Integra’s DeLamar mid-tier gold ambition: capex, NPV and design notes for mine planners
Reviewed by Joe Ashwell

First reported on MINING.com
30 Second Briefing
Integra Resources’ updated feasibility study for the DeLamar gold-silver heap-leach project in Idaho outlines a 10-year plan averaging 88,000 oz. gold and 1.6 million oz. silver per year, with 106,000 oz. gold-equivalent output at site cash costs of $1,179/oz. and AISC of $1,480/oz. The redesign shifts to two smaller heap-leach pads and two-stage crushing, cutting pre-production capex to $389 million and delivering a base-case after-tax NPV5 of $774 million, 46% IRR and 1.8-year payback at $3,000/oz. gold. Proven and probable reserves stand at nearly 120 million tonnes grading 0.33 g/t Au and 13.56 g/t Ag, with permitting under US federal rules slated to start early 2026 and first production targeted for 2028.
Technical Brief
- Redesign swaps a single large heap-leach pad for two smaller pads to ease construction and permitting.
- Crushing circuit is simplified from three-stage to two-stage, reducing plant complexity, power draw and capex.
- Base-case economics assume $3,000/oz gold and $35/oz silver; spot case uses $4,250/oz and $60/oz.
- At spot prices, after-tax NPV5 increases to $1.7 billion with IRR rising to 89%.
- Early leaching in year one is expected to yield ~7,000 oz during construction before full ramp-up.
- Years 1–5 average 119,000 oz gold-equivalent per year and ~$165 million after-tax free cash flow.
Our Take
With Integra Resources now at about C$955 million market capitalisation and targeting first gold from DeLamar in Idaho by 2028, it is moving into the same investor visibility band as names like Perpetua Resources that also feature in our recent rankings coverage, which tends to draw more generalist capital into US-focused gold developers.
The combination of a relatively modest pre-production capital of $389 million and a 10‑year mine life at DeLamar positions the project in our database as a mid-scale, buildable US gold–silver operation, which is likely to be financeable through a mix of project debt and equity without requiring a major partner if current gold and silver prices hold.
Measured and indicated silver resources of 144 million oz at DeLamar, alongside low gold grades, mean Integra’s story in Idaho is increasingly leveraged to silver price moves; in our coverage, that type of metal mix has tended to attract specialist silver investors who are more comfortable with large-tonnage, low-grade open pits in the western USA.
Prepared by collating external sources, AI-assisted tools, and Geomechanics.io’s proprietary mining database, then reviewed for technical accuracy & edited by our geotechnical team.
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