Pan American Silver Provides Exploration Update for its Timmins Operations; Advances Plans for Potential Production Growth and Mine Life Extension
Press Release
June 1, 2026
VANCOUVER, British Columbia–– Pan American Silver Corp. (NYSE: PAAS) (TSX: PAAS) (“Pan American” or the “Company”) is pleased to provide an update on an extensive exploration program conducted at its Timmins operation in Ontario, Canada, which has identified new mineral resources at the Bell Creek mine and satellite deposits. Based on the success of this program, Pan American is advancing a conceptual plan for a phased development of these new mineral resources to support potential production growth and extension of mine life at Timmins (the “Timmins Camp Project”).
Pan American Timmins Property Map
The first phase of the Timmins Camp Project has commenced following approval by the Company’s board of directors for a 625m shaft extension project at the Bell Creek mine (the “Bell Creek Shaft Extension Project”), an 814m drift to access the Vogel deposit, and a 1.3km exploration drift to access the Samson deposit, with a total investment of approximately $146 million. The initial spending on the first phase was included in the Company’s 2026 guidance of $40 to $43 million of project capital at Timmins, and there are no changes to the Company’s 2026 annual guidance.
“With significant installed processing capacity and infrastructure already in place, projects such as the Bell Creek shaft extension and the Vogel and Samson access drifts allow the development of new mineral resources and position Timmins for future production growth and extended mine life,” said Michael Steinmann, President and CEO of Pan American. “The potential phased development and integration of the satellite deposits would transform Timmins into a long-life Canadian production platform.”
The Timmins operations are currently comprised of two underground gold mines approximately 34km apart, the Timmins West mine and the Bell Creek mine, which both supply ore to the Bell Creek processing plant. The plant has a design capacity of approximately 5,600 tonnes per day (“tpd”) with current throughput of approximately 4,400tpd. The Timmins Camp Project is aimed at increasing infrastructure utilization to support sustained production from the Timmins operations over time. Pan American is advancing the Timmins Camp Project through further engineering studies, mine planning, metallurgical evaluations, underground development, and mineral resource conversion programs.
In 2026, the Company is planning to drill a total of approximately 118,000m at Timmins focused on near-mine exploration and mineral resource conversion. Pan American anticipates publishing an update to the estimated mineral reserves and mineral resources for Timmins, Vogel and Gold River, as of June 30, 2026, with the corporate-wide update in the third quarter of 2026.
Bell Creek Mine Exploration Highlights
The Bell Creek mine and mill complex is located approximately 14km northeast of the city of Timmins, Ontario.
The current mineral reserves at the Bell Creek mine extend to a depth of approximately 1,925m below surface (1925 Level). A 48,000m exploration drill program began in 2023 to define mineral resources between the 1925 Level and 2,600m below surface (2600 Level). Over the past 18 months, 16,814m of drilling has been completed, targeting the deep projection of the mineralized veins. Results indicate two mineralized shoots approximately 100m apart and splitting the main mineralized body into eastern and western extents. The drill results demonstrate strong continuity of the mineralization to the 2600 Level.
The following reflects the Bell Creek drill highlights for the period January 2025 to April 2026. All intercepts are reported as estimated true widths. Please refer to the “Drill Results Highlights” Tables beginning on page four of this news release for additional details.
- 18.6m at 3.06 g/t Au and 9.8m at 5.0 g/t Au (drill hole BC1495-5934B-EX)
- 9.4m at 3.69 g/t Au and 5.9m at 5.32 g/t Au (drill hole BC1495-5934D)
- 7.4m at 2.88 g/t Au and 3.5m at 8.49 g/t Au (drill hole BC1495-5934C-LR)
- 6.2m at 3.50 g/t Au and 4.0m at 5.65 g/t Au (drill hole BC1495-5931C)
Bell Creek Shaft Extension Project
The Bell Creek Shaft Extension Project is designed to deepen the existing shaft by 625m, from 1080m (below surface) to 1705m below surface, enabling access to mine deeper mineralization identified through recent exploration drilling. On-site activities are anticipated to commence in July 2026 and the Bell Creek Shaft Extension Project is expected to require approximately three years to complete, with commissioning in the first half of 2029.
The deepening of the Bell Creek mine shaft is expected to extend the mine life at Bell Creek and position the operation as the long-term infrastructure anchor to support development of additional mineral sources and a district-scale integrated mine plan over the coming years. In addition, the Bell Creek Shaft Extension Project is anticipated to: provide cost efficiencies through reduced haulage distances and requirements for trucking fleet and ventilation; and reduce annual CO2 emissions associated with deeper mining operations.
Vogel Project
The Vogel Project is located approximately 1.5km east-southeast of the Bell Creek mine complex and was previously assessed as an open pit with an underground mine below the pit. In 2025, the Vogel Project was remodeled and assessed solely for underground mining potential.
Drilling between October 2025 and March 2026, comprised of 28 holes totaling 12,429m, tested mineralization along strike and at depth beyond the limits of the current geological model and mineral resources. The drill results identified down-dip extension, as well as areas of thicker and higher-grade gold mineralization farther down-dip than previously modeled, significantly expanding the mineralized zone. Drilling is ongoing and has transitioned to infill drilling of the inferred mineral resources.
To support future development and accelerate infill drilling of the deeper part of the deposit, an 814m underground drift from the Bell Creek 610 Level commenced in April 2026. Underground drilling is planned for the second half of 2026, following up on the strong drill intercepts from the 2025 and 2026 programs.
The following reflects Vogel drill highlights for the period from December 2025 to April 2026. All intercepts are reported as estimated true widths. Please refer to the “Drill Result Highlights” Tables beginning on page four of this news release for additional details.
IBF4
