# New Found Gold’s revised Queensway study raises projected returns and measured resource

> A revised preliminary assessment models a phased mine and mill plan for the Newfoundland gold project, while the company cautions that no reserves are defined.

- Topic: Project and operations update
- Subjects: Critical minerals, Finance, Construction
- Event date: 2026-10-23
- First published on EPC Feed: 2026-10-25T20:55:46.165Z
- Updated: 2026-10-25T20:55:46.165Z
- Value: CAD 1,728,000,000
- Countries: Canada
- Page: https://epcfeed.com/news/new-found-gold-queensway-revised-pea-resource


New Found Gold announced a revised preliminary economic assessment (PEA) and updated mineral resource estimate for its wholly owned Queensway project in Newfoundland and Labrador on 22 October. At a base-case gold price of US$3,600 per ounce, the study models an after-tax net present value of C$1.728 billion and a 126 per cent internal rate of return. These are study outputs, not realized returns or a construction approval.

The revised estimate reports 1.920 million ounces of measured and indicated resources and 606,000 inferred ounces. The company says no mineral reserves are defined. Its preliminary, phased mine plan models 1.744 million ounces over 15 years, with C$149.8 million of initial capital, C$832.1 million of growth capital and C$970.8 million sustaining capital. These projections depend on permitting, financing, construction, operating assumptions and resource conversion; they are not guaranteed outcomes.

Pine Cove is central to Phase 1. New Found describes it as a permitted processing plant and in-pit tailings facility that is currently treating Hammerdown ore at 700 tonnes per day. Its project profile says the mill is also planned to process material from Hammerdown, Orion and Stog’er Tight over a 13-year mine life. For Queensway, the company has selected Pine Cove for offsite milling rather than a third-party toll mill, aiming to use one higher-throughput facility and its existing mill operators.

The engineering and permit status is distinct from the PEA’s production forecast. New Found says a permit amendment to convert Pine Cove to a gravity-carbon-in-leach circuit has been received, while the permit application to expand capacity to 1,400 tonnes per day is still to come. EPCM work and detailed engineering for the upgrade are underway, with Queensway Phase 1 material expected to be processed alongside Hammerdown ore from late 2027. The company’s anticipated first Queensway deliveries in Q4 2027 therefore depend on both mine development and the separate mill upgrade.

The study’s projected 15-year output is staged: Phase 1 is an open-pit operation feeding Pine Cove, while the later phases add underground production and onsite milling. The company’s release gives modeled average annual production of 116,000 ounces and a peak of 190,000 ounces in 2032. These are PEA estimates based on the study case, not production guidance from an operating Queensway mine.

## Sources

1. [New Found Gold Announces Queensway Gold Project Revised PEA and Updated MRE: After-Tax NPV Increases to $1.7 B with 126% IRR; Measured and Indicated Mineral Resource Increases by 38%](https://newfoundgold.ca/new-found-gold-announces-queensway-gold-project-revised-pea-and-updated-mre/). Company release, New Found Gold Corp., Published 2026-10-23, Read 2026-10-25.
2. [Pine Cove Mill](https://newfoundgold.ca/projects/pine-cove/). Reference, New Found Gold Corp., Read 2026-10-25.