Collective Mining Posts 5.41 Million Ounces at Apollo

Collective Mining reported a maiden mineral resource for the Apollo deposit at its 100%-owned Guayabales Project in Colombia of 37.0 Mt at 2.17 g/t gold-equivalent for 2.58 million ounces indicated, plus 48.2 Mt at 1.83 g/t for 2.83 million ounces inferred.

Collective Mining (ticker: CNL) has put its first set of resource numbers on Apollo, the discovery that anchors its 100%-owned Guayabales Project in Colombia. The estimate covers 37.0 million tonnes grading 2.17 grams per tonne gold-equivalent for 2.58 million ounces in the indicated category, and 48.2 million tonnes at 1.83 g/t gold-equivalent for 2.83 million ounces inferred.

Added together, that is roughly 5.41 million gold-equivalent ounces across both confidence categories — an illustrative sum of the two reported figures rather than a single reported total. For a deposit that only entered the drill-hole record in recent years, that is a substantial first tally, and it is the number against which every subsequent economic study at Apollo will be measured.

Gold-equivalent, or AuEq, is a convention that converts the value of several payable metals into a single gold grade using assumed prices and recoveries. It is a useful shorthand and a slippery one: the grade moves when the price assumptions move. Collective disclosed the composition, and it matters here. Gold contributes approximately 50% of the calculated AuEq grade of the indicated open-pit resource, with silver, copper and tungsten making up the balance under the stated assumptions.

Two deposits inside one resource

Apollo is being presented as two distinct mining propositions stacked on the same system, and the split is the most important structural detail in the release.

The open-pit component carries 22.5 million tonnes at 2.06 g/t AuEq for 1.49 million ounces indicated, and 25.9 million tonnes at 0.86 g/t AuEq for 0.71 million ounces inferred, at a strip ratio of 3.4:1. Strip ratio is the tonnes of waste rock that must be moved for each tonne of ore; at 3.4:1 Apollo sits in territory that open-pit engineers generally regard as workable rather than punishing, particularly at a grade above 2 g/t in the indicated shell. The company also flagged smaller conceptual pit shells that illustrate higher-grade, lower-strip scenarios — a signal that a future study may choose a tighter, richer starter pit over maximum ounces.

Beneath and beside that is the Ramp Zone, an underground resource of a different character: 6.04 million tonnes at 5.37 g/t AuEq for 1.04 million ounces inferred, and 1.29 million tonnes at 4.74 g/t AuEq for 0.20 million ounces indicated. Together those two lines represent about 1.24 million gold-equivalent ounces at grades roughly double the open-pit indicated figure — again, a sum of reported numbers rather than a reported total.

The combination is unusual and commercially useful. A high-grade underground zone can, in principle, feed a mill early and at low tonnage, while a moderate-grade pit with a manageable strip ratio provides bulk later. Whether Apollo is actually sequenced that way is a question for engineering work, not for a resource statement.

What the 40,000 metres outside the cut-off implies

Resource estimates are built on a frozen database, and everything drilled after the freeze date sits outside the model. At Apollo that overhang is large: Collective reported approximately 40,000 metres of drilling completed since the database cut-off, including assay results already released and intervals still awaiting laboratory results.

The company said growth opportunities extend beyond the current resource boundaries. That is standard language for an early-stage deposit, but the volume of post-cut-off metres gives it more weight than usual. Practically, it means the figures published now are a snapshot of a moving target, and that an update — rather than a fresh maiden estimate — is the logical next disclosure once the outstanding assays land and are modelled.

The details of the estimate were set out in the company's announcement, reported by INN Precious Metals.

Where the shares closed

Collective Mining last traded at 16.94 in its most recent session, up 1.13% from a prior close of 16.75, with a session range of 16.85 to 17.78, as of 20:00 GMT on 8 September 2026. The market was closed at that point; the figures are the most recent close rather than a live quote. The intraday high above the closing level suggests the initial reaction was stronger than what the stock held onto by the bell.

The broader tape was soft on the same day. The S&P 500 tracker closed at $765.96, down 0.55%; the Dow 30 proxy fell 1.13% to $528.03; and the Nasdaq 100 vehicle was close to flat at $718.36, off 0.08%. A gain in a single developer against three lower benchmarks is a company-specific move, which is what a maiden resource ought to produce.

