News

Meeka Metals Limited (ASX: MEK) has announced further high-grade gold intersections at its St Anne’s deposit, part of the Murchison Gold Project, with drilling confirming significant mineralisation open to the north.

Key Highlights:

• Outstanding Gold Assays:
  • 16m @ 9.45g/t Au from 45m, including 7m @ 19.90g/t Au (24SAGC043)
  • 17m @ 7.27g/t Au from 48m, including 6m @ 18.93g/t Au (24SAGC067)
  • 23m @ 2.30g/t Au from 34m, including 2m @ 13.11g/t Au (24SAGC070)
  • 8m @ 5.65g/t Au from 65m, including 2m @ 18.55g/t Au (24SAGC080)
• New High-Grade Zone Identified:
  • Drilling to the north has intersected 8m @ 11.83g/t Au from 51m, including 6m @ 15.28g/t Au, suggesting the mineralisation remains open.
• Turnberry Deposit Continues to Deliver:
  • 3m @ 31.60g/t Au from 99m (24TBRC002)
  • 29m @ 2.09g/t Au from 102m, including 1m @ 37.20g/t Au (24TBGC037)

Path to Production

Meeka Metals is rapidly advancing its Murchison Gold Project, with open-pit mining set to commence in March 2025 and first ore delivery to the processing plant expected in April. The 20km haul road and process plant upgrades are well underway, with commissioning planned for June.

Meeka’s Managing Director, Tim Davidson, commented:
"The latest assays confirm St Anne’s as a high-grade open-pit opportunity and highlight the expansion potential. We are on track to commence mining in March, marking a major step toward first gold production."

With ongoing exploration success and a clear production timeline, Meeka Metals is positioning itself as a significant gold producer in Western Australia.

E79 Gold Mines Limited (ASX: E79) has identified multiple high-priority drill targets west of Kalgoorlie Gold Mining Limited’s (ASX: KAL) emerging Lighthorse gold discovery in Western Australia. The company’s latest high-resolution magnetic data review has highlighted significant structural complexity within its tenements, presenting exciting exploration potential.

Key Highlights:

• New Drill Targets: Geophysical data reveals structural offsets, demagnetised zones, and fault networks, indicating possible gold-hosting structures west of the Lighthorse discovery.
• Proximity to Major Discovery: Recent drilling by KalGold, just 50–550m from E79’s tenure, returned strong gold intercepts, including 17m at 4.81 g/t Au and 8m at 2.29 g/t Au.
• Upcoming Drilling Program: An air-core drill rig has been booked, with first-pass drilling scheduled to commence within the next few weeks.

E79 Gold CEO, Ned Summerhayes, stated:
"Given KalGold’s promising Lighthorse discovery so close to our boundary, we’ve accelerated exploration. Our high-resolution magnetics have pinpointed several compelling targets, and we’re eager to start drilling shortly."

Strategic Positioning in a Prolific Gold Belt

E79 Gold’s Laverton South Gold Projects, covering 272km², lie within the Laverton Tectonic Zone—home to 30Moz of historic gold production. This region hosts world-class deposits such as Granny Smith (5.8Moz), Sunrise Dam (10.3Moz), and Wallaby (11.8Moz).

The company is also progressing exploration at its Mountain Home IOCG Copper-Gold Project in the Northern Territory, with rock chip assays up to 45.5% copper and 11.75 g/t gold. Drilling at Mountain Home is planned for the upcoming dry season.

With strong gold targets identified and drilling set to commence soon, E79 Gold is positioning itself for potential new discoveries in one of Australia’s most prospective gold belts.

Matsa Resources Limited (ASX:MAT) has announced the successful completion of its Feasibility Study (FS) for the Devon Pit Gold Mine, delivering a pre-tax cash flow surplus of A$59.8 million at a gold price of A$4,250 per ounce. The study confirms a robust financial outlook for the project, which is expected to commence production by late Q1 or early Q2 2025 under a planned profit-share arrangement (Matsa 80% / Contractor 20%).

Key Highlights:

• Production Outlook: 340,000 tonnes at 4.6 g/t gold, producing 50,000 ounces of contained gold.
• Strong Margins: Projected all-in costs of A$2,829/oz, with potential free cash flow increasing to A$73.4M at a gold price of A$4,550/oz.
• Minimal Capex: Low upfront capital requirement of A$3 million, with key infrastructure such as haul roads and accommodation already in place.
• Operational Readiness: The project is fully permitted and mine-ready, with mining, processing, and financing arrangements in the final stages.

