Sunshine Silver Mining & Refining has expanded its consolidated mineral rights in Idaho’s Silver Valley by around 14,100 acres, representing a 60% increase and bringing its total holdings to around 38,000 acres.
The company has also announced the start of a multi-year, district-scale exploration programme across the enlarged land position.
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According to Sunshine Silver, the expanded territory provides further opportunities for exploration in the Silver Valley, said to be the most prolific silver district in US history.
The Silver Valley has a record of high-grade silver output, but large areas within Sunshine’s current land position have reportedly undergone little modern exploration.
This is expected to present an opportunity to use updated geophysical, geochemical and drilling techniques over a wider area.
The planned exploration programme involves approximately 45,000m of surface drilling.
Initial drilling will target three areas: East Sunshine, situated east of the Sunshine Mine and along the known mineralised trend, and Rock Creek and Pine Creek, both identified during a reconnaissance field programme in 2025.
These locations offer several opportunities to explore for new mineralisation outside the existing Sunshine Mine resource.
Surface drilling in these areas is scheduled to begin in the fourth quarter of 2026 (Q4 2026).
The field programme conducted by Sunshine Silver in 2025 included 322 man-days of fieldwork, and the collection of 128 rock samples and 2,935 soil samples.
This work identified multiple drill-ready targets, which will be tested in the coming drilling campaign.
In July 2026, the company reported results from the Upper Country as part of its ongoing 50,000m underground in-fill drilling programme at the Sunshine Mine.
This initiative aims to upgrade the mineral resource classification for a planned 2027 feasibility study and assess further potential near the mine.
Drilling activity has since shifted to downshaft areas, with completion expected in October. The results from downshaft drilling are anticipated during Q4 2026.
Sunshine Silver CEO Heather White said: “The Sunshine Mine is already an extraordinary, world-renowned asset. The possibility that it may be only one part of our company’s much larger story is very exciting.
“We now control some 38,000 acres in one of the most important silver-yielding districts in America. We have identified three drill-ready target areas, extending from the Sunshine Mine across our broader land package.”
In September 2025, Sunshine Silver announced the closure of a $75m equity financing round, marking a significant step towards establishing a US critical minerals hub.
