of 1.38 metres at 11.85 g/t Au,which included a particularly dense 0.42-metre block at 37.10 g/t Au. Such high-grade intercepts are critical for the company's ability to maintain high-margin production as it scales.
The Coringa Serra and Meio districts have also provided significant data points through various drill holes. For example, hole 26-ME-013 returned 1.70 metres at 16.13 g/t Au, including a 0.45-metre block at 35.59 g/t Au. These findings, as reported in the company's latest update , confirm that mineralization remains continuous both along the strike and at greater depths, suggesting that the current deposits may be larger than previously estimated.
A 32,000-metre drilling program through October 2026
The 2026 brownfield exploration program is a large-scale operation involving six active drill rigs across two primary sites. AIM:SRB has planned a total drill length of 32,000 metres for the current program, which is scheduled to conclude in October 2026. This intensive drilling schedule is intended to maximize the efficiency of resource allocation and reduce operational rework.
Progress through the first half of 2026 has already seen the completion of 20,831 metres of drilling. This total is split between the Palito Complex, which saw 11,522 metres drilled over 37 holes, and the Coringa Mine, which accounted for 9,309 metres over 42 holes. This high level of activity is a central component of the company's plan to deliver an updated mineral resource estimate in the first quarter of 2027.
Will the G1-G3 corridor deliver more targets?
The discovery of new structural drill targets along the G1-G3 corridor at the Palito Complex remains a primary area of interest and uncertainty. While the company has developed new prospective models and reinterpretations for this area, it is not yet clear if these structural targets will yield the same level of grade continuity seen in the Serra and Meio districts. The second half of the year will be critical in determining if these new models can be successfully translated into proven reserves.
Furthermore, while the company has expressed optimism regarding its geological concepts, the full extent of the mineralization at depth remains to be verified . The current reporting focuses on the validation of existing trends, but the ultimate success of the 1.5 million ounce goal depends on whether these high-grade pockets are isolated occurrences or part of a much larger, continuous mineralized system.
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