Matsa’s Executive Chairman, Paul Poli, expressed confidence in the project’s potential:
"The Feasibility Study confirms Devon as a high-margin gold project. With the rising gold price and a mine-ready operation, this presents a compelling value opportunity for our shareholders. Devon’s projected returns are significantly higher than our current market capitalisation, reinforcing Matsa’s position as undervalued in the market."

The company is also conducting extensional drilling to the north of the Devon Pit, which could further enhance the mine’s resource base and increase gold production. Mining will commence with a 100-tonne excavator and 85-tonne rigid haul trucks, scaling up operations as production ramps up.

Matsa is in advanced discussions to secure third-party processing arrangements, either through a toll-treatment agreement or an ore purchase contract. A financing facility of up to A$15 million is also being negotiated to support the early stages of development.

With a high-grade resource of 488,000 tonnes at 5.2 g/t for 82,000 ounces of gold, the Devon Pit Gold Mine is set to become a key contributor to Matsa’s Lake Carey Gold Project.

Pantoro Limited (ASX:PNR) has reported outstanding initial drilling results from its Southern Mainfield growth program at the Norseman Gold Project, confirming high-grade gold mineralisation across multiple ore-bearing structures.

Drilling in the Butterfly area has delivered exceptional intersections, including a bonanza gold hit of 3 metres at 485.43 g/t Au, with 1 metre at a staggering 1,420 g/t Au in the Mararoa Reef. Additional strong results include:

• Mararoa Reef: 3m @ 26.63 g/t Au (inc. 1m @ 68.4 g/t Au), 5m @ 8.61 g/t Au
• NW Structures: 2m @ 15.44 g/t Au, 2m @ 9.49 g/t Au
• Royal Standard Reef: 1m @ 12.6 g/t Au, 1.7m @ 18.66 g/t Au, 0.4m @ 37.4 g/t Au
• Pascoe’s Cross Link: 2m @ 41.6 g/t Au (inc. 1m @ 82.5 g/t Au)

With over 5,000 metres of diamond drilling completed, Pantoro’s program is progressing rapidly, targeting at least two additional high-grade underground mines in the medium term.

Pantoro Managing Director Paul Cmrlec highlighted the significance of these results, stating:
"These initial results mark an important step in advancing our understanding and development of multiple structures in the Southern Mainfield. The proximity of these structures to existing infrastructure provides a clear pathway for future underground development and production."

Drilling remains ongoing across all key lodes, with approximately 60% of the first-phase drilling program now complete. Pantoro continues to expand its underground mining potential at Norseman, reinforcing its long-term vision for the project.

Greatland Gold has celebrated its first gold pour at the Telfer gold-copper mine, a pivotal achievement in the company’s journey.

The milestone occurred on December 4, shortly after Greatland finalized its acquisition of Telfer and the adjacent Havieron project from Newmont.

Before the acquisition, operations at Telfer were scaled back to a single 10-million-tonne-per-annum (Mtpa) processing train to preserve ore for Greatland’s use post-acquisition. Following the transaction, the company resumed dual-train processing, significantly enhancing capacity.

Greatland has inherited between 30.5 and 34.5 million tonnes of stockpiles, including approximately 11.5 million tonnes of high-grade ore. Mining continues in the west dome open pit and the main dome underground areas.

“Greatland’s first-ever gold production at Telfer is a remarkable milestone and a testament to our team’s efforts,” said managing director Shaun Day. “Resuming dual-train processing operations in line with our Telfer mine plan further underscores our operational readiness.

“With a robust gold price and significant ore stockpiles, this is an outstanding time to own the Telfer mine.”

To manage price risks, Greatland has implemented a 150,000-ounce gold hedging program, securing downside protection while maintaining upside exposure to gold price movements. The program includes quarterly gold-put options with an average strike price of $3,905.17 per ounce, spread across 2025 as follows:

• March 31, 2025: 33,996 ounces
• June 30, 2025: 46,302 ounces
• September 30, 2025: 38,910 ounces
• December 31, 2025: 30,792 ounces

Telfer is projected to produce approximately 426,000 ounces of gold equivalent at an all-in sustaining cost (AISC) of $US1,454/oz ($2,265) over a 15-month period starting from late September, when Newmont restarted processing operations.

The 11.5 million tonnes of run-of-mine (ROM) high-grade stockpiles already mined will reduce costs and de-risk Greatland’s initial production phase at Telfer. An additional 20 million tonnes of low-grade stockpiles remain available for future processing.

Horizon Minerals has reached a key operational milestone with the first ore delivery from its Boorara gold project in Western Australia, set to be processed at Norton Gold Fields’ nearby Paddington mill this month.

