Pacific Empire Minerals Corp. (TSXV: PEMC) has announced the completion of its 2026 diamond drill program at its Trident and Pinnacle copper-gold properties in the Quesnel Terrane of north-central British Columbia. The program comprised 14 drill holes totalling 4,548.5 metres — approximately 75% more metres than the company's 2025 program. A total of 2,286 core samples have been submitted to ALS Canada Ltd. for analysis, with Trident assay results anticipated by year-end 2026 and Pinnacle results expected in early 2027. Investors may be watching the assay timeline closely as the company advances its district-scale copper-gold porphyry interpretation.

Key Points

  • Pacific Empire Minerals Corp. (TSXV: PEMC) is a Vancouver-based copper-gold exploration company with 16,982 hectares in north-central British Columbia.
  • The 2026 drill program completed 14 diamond drill holes totalling 4,548.5 metres across both the Trident and Pinnacle properties.
  • Eight holes (2,410.6 metres) were drilled at Trident across four target areas; six holes (2,137.9 metres) at Pinnacle across two target areas, marking the first diamond drilling at Pinnacle since 2017.
  • Trident assay results are anticipated by end of 2026; Pinnacle and supplementary 2025 core results are expected in early 2027.

Trident Drilling Tests Four Target Areas Including Three New Zones

At Trident, eight holes totalling 2,410.6 metres were drilled across the A Zone, East IP Anomaly, East Breccia, and West Breccia target areas. Three A Zone holes followed up on 2025 drilling, while five additional holes stepped out to test new targets. The release notes that hole DD26TRI011, collared from the same pad as DD26TRI010, had not been logged or sampled at the time of the announcement. Core from the remaining Trident holes has been fully logged, sampled, and submitted to ALS Canada Ltd., an ISO/IEC 17025-accredited laboratory independent of the company.

Pinnacle Returns to Diamond Drilling for First Time Since 2017

Six holes totalling 2,137.9 metres were completed at Pinnacle across the Pinnacle South and Pinnacle Aplite North target areas. The announcement notes this marks the return of diamond drilling to Pinnacle, which had not been drill-tested since 2017. Drilling at both properties in a single season reflects what the company describes as district-scale testing of its interpretation that Trident and Pinnacle together represent one large copper-gold porphyry system. Assay results for the Pinnacle holes are anticipated in early 2027.

QA/QC Protocol and Qualified Person Oversight Underpin 2,286-Sample Submission

Drill core was logged and sampled at the company's 2026 exploration camp before being shipped under chain of custody to ALS Canada Ltd. facilities in Terrace and Langley, British Columbia. The company's quality assurance and quality control program included the insertion of a blank or certified reference material at every 20th sample position. The scientific and technical content of the release was reviewed and approved by Quinn Harper, P. Geo., of inData Geoscience Ltd., the designated Qualified Person as defined under National Instrument 43-101.