The questions a resource statement does not answer

A mineral resource is a statement of what is in the ground at a stated confidence, not a statement that it can be mined at a profit. Three things separate Apollo from that conclusion.

• Economics. No capital cost, operating cost, throughput rate or mine life has been published with these figures. Those arrive with a preliminary economic assessment or scoping study, which converts tonnes and grade into a discounted cash flow.
• Metallurgy. The gold-equivalent grade assumes recoveries for four metals. Silver, copper and tungsten each behave differently in a flowsheet, and tungsten in particular is not a routine by-product credit. Test work will determine how much of that non-gold half of the AuEq grade is genuinely payable.
• Permitting and jurisdiction. Colombia has produced a run of significant gold discoveries, and it has also produced long permitting timelines. The route from resource to construction decision is the variable that most often reprices a Colombian developer, in either direction.

For investors weighing the announcement, the useful frame is category quality rather than headline ounces. Just under 58% of the indicated ounces sit in the open pit, on an illustrative reading of the reported figures, and the indicated pit grade is more than double the inferred pit grade — an unusual profile that typically reflects drilling concentrated on the best part of the system first. Inferred material cannot be used in an economic study without further drilling, so the conversion rate on that 2.83 million inferred ounces is arguably the single number that determines what Apollo becomes.

What to watch next: the outstanding assays from the post-cut-off drilling, any decision to publish a starter-pit scenario from the smaller conceptual shells, metallurgical results that firm up the silver, copper and tungsten credits, and the timing of a first economic study.

Key facts

• CNL last close: 16.94, +1.13%, as of 8 Sep 2026 20:00 GMT (market closed)
• Indicated resource: 37.0 Mt @ 2.17 g/t AuEq for 2.58 Moz AuEq
• Inferred resource: 48.2 Mt @ 1.83 g/t AuEq for 2.83 Moz AuEq
• Open-pit strip ratio: 3.4:1; gold is ~50% of indicated pit AuEq grade

Frequently asked questions

What did Collective Mining report at Apollo?

The company published a maiden mineral resource estimate for the Apollo deposit at its 100%-owned Guayabales Project. It comprises indicated resources of 37.0 million tonnes at 2.17 grams per tonne gold-equivalent for 2.58 million ounces, and inferred resources of 48.2 million tonnes at 1.83 g/t gold-equivalent for 2.83 million ounces.

How is the resource split between open pit and underground?

The open-pit portion holds 22.5 million tonnes at 2.06 g/t AuEq for 1.49 million indicated ounces and 25.9 million tonnes at 0.86 g/t AuEq for 0.71 million inferred ounces. The separate Ramp Zone underground resource holds 6.04 million tonnes at 5.37 g/t AuEq inferred for 1.04 million ounces and 1.29 million tonnes at 4.74 g/t AuEq indicated for 0.20 million ounces.

What does gold-equivalent grade actually mean here?

Gold-equivalent converts several payable metals into one gold grade using assumed prices and recoveries. At Apollo, gold contributes approximately 50% of the calculated AuEq grade of the indicated open-pit resource, with silver, copper and tungsten making up the balance. Because the calculation depends on price and recovery assumptions, the equivalent grade shifts if those assumptions change.

Why does the 3.4:1 strip ratio matter?

Strip ratio measures how many tonnes of waste rock must be removed for each tonne of ore mined. A ratio of 3.4:1 is generally considered workable for an open pit at grades above 2 grams per tonne, because waste movement is a large share of open-pit operating cost. Collective also flagged smaller conceptual pit shells with higher grades and lower strip ratios.

Is there drilling not included in these numbers?

Yes. Collective said approximately 40,000 metres of drilling has been completed since the resource database cut-off date, including assay results already reported and intervals still awaiting laboratory results. None of that material is in the current estimate, and the company said growth opportunities extend beyond the present resource boundaries.

How did the shares perform around the announcement?

Collective Mining last traded at 16.94, up 1.13% from a previous close of 16.75, with a session range of 16.85 to 17.78, as of 20:00 GMT on 8 September 2026 with the market closed. That gain came on a day when the S&P 500 tracker fell 0.55% and the Dow 30 proxy dropped 1.13%.

Sources

• Collective Mining Announces Maiden Mineral Resource for its Apollo Deposit at the Guayabales Project — INN Precious Metals

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