Timing is everything in mining. Honestly, if you’d looked at the Madsen Mine a few years ago, you might have seen a "cursed" asset. The previous owners, Pure Gold, spent hundreds of millions of dollars only to go belly-up in 2022. But fast forward to right now—January 2026—and West Red Lake Gold Mines (TSXV: WRLG) just did the one thing the skeptics said was impossible. They officially declared commercial production at Madsen on January 1, 2026.
The stock has been on a tear. Up over 83% year-over-year. It’s sitting near its 52-week high of $1.18. If you’re holding west red lake gold stock, you’re likely feeling pretty good about that $46 million cash cushion they reported ending 2025 with. But there is a lot of nuance here that the surface-level charts miss.
Why the "Pure Gold" Failure Doesn't Matter Anymore
Most investors get spooked by "restarted" mines. They think, if the last guy couldn't make it work with a brand-new mill, why can this team? Basically, the old team tried to mine it like a massive, bulk-tonnage project. Madsen isn't that. It’s a "jewelry box." The gold is concentrated in high-grade pockets that require surgical precision, not a sledgehammer. Shane Williams, the CEO who came over from Skeena Resources, basically threw out the old playbook.
He slowed everything down.
Instead of rushing to fill the mill with low-grade trash, the team focused on "definition drilling." They shrank the drill spacing from 20 meters down to just 7 meters. They wanted to know exactly where the gold was before they sent a single scoop in. It worked. In December 2025, the mill was hitting 94.6% recoveries. That’s massive. They produced 3,215 ounces in that month alone, mostly from the South Austin zone.
🔗 Read more: Why is Gas Prices Low: What Most People Get Wrong
The Numbers You Need to Know
Let’s talk money. In 2025, during the "ramp-up" phase, the mine poured 20,000 ounces. They sold that gold for an average of US$3,650 per ounce. Total revenue? US$73 million.
Now, look at the Q4 2025 stats specifically:
- Gold Poured: 7,200 ounces.
- Average Sale Price: US$4,150 per ounce (gold has been absolutely screaming lately).
- Revenue for the Quarter: US$30 million.
The mill is currently running at about 689 tonnes per day. That’s 86% of its 800-tonne-per-day permitted capacity. Management says they’ll hit that full 800-tonne mark by mid-2026. When you're pulling ore that's grading over 6 grams per tonne (g/t), the math starts looking very attractive for a company with a market cap still under $500 million.
✨ Don't miss: Price of PepsiCo Stock Today: What Most People Get Wrong
The "Hub and Spoke" Secret Weapon
If you think west red lake gold stock is just about one mine, you're missing the bigger picture. They have this second property called Rowan.
Rowan is high-grade. Very high-grade.
The strategy is a "hub-and-spoke" model. They have the 800-tonne-per-day mill at Madsen. They can truck high-grade ore from Rowan (and other satellite deposits like Fork) straight to that mill. This avoids the $100M+ cost of building a second plant.
Gwen Preston, their VP of Communications (who many know from her days as a top-tier mining analyst), has been vocal about this. They are finishing up drilling at Rowan now. The goal is a joint Madsen-Rowan pre-feasibility study (PFS) later in 2026. This isn't just a single-mine operation anymore; it's a regional play in one of the safest mining jurisdictions on the planet: Ontario, Canada.
Risks: It’s Not All Gold and Roses
Look, mining is hard. Things break.
One of the big hurdles they faced recently was waste rock. For a while, they were trucking waste rock to the surface, which clogged up the tunnels and slowed down the ore trucks. They finally fixed this by identifying old underground "voids" to dump the waste. It sounds simple, but it increased their ore production by 24% in a single month.
Also, we have to talk about dilution. Small miners often "ATM" their shareholders (At-The-Market offerings) to keep the lights on. While WRLG has $46 million in the bank and is now generating real revenue, they still have exploration targets that require cash. Investors should watch the Q1 2026 guidance closely to see if the mine is fully self-sustaining yet.
Key Factors for 2026
- The Shaft: They are getting the main shaft operational right now. This is a game-changer. It allows them to move more ore faster than just using trucks on the ramp.
- The 4447 Zone: This is the "high-grade" area they're mining in Q1. If the grades here stay above 6 g/t, the cash flow will be significant.
- Gold Prices: Gold is hovering near record highs ($4,600/oz in some markets). WRLG is a "leveraged" play. If gold goes up 10%, a producer's profit might go up 30-40% because their costs are fixed.
Actionable Insights for Investors
If you're looking at west red lake gold stock, you aren't buying a "lottery ticket" explorer anymore. You're buying a junior producer.
- Watch the Q1 Guidance: Management promised to release 2026 production targets soon. This will tell you if they plan to produce 50,000 ounces or 70,000 ounces this year.
- Monitor the "Fork" Deposit: They just started a 3,000-meter drill program there. If Fork turns out to be a viable "satellite" for the Madsen mill, the life of the mine gets much longer.
- Check the US Ticker: If you're in the States, it trades as WRLGF on the OTCQX. It’s the same company, just different ticker.
The transition from "developer" to "producer" is where the biggest valuation reratings usually happen. WRLG just crossed that bridge on New Year's Day. Now, the story is about execution and whether they can keep those "jewelry box" grades coming through the mill.
💡 You might also like: Law Office of Kayla J Bumpus Atlanta Photos: What Most People Get Wrong
Next Steps:
- Review the January 12, 2026, press release regarding commercial production milestones to verify mill throughput consistency.
- Check the latest SEDAR+ filings for the Rowan property to see how the "hub-and-spoke" resource expansion is progressing ahead of the 2026 PFS.
- Calculate the potential free cash flow based on an 800 tpd throughput at 6 g/t Au to see if the current $1.17 share price reflects the looming production ramp-up.