Xcite Uranium Logs 2,281 cps at Lorado, Starts Gulch Drilling
Xcite Uranium reported anomalous radioactivity of up to 2,281 cps from drilling at Lorado and kicked off a 900-metre, three-hole diamond program at its Gulch project in Saskatchewan.
Xcite Uranium Inc. (CSE: XRI) said on September 28, 2026 that it has begun a 900-metre, three-hole diamond drilling program at its Gulch uranium project in Saskatchewan and reported anomalous radioactivity of up to 2,281 counts per second from completed drilling at its Lorado uranium project.
Xcite Uranium Inc. (CSE: XRI) has put a drill rig back to work in Saskatchewan. The Vancouver-based explorer said on September 28, 2026 that it has started a 900-metre, three-hole diamond drilling program at its Gulch uranium project, and at the same time disclosed anomalous radioactivity measured at up to 2,281 counts per second from drilling already completed at its Lorado uranium project.
Both items sit at the earliest end of the exploration funnel — a scintillometer reading down a drill hole and the start of a modest hole count — but for a company at this stage they are the two things that matter most: evidence that the rock is radioactive, and a rig in the ground to chase it.
What a 2,281 cps reading actually tells you
"Counts per second" is the output of a handheld or downhole scintillometer, an instrument that registers gamma radiation. Geologists run it over core as soon as it comes out of the barrel because it is instant and cheap, and because uranium mineralisation is almost always gamma-active. A background reading in unmineralised Athabasca-region rock is low; readings in the hundreds or thousands flag something worth assaying.
What the instrument does not do is tell you grade. Counts per second are a proxy, not a measurement. The reading responds to the whole decay chain, to the geometry of the hole, to the probe used and to how close the sensor sits to the core. Two companies can report similar cps numbers from similar rock and end up with laboratory assays that differ by an order of magnitude. That is why every credible release of this kind carries the caveat that radioactivity readings are not a substitute for chemical analysis — the assay results are the number the market should wait for.
So the honest reading of 2,281 cps at Lorado is this: the drilling hit rock that is meaningfully more radioactive than surrounding material, which justifies sending samples to the lab and justifies further holes. It is not, on its own, a discovery.
Three holes, 900 metres, and why the program is small
The Gulch program is deliberately compact — three diamond drill holes for 900 metres in total. Diamond drilling recovers a continuous cylinder of rock, which is what you need for structural logging and clean assay intervals, and it is the standard tool in Saskatchewan's uranium districts. Programs of this size are scout drilling: they test a geophysical or geochemical target to see whether the concept survives contact with rock, before anyone commits to a multi-thousand-metre follow-up.
For a junior explorer, that discipline is usually a function of the treasury. Small, sequenced programs let a company generate news flow and de-risk targets without diluting shareholders to fund drilling that may only confirm a miss. The trade-off is statistical: three holes rarely settle anything. They either produce something anomalous enough to fund the next round, or they do not.
The details of both programs were set out by the company in its announcement, reported by Critical Minerals Review.
Saskatchewan remains the address of choice
There is a reason so many uranium juniors list Saskatchewan addresses on their project maps. The province hosts the highest-grade uranium deposits mined anywhere, and it comes with the infrastructure that follows decades of production: roads, camps, drill contractors, assay labs and a permitting regime that understands the commodity. For an explorer, that lowers the cost per metre and shortens the distance between a drill result and a decision.
There is a reason so many uranium juniors list Saskatchewan addresses on their project maps.
It also raises the bar. Investors who follow the district are used to seeing spectacular intercepts from the established mineralised corridors, and they discount early-stage cps readings accordingly. A junior competing for attention in Saskatchewan is competing against a very high historical benchmark, which is part of why a headline number alone rarely moves a small-cap share price for long. What tends to matter is a repeatable intersection, then a second hole that confirms it, then assays that put a grade on it.
