Novagold reports high-grade intercepts, wins key Alaska court ruling
Precious metals company Novagold Resources reported further high-grade drilling results from its Donlin gold project in Alaska and secured a favourable ruling from the Alaska Supreme Court.
The company said assays from the 2025 drill campaign returned significant intercepts, including 4.38 m at 26.22 g/t gold and 41.09 m at 3.06 g/t, across multiple zones. The data will feed into a bankable feasibility study that Novagold expects to begin by the first quarter of 2026.
“The 2025 drill programme continues to exceed expectations,” CEO Greg Lang said, adding that strong grades, progress on permitting and the court ruling were positioning Donlin Gold for its next stage of development.
The Alaska Supreme Court affirmed Donlin’s water rights permits and the state right-of-way lease for its proposed 508-km natural gas pipeline, upholding decisions by the Department of Natural Resources and allowing state permitting to continue. The project still faces one remaining state-level challenge on a Clean Water Act certification.
Separately, the project was formally accepted into the US federal FAST-41 programme in October, a move intended to improve coordination and predictability in the supplemental environmental review ordered by a federal court. Donlin already holds most of its state and federal permits.
The 2025 drill programme comprised infill, in-pit exploration and geotechnical drilling, totalling more than 18 000 m. Recent work has focused on resource conversion, pit wall stability studies and site investigations for the access road.