What i-80 Gold (IAU) Said on Its Q3 Earnings Call

Key Points

• Development projects are advancing: Granite Creek completed a feasibility study outlining an 8.5-year mine life, while Archimedes remains on track to begin mining in Q4 2026. Lone Tree’s refurbishment is on schedule for first gold in Q4 2027, with its $430 million capital estimate largely intact.
• i-80 Gold expects a major production ramp: Management projects growth from roughly 40,000–50,000 ounces annually to 150,000–200,000 ounces beginning in 2028, as its underground mines feed the Lone Tree processing hub. For 2026, production is expected in the lower half of guidance.
• The company ended the quarter with about $411 million in cash and said it could access up to roughly $350 million in additional liquidity over the next 18 months, subject to financing arrangements, approvals, or warrant exercises.

i-80 Gold TSE: IAU reported third-quarter progress across its Nevada development portfolio, highlighting the completion of a feasibility study for Granite Creek Underground, continued construction at Archimedes Underground, and ongoing refurbishment work at the Lone Tree processing plant.

President and Chief Executive Officer Richard Young said the company is advancing its plan to establish a hub-and-spoke mining and processing platform, with Granite Creek and Archimedes expected to supply the Lone Tree plant. The company continues to target first gold from Lone Tree in the fourth quarter of 2027.

Young said 2027 is expected to be a transition year as the company ramps up its two underground mines, completes the Lone Tree refurbishment, and builds refractory and oxide stockpiles ahead of commissioning. The company expects to grow from a higher-cost producer of 40,000 to 50,000 ounces annually to a lower-cost producer of 150,000 to 200,000 ounces beginning in 2028.

Granite Creek feasibility study and operations

During the quarter, i-80 Gold published the Granite Creek Underground feasibility study, which established maiden mineral reserves and outlined a higher production rate and longer mine life than the project’s March 2025 preliminary economic assessment. The study incorporates an eight-and-a-half-year mine life after more than a year of depletion since the prior economic assessment, according to Chief Operating Officer Paul Chawrun.

Granite Creek completed nearly 900 meters of year-to-date development in its main decline and lateral access areas. Mining continued in the Ogee, Upper South Pacific and Otto zones, although mined ore tonnage and material movement were below plan because of contractor workforce turnover amid heightened competition for skilled underground labor in the region.

Chawrun said the company implemented a retention incentive program and contractor staffing has returned to a steady state. Management expects mine grades and tonnage to improve during the fourth quarter.

• Total material mined was about 86,000 tons, including 22,000 tons of sulfide ore grading more than 8 grams per ton and 12,400 tons of oxide ore grading more than 9 grams per ton.
• Approximately 18,400 tons of sulfide ore was processed during the quarter.
• Gold production at Granite Creek totaled about 9,100 ounces.
• The company expects Granite Creek to reach the lower half of its 2026 guidance range of 30,000 to 40,000 ounces.

Limited availability at the company’s third-party processor caused processing to lag mining. At quarter-end, i-80 Gold had about 6,200 recoverable ounces in process at the facility and an additional 3,000 ounces in finished-goods inventory there.

The company also completed construction of a second water-treatment facility at Granite Creek and is commissioning it for water placement into recharge infiltration basins. With two new dewatering wells completed during the quarter, the company expects treatment capacity of as much as 3,500 gallons per minute, compared with current inflow rates of about 1,300 to 1,400 gallons per minute.

Archimedes expected to begin mining by year-end

At the Archimedes Underground project at Ruby Hill, i-80 Gold said development remains on track for first gold mining in the fourth quarter. The project had completed about 2,300 meters of development during the first nine months of 2026, ahead of plan, supported by favorable ground conditions and contractor productivity.

Chawrun said the project’s underground operating costs remain in line with the preliminary economic assessment, while capital costs are expected to be slightly higher because of investments in surface and underground infrastructure for longer-term Ruby Hill operations.

The company plans to place oxide material from Archimedes on the existing Ruby Hill heap-leach pad beginning by year-end. Production from material placed on the pad during the fourth quarter is expected to be recorded in the first quarter of 2027. Metallurgical test work showed strong leach kinetics and gold recoveries for the oxide material, according to management.

During the call, Chawrun said Archimedes was mining at an estimated rate of 700 to 800 tons per day and aims to reach approximately 1,500 tons per day toward the end of 2027. Sulfide material is expected to be stockpiled, with hauling to Lone Tree anticipated to begin around mid-2027 based on stockpile capacity.

The company has seven underground drill rigs operating at Archimedes as part of a planned 55,000-meter, 140-hole campaign targeting the Lower 426 and Ruby Deeps zones. Results are expected to support an updated resource estimate and a feasibility study now anticipated in the second half of 2027.

Lone Tree refurbishment remains on schedule

i-80 Gold said the Lone Tree refurbishment remains on schedule for a fourth-quarter 2027 first gold pour and is largely in line with its $430 million capital estimate. Bulk demolition has been completed, contractors have begun mobilizing, and civil and concrete work is commencing.

By the end of September, 74% of procurement packages by value had been awarded and 44% of total project capital had been committed. Labor costs are running about 5% to 10% above original estimates, though management said the increases remain within contingency. About 20% of the project’s total contingency had been used at quarter-end.

Management expects to award the general contractor contract in December and mobilize early in the new year. Young said the project requires roughly 600,000 labor hours, with contracts already in place for the first 300,000 hours.

Young said the company would ideally stockpile at least 200,000 tons of material before Lone Tree commissioning. He said third-party processing costs for sulfide material are currently about $350 per ton, compared with an estimated $100 per ton at Lone Tree.

Liquidity, production and project pipeline

Chief Financial Officer Ryan Snow said i-80 Gold ended the quarter with about $411 million in cash, down from approximately $465 million at the end of the second quarter. He said the company could access up to roughly $350 million of additional liquidity over the next 18 months through potential gold-prepay funding, a Franco-Nevada net smelter return transaction, warrant exercises and stockpile facilities, subject to approvals, agreements or warrant exercises.

Companywide third-quarter gold production was approximately 11,700 ounces, while sales totaled about 7,750 ounces, compared with 12,430 ounces produced and 9,370 ounces sold in the prior-year period. For the first nine months, production totaled approximately 33,650 ounces and sales were about 23,670 ounces.

The company expects 2026 production to fall within the lower half of its guidance range, partly because Archimedes oxide material will be leached at Ruby Hill rather than sold under an ore-purchase agreement. Operating costs are expected at or below the low end of guidance, while sustaining capital, growth capital and pre-development spending are also expected near the low end.

Elsewhere, i-80 Gold is advancing Mineral Point as its next major development priority. A pre-feasibility study is expected in the second half of 2027, subject to completion of drilling. The company also expects a pre-feasibility study for Granite Creek Open Pit in the second half of 2027. Cove Underground remains in technical and permitting work, with a feasibility study expected in the fourth quarter of 2026, though management has resequenced the project for likely development in the 2030s.

About i-80 Gold (TSE:IAU)

i-80 Gold Corp. is a Nevada-focused mining company committed to building a mid-tier gold producer through a funded three-phase development plan to advance its high-quality asset portfolio. The Company is one of the largest mineral resource holders in the state with a pipeline of high-grade multi-stage projects strategically located in Nevada's most prolific gold-producing trends. Leveraging its central processing facility following an anticipated refurbishment, i-80 Gold is executing a hub-and-spoke regional mining and processing strategy to maximize efficiency and growth.

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