The tape around the announcement
The news landed on a soft day for North American equities. The S&P 500 tracker (SPY) closed at $765.61, down 0.74%, against a previous close of $771.35 and a day range of $763.72 to $769.54. The Nasdaq 100 fund (QQQ) finished at $736.53, off 1.07%, and the Dow tracker (DIA) ended at $514.02, down 0.67%. Those are the last trades as of 20:00 GMT on September 28, 2026; the market was closed.
Broad-market weakness is largely irrelevant to a CSE-listed explorer's fundamentals, but it is not irrelevant to its financing window. Junior resource companies raise equity in bursts, and the willingness of retail and specialist funds to take a placement is correlated with general risk appetite. A risk-off session does not stop a drill program that is already funded; it does shape what the next raise costs.
What to watch next
- Assays from Lorado. The 2,281 cps reading has to be converted into laboratory grades and intercept widths before it means anything commercially. Turnaround from Saskatchewan labs is the gating item.
- Hole-by-hole results at Gulch. With only three holes planned, each one carries weight. Watch for whether the company reports radioactivity from Gulch on the same scintillometer basis, which would make the two projects directly comparable.
- Whether the program is extended. A decision to add metres beyond the stated 900 would be the clearest signal that the first holes justified more capital.
- Financing. Any follow-up drilling of scale would almost certainly require fresh money. The terms of that raise will say more about how the market read these results than the press release does.
For now, Xcite has done what a junior explorer is supposed to do at this point in its life: it has generated a target-grade anomaly at one project and moved a rig onto another. The verdict comes from the lab.
Key facts
- Ticker: CSE: XRI (Xcite Uranium Inc.), Vancouver, British Columbia
- Gulch program: 900 metres, 3 diamond drill holes, Saskatchewan — commenced Sept. 28, 2026
- Lorado result: Anomalous radioactivity up to 2,281 counts per second from completed drilling
- Market backdrop: S&P 500 tracker SPY closed $765.61, -0.74%, as of 20:00 GMT Sept. 28, 2026
Frequently asked questions
What does 2,281 cps mean in uranium drilling?
Counts per second is a scintillometer reading of gamma radiation from drill core. A figure of 2,281 cps indicates rock substantially more radioactive than background, which flags potential uranium mineralisation. It is a field proxy only. It does not measure grade, and laboratory assays are required before any intercept can be described in percentage U3O8 terms.
How big is Xcite Uranium's Gulch drilling program?
Xcite Uranium has commenced a three-hole diamond drilling program totalling 900 metres at the Gulch uranium project in Saskatchewan, announced on September 28, 2026. Diamond drilling recovers continuous rock core suitable for logging and assay. A program of that size is scout drilling, designed to test targets before committing to a larger follow-up campaign.
Where is Xcite Uranium listed and under what symbol?
Xcite Uranium Inc. trades on the Canadian Securities Exchange under the symbol XRI. The company is headquartered in Vancouver, British Columbia, and its announcement of the Gulch drilling start and the Lorado radioactivity results carried a Vancouver dateline of September 28, 2026.
Why do uranium explorers concentrate in Saskatchewan?
Saskatchewan hosts the world's highest-grade uranium deposits and decades of production infrastructure: roads, camps, drill contractors, assay laboratories and a permitting system experienced with the commodity. That combination lowers the cost per metre drilled and shortens the time between a drill result and a corporate decision, making it the preferred address for uranium juniors.
Do radioactivity readings predict assay grades?
Not reliably. Scintillometer counts respond to the entire radioactive decay chain, to hole geometry, to the specific instrument used and to how close the probe sits to the core. Two holes with similar cps readings can return laboratory grades that differ by an order of magnitude. Chemical assay is the only basis for reporting grade.
What should investors watch after this announcement?
Three things: laboratory assays converting the Lorado radioactivity into grades and intercept widths, hole-by-hole results from the three Gulch holes, and whether Xcite extends drilling beyond the stated 900 metres. Any substantial follow-up campaign would likely require new equity, so the terms of a future financing are also informative.