The initial stockpile of 54,380 tonnes of ore has undergone assaying and metallurgical test work, with an expected grade of 0.8 grams per tonne (g/t) of gold. Horizon anticipates that grades will improve as mining progresses in the coming months.

“It’s very satisfying to transport our first ore from Boorara, with first revenue expected shortly,” said Horizon managing director and CEO Grant Haywood. “This achievement comes despite challenges such as the tight labour market during the ramp-up phase and some inclement weather. Our team is now fully staffed and making excellent progress, and we look forward to steady gold production from Boorara.”

Mining at Boorara is planned to continue for 14 months, with processing extending over a 19-month period. The company expects to pour its first gold at Paddington mill in October under an ore sale agreement, which is projected to generate $30 million in free cash flow at a gold price of $3,600 per ounce.

The agreement specifies that within five days of delivering the first ore to the Paddington run-of-mine pad, Paddington will pay Horizon 50% of the gross revenue, less estimated processing costs based on the determined grade of each stockpile. After the full treatment of the stockpile, a final payment will be made to Horizon based on the determined grade, moisture, and metallurgical recovery, less agreed processing costs.

Horizon approved Boorara’s development in late July, which includes mining four open pits containing 1.24 million tonnes of ore at 1.24 g/t gold, yielding an estimated 49,500 ounces.

In addition to Boorara, Horizon’s Phillips Find project is progressing well and is expected to deliver its first ore to the Greenfields mill in February 2025.

Earlier this year, Horizon announced plans to merge with Poseidon Nickel to create a new mid-cap gold producer, targeting an annual production of 100,000 ounces in Western Australia.

Black Cat Syndicate has achieved significant milestones in the refurbishment of its Paulsens gold mine in Western Australia, targeting its first gold pour in December 2024.

Key Achievements:

• Commissioning Progress:

  • The dry commissioning of the crushing circuit is complete, with wet commissioning now underway to build a low-grade crushed stockpile.
  • Installation of critical infrastructure, including Knelson gravity concentrators, a 415-volt switchboard, and 880 KVA generators, has been finalized, marking key milestones in the refurbishment timeline.

• Infrastructure Upgrades:

  • Completion of a new oxygen storage tank and the connection of CIP circuit pipework.
  • Repairs and upgrades to the power station’s fuel systems and the tailings storage facility (TSF) have been finalized, ensuring readiness for operations.

“All refurbishment activities have been completed on time, within budget, and with no safety incidents,” said Black Cat managing director Gareth Solly. “Our focus now shifts to finalizing dry and wet commissioning as we approach first gold later this month.”

Path to Production

The commissioning process will scale up from low-grade material to high-grade ore, culminating in the first gold pour. Concurrently, selective mining and preparations for a fully mechanized fleet remain on schedule.

Future Plans

Black Cat is preparing for an accelerated exploration program in 2025, with plans to expand near-mine drilling at Paulsens and exploration at Kal East. This strategy aligns with the company’s vision for long-term growth and enhanced production.

“Refurbishment at Paulsens marks a significant step forward, and we are excited about the growth opportunities ahead,” Solly said. “Our comprehensive plan positions Black Cat Syndicate for a strong operational and exploration performance in 2025 and beyond.”

Regis Resources has reported significant progress in expanding gold mineralization across its portfolio, driven by extensive exploration efforts over the past six months. The company completed 81,674 meters of drilling, uncovering promising opportunities across its priority projects.

“The ongoing success of Regis lies in our ability to explore our vast landholdings and identify extensions to existing mineralization,” said managing director and CEO Jim Beyer. “These results demonstrate our continued success, with impressive drilling outcomes across several key targets.”

Key Exploration Highlights:

• Duketon Operations:
  Regis continues to systematically explore its large landholding at Duketon, focusing on both underground and open-pit opportunities.

  • Garden Well and Rosemont: Infill drilling has identified extensions to known mineralization, supporting near-term underground growth.
  • Ben Hur: An underground exploration target has been defined, potentially making it Duketon’s fourth underground mine.
  • Tooheys Well: Drilling has revealed down-plunge extensions, with additional drilling planned.
  • Kintyre and Gloster: Exploration has uncovered further open-pit potential.

• Tropicana Operations:
  Near-mine and regional exploration activities have delivered encouraging results. At Boston Shaker, drilling has intersected extensions of known underground mineralization, further supporting growth potential.

Commitment to Growth

Beyer expressed pride in the company’s exploration achievements and reaffirmed Regis’ commitment to ongoing investment in exploration.

