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DPM Metals’ high-grade discoveries at Chelopech could add long-term exploration potential, but the company has not said they will boost production in 2028. Its February 2026 mine plan lists 2.2 million tonnes of ore processed that year and describes average production of about 160,000 gold-equivalent ounces annually through a reserve-based plan extending to 2036. The plan does not attribute a 2028 production increase to either discovery.
What did Dundee Precious Metals discover at Chelopech?
Dundee Precious Metals now operates as DPM Metals. It has reported two distinct exploration targets in the Chelopech area: Wedge Zone Deep (WZD), inside the Chelopech mine concession, and Brevene South Porphyry (BSP), on the adjacent Brevene exploration licence. Both contain reported gold-copper mineralization, but they are at different stages of exploration and neither is established as a producing mine area.
| Target | Location and style | Reported results | Current stage in the cited updates |
|---|---|---|---|
| Wedge Zone Deep | Inside the Chelopech concession, about 250 m below existing mine infrastructure; gold-copper-silver prospect. | DPM reported 58 m at 15.28 g/t AuEq and 81 m at 8.05 g/t AuEq in May 2026. | Further drilling planned through 2026; DPM targeted an initial mineral resource estimate by year-end 2026. Preliminary laboratory-scale flotation testwork was reported. |
| Brevene South Porphyry | Southeastern part of the Brevene exploration licence, contiguous with the Chelopech concession; gold-copper porphyry target. | DPM reported 716.60 m at 3.30 g/t AuEq in hole EX_BRES_555_02A in September 2026. Its June discovery release reported 713 m at 2.52 g/t AuEq, including 398 m at 3.00 g/t AuEq, in EX_BRESPO_03. | Delineation drilling was continuing, with up to 15,000 additional metres planned through year-end 2026 and work expected to continue in 2027; regulatory steps to seek a mining concession remained in progress. |
These are company-reported drill intervals, not estimates of mineable tonnage. The figures describe lengths along drill holes; they do not by themselves establish the width or shape of a deposit.
What is the Wedge Zone Deep discovery?
In its May 20, 2026 update, DPM described WZD as a mineralized zone roughly 170 m along strike, 130 m wide and 300 m in vertical extent, about 250 m below existing mine infrastructure. The company said the target remained open along strike and down-dip. Its reported intercepts included 58 m at 15.28 g/t AuEq and 81 m at 8.05 g/t AuEq. These lengths are downhole intervals; the release’s dimensions describe the interpreted zone, not a reserve or mine design. DPM Metals’ Wedge Zone Deep update
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DPM said preliminary laboratory-scale metallurgical testwork indicated the mineralization was amenable to flotation using the existing Chelopech flowsheet. It also planned more drilling in 2026 and targeted an initial resource estimate by year-end. A resource estimate, if completed, would be a new technical milestone; it would not automatically convert the discovery into a reserve or scheduled production.
How high-grade are the Brevene South drilling results?
DPM announced BSP on June 3, 2026, reporting 713 m grading 2.52 g/t AuEq, including 398 m grading 3.00 g/t AuEq, in the initial hole EX_BRESPO_03. In its September 20 update, the company said that hole had been extended to 1,054 m grading 2.49 g/t AuEq. The same update reported 716.60 m at 3.30 g/t AuEq in hole EX_BRES_555_02A and said the porphyry system remained open north, south, west and at depth. These are long downhole intervals, not true-width measurements. DPM Metals’ Brevene South Porphyry updates
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For the June results, DPM said it calculated AuEq as Au g/t + 1.05 × Cu%, using stated metal prices and assumed 90% recoveries for both gold and copper. The recovery assumptions were based on testwork from other porphyry showings in the Chelopech camp. AuEq is therefore a company-calculated equivalent grade, not a direct gold assay; the September update’s figure should be read as reported by DPM rather than treated as an independently verified gold grade.
DPM planned up to 15,000 additional metres of drilling through the end of 2026, with delineation continuing in 2027. The September release also described regulatory work to convert the exploration licence to a mining concession. The listed process includes recognition of a Commercial Discovery, a concession application, environmental and other permitting, and a concession contract, subject to review and approval. Brevene has not been described in that update as holding a granted mining concession. DPM Metals’ September 2026 Brevene update
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The available company disclosures do not establish a discovery-driven production increase in 2028. DPM’s February 5, 2026 life-of-mine table lists 2.2 million tonnes of ore processed in 2028. That is a throughput figure, not a production-growth forecast, and the plan does not assign that tonnage or any 2028 output to WZD or BSP. DPM described average production of approximately 160,000 gold-equivalent ounces per year under its reserve-based plan extending to 2036. DPM Metals’ February 2026 life-of-mine plan
For operating context, DPM’s Chelopech mine page lists 2025 production of 174,434 ounces of gold and 30 million pounds of copper, and 2026 guidance of 150,000–170,000 ounces of gold and 29–34 million pounds of copper. Those figures refer to the mine’s operating results and guidance, not a forecast contribution from the new exploration targets. DPM Metals’ Chelopech mine page
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.Are the new discoveries already included in Chelopech’s reserves?
No. DPM’s February 2026 reserve update reported 23.2 million tonnes of Proven and Probable Mineral Reserves containing 1.6 million ounces of gold and 308 million pounds of copper, with an effective date of May 31, 2025. The company said this reserve base supports a mine life to 2036. The release did not include WZD or the prospectivity of Brevene in that estimate. DPM Metals’ February 2026 reserve and mine-plan release
Drill results, mineral resources, mineral reserves and mine production are different stages. An intercept identifies mineralization where a hole was drilled. A resource estimate interprets the scale and characteristics of mineralization; a reserve requires additional technical and economic work. DPM’s February release states that resources that are not reserves do not have demonstrated economic viability, and inferred resources do not contribute to financial performance in its estimate and are treated as waste. Accordingly, neither the reported grades nor the exploration targets can be translated directly into recoverable metal, revenue or scheduled output.
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What could turn exploration potential into mine growth?
For WZD, the next cited steps were more drilling and a targeted initial resource estimate by year-end 2026. For BSP, DPM described ongoing delineation drilling into 2027 and a regulatory process toward a concession. Even successful exploration and permitting would not, by themselves, specify when or how much material could be mined; the cited disclosures do not provide a production schedule for either target.
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