Gold Producer Restarts Massive Mill Operation in British Columbia

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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.

Ascot Resources Ltd. (AOT:TSX.V) announced that, pending regulatory approval, it would change its name to Cambria Gold Mines Inc. (AOT:TSX.V; AOTVF:OTCID), according to a February 10 release.

The company is currently planning and budgeting for key strategic initiatives to advance the Premier and Red Mountain Projects in 2026. This follows the successful closing of the final tranche of a private placement on January 27, 2026, through which Ascot raised total gross proceeds of CA$175 million.

Ascot said it has completed the final stages of its refinancing, settlement of secured and unsecured creditors, and restructuring of existing debt. Additionally, through an amendment of its agreement with Sprott Private Resource Streaming and Royalty (B) Corp., the 50% buydown window has been extended by two years, from December 2026 to December 2028.

The key to the successful restart and sustained gold production at the recently commissioned 2,500 tonne per day (tpd) mill at the Premier Gold Project is the rapid development of the Red Mountain Project, located east of Stewart, B.C., the company said.

Red Mountain hosts Measured and Indicated Resources of 3,191,000 tonnes averaging 7.63 grams per tonne gold (g/t Au) for 783,000 ounces, Ascot said. It is a wide deposit suitable for longhole stoping, has existing production-sized underground workings, and would provide the majority of mill feed for the PGP mill. It is proposed that Red Mountain ore would be blended with high-grade mineralization from the Premier-Northern Lights deposit and/or the potentially bulk-mineable mineralization from the Big Missouri Deposit, both located at PGP.

"Management has been rapidly developing key permitting, geological, and engineering elements to develop the Premier and Red Mountain Deposits with the goal of a high-grade, hub and spoke gold mining operation to feed the recently constructed mill," President and Chief Executive Officer Robert McLeod said. "We expect numerous positive catalysts during 2026 to add significant value to our company. We are grateful to all stakeholders and shareholders that have supported us, including Sprott Streaming and Royalty granting a two-year extension on their stream buydown."

He continued, "Our proposed name change to Cambria Gold Mines Inc., named after the spectacular icefield located adjacent to Red Mountain, reflects our new vision for the company."

Work Underway at Red Mountain

Work to advance permitting of the Red Mountain access road was initiated in the fall of 2025, led by the incoming management team, including thorough consultation with the Nisga'a Nation, the company said. The objective is for mineralized material to be trucked to PGP from the Red Mountain deposit. More details of the 2026 program will be announced soon. Key elements of this work program will include:

• Commencing construction of the Red Mountain access road this spring, subject to regulatory approval.
• Infill drilling at the PNL deposit starting in March 2026, with the goal of upgrading Indicated Resources to Measured, which is necessary for further mine development.
• Advancing exploration and Mines Act permits for Red Mountain and amending any required permits for PNL.
• Upgrading the water treatment plant at PNL to ensure water discharge compliance.
• Continuing the PNL mill and infrastructure under care and maintenance with the aim of reducing current costs.
• Updating the Red Mountain and Premier National Instrument 43-101 Feasibility Study in H2 2026.
• Ordering long-lead time items for the PGP mill upgrades.

Ascot reached an agreement with Sprott to waive an outstanding delivery under the third amended and restated purchase and sale agreements. In exchange for waiving deliveries and missed royalty payments of approximately US$400,000, Ascot agreed to issue Sprott 901,000 common shares at a price of CA$0.60 per share and 450,500 common share purchase warrants with an exercise price of CA$0.85, expiring on December 30, 2026. Once these settlement shares and settlement warrants are issued, Sprott will have no further claims regarding the missed deliveries and royalty payments. The agreements were also amended to extend the buyback option period to December 31, 2028.

The company said it has received approval from the TSX Venture Exchange (TSXV) to reactivate its listing, transferring from the NEX Board to the TSXV.  

The company said it applied to change its name from "Ascot Resources Ltd." to "Cambria Gold Mines Inc." and its ticker symbol from "AOT" to "CAMB," subject to TSXV approval.

'A Buying Opportunity'

According to a technical review of the stock by StockInvest.us on February 17, shares experienced a 12.31% increase on the most recent trading day, Friday, February 13, 2026, climbing from CA$1.30 to CA$1.46. Throughout the day, the stock saw a fluctuation of 22.14%, with a low of CA$1.40 and a high of CA$1.71. Over the past ten days, the stock has risen on six occasions, resulting in a 32.73% increase over the last two weeks.

The stock is currently positioned in the middle of a broad and robust upward trend in the short term, suggesting a continued increase within this trend. Based on the present short-term trend, the stock is projected to rise by 724.08% over the next three months, with a 90% likelihood of reaching a price between CA$8.47 and CA$13.38 by the end of this period.

"Several short-term signals, along with a general good trend, are positive and we conclude that the current level may hold a buying opportunity as there is a fair chance for Ascot Resources Ltd. stock to perform well in the short-term," the site concluded.

Analyst Ben Pirie of Atrium Research mentioned the company in his "Mining Monthly: January Edition" note on February 2.

"Ascot Resources Ltd. closed the second and final tranche of its private placement, bringing total gross proceeds to ~CA$175M through a combination of charity flow-through units and regular units. The financing was led by Canaccord Genuity and Raymond James."

The Catalyst: Dip In Gold May Be an Opportunity

Gold prices fell to their lowest level in over a week on Tuesday, influenced by a stronger dollar as investors monitored geopolitical developments and the Federal Reserve's monetary policy, a CNBC article reported on February 17. Spot gold decreased by 1.5% to US$4,918.65 per ounce after having dropped more than 2% earlier in the day. U.S. gold futures for April delivery declined by 2.2% to US$4,937 per ounce. The U.S. dollar index increased by 0.2% against a group of currencies, making gold priced in dollars more costly for those using other currencies.

"Traders are currently in a wait-and-see mode. ... Safe-haven demand has paused as markets await greater clarity from the U.S.–Iran talks, while expectations for the Federal Reserve's rate path could be influenced by the release of the latest FOMC minutes," said ActivTrades analyst Ricardo Evangelista. The U.S. and Iran are set to engage in indirect nuclear discussions in Geneva on Tuesday.

U.S. President Donald Trump has repeatedly warned of military action against Iran if it does not agree to a U.S. proposal, reported David Nurse for Investing.com on February 16.

In recent weeks, the U.S. has sent two significant aircraft carriers and several warships to the Middle East, maintaining high levels of tension, Nurse wrote. In response, Iran initiated a military exercise in the Strait of Hormuz this week. Despite these developments, precious metals experienced limited demand as a safe haven due to the heightened tensions. This was partly because investors remained cautious about the sector following a significant price decline since late January.

This week, attention is firmly centered on a series of forthcoming economic reports from the U.S., along with the minutes from the Federal Reserve's January meeting, scheduled for release on Wednesday. Industrial production figures are expected on Wednesday, while the PCE price index data — considered the Fed's favored measure of inflation — is set to be released on Friday. The PCE data will be scrutinized for further insights into the trajectory of inflation and interest rates.

Ownership and Share Structure¹

About 12% of the company is held by insiders and management, including the Fiore Group led by Frank Guistra. About 18.7% is held by strategic investors, about 11.6% by institutions, and the rest is retail.