“We are incredibly proud of the progress our exploration team continues to make,” Beyer said. “Their efforts have built a robust pipeline of exploration targets at various stages of maturity. We will continue to systematically evaluate and test these targets to create long-term value for our shareholders.”

Regis’ consistent success in exploration underscores its ability to drive growth and unlock the potential of its extensive gold assets.

Northern Star Resources is set to acquire De Grey Mining, the owner of the globally significant Hemi gold project in Western Australia, in a deal valued at approximately $5 billion.

Under the agreement, De Grey shareholders will receive 0.119 new Northern Star shares for each De Grey share held, equating to an implied offer price of $2.08 per share. This represents a 37.1% premium to De Grey’s last closing price of $1.52 on November 29.

A Transformational Acquisition

De Grey’s flagship Hemi gold project, located in WA’s Pilbara region, boasts a mineral resource estimate of 264 million tonnes at 1.3g/t gold for 11.2 million ounces (Moz). The project is forecast to produce 530,000 ounces per year over its first decade, offering Northern Star access to a low-cost, long-life, and large-scale gold development opportunity.

“This acquisition aligns perfectly with our strategy and enhances our purpose of delivering superior returns to shareholders,” said Stuart Tonkin, Northern Star managing director and CEO. “Hemi will complement our portfolio with its Tier 1 jurisdiction, scale, and cost profile, reinforcing Northern Star’s position as a global gold leader.”

Combined Entity and Shareholder Benefits

Upon completion of the scheme, Northern Star shareholders will own 80.1% of the combined entity, with De Grey shareholders holding the remaining 19.9%. The De Grey board has unanimously recommended the deal, citing its value and long-term benefits.

“This transaction provides De Grey shareholders an upfront premium while retaining exposure to Hemi’s future growth and Northern Star’s broader portfolio,” said Glenn Jardine, De Grey’s managing director. “The integration of our talented team into Northern Star will ensure Hemi continues its trajectory towards becoming a world-class gold mine.”

Expanding Northern Star’s Growth Path

Northern Star’s existing portfolio includes production centres in Kalgoorlie and Yandal in WA, and the Pogo mine in Alaska. The addition of Hemi will establish Northern Star’s third production centre in WA and its fourth globally, increasing its growth pathway to approximately 2.5 million ounces annually.

Australian Gold Sector Consolidation

This acquisition marks another major milestone in 2024’s wave of mergers and acquisitions in Australia’s gold sector. Other notable deals include the Red 5–Silver Lake Resources merger, Westgold Resources’ acquisition of Karora Resources, and Greatland Gold’s partnership with Newmont.

“This is a transformational step for both companies, combining exceptional assets and expertise,” said Jardine. “Alongside my fellow directors, I wholeheartedly support this transaction and look forward to the combined group’s bright future

Black Cat Syndicate has reported significant progress at its Paulsens gold operation in Western Australia, with underground mining activities advancing ahead of schedule. The company’s high-grade stockpile strategy continues to yield encouraging results, positioning the operation for accelerated growth.

“Mining activities at Paulsens are gaining momentum, with jumbo development now underway ahead of schedule alongside selective mining,” said Black Cat managing director Gareth Solly. “Strong gold mineralization observed to date highlights the growth potential beyond our published studies. With only 11 of 45 pre-existing levels developed so far, every level has shown promising potential.”

This progress has reinforced Black Cat's commitment to high-grade selective mining throughout the life of the mine.

Key Developments:

• Drive Development: Approximately 760 meters of mineralized drive development has been completed, with strong continuity and extensions of mineralization exceeding expectations in several areas.
• Stoping Timeline: Stoping activities are projected to begin as early as December 2024.
• Enhanced Workforce and Equipment: Additional miners have joined the team, with new equipment and personnel expected to mobilize in the coming weeks to enable mechanized mining by January 2025.
• Rehabilitation Efforts: Upgrades to mine services and ventilation systems are advancing, ensuring sustained access to high-grade zones.

Ore drives continue to demonstrate consistent high-grade gold mineralization, with notable intercepts including:

• 0.6m at 23.57g/t gold and 0.6m at 23.59g/t gold in vein widths, and
• 0.7m at 47.37g/t gold from the 823_AL_East ore drive, which intersected high-grade structures earlier than anticipated.

The commencement of jumbo development on the 1146 east ore drive ahead of schedule further enhances the operation’s growth outlook.

Black Cat plans to begin commissioning Paulsens using low-grade stockpiles in December, marking another milestone in the operation’s ramp-up.