“For several years now, we've foreshadowed a couple million ounces potential at Horn Island, and this exploration target firms up our view that there's certainly at least another million ounces on offer there,” shared Alice Queen Managing Director and CEO Andrew Buxton.
Alice Queen (ASX:AQX) has completed an exploration target (ET) estimate for its Horn Island project in Torres Strait, Queensland, highlighting the potential for a large-scale gold mineralised system.
The results are as follows:
“The Exploration Target for Hard Rock domains at Horn Island is 34.6 to 52.0 million tonnes at a grade range of 0.88 to 1.32 grams per tonne (g/t) gold for 1.22 to 1.83 million ounces of gold.
"The Exploration Target for Stockpiles, Tailings and Alluvial domains is 25.1 to 37.6 million tonnes at a grade range of 0.31 to 0.46 g/t gold for 0.31 to 0.46 million ounces of gold.”
Horn Island has a historical pit area with an existing mineral resource estimate (MRE), indicated and inferred, of 16.7 million tonnes at 0.98 g/t gold for 524,000 ounces gold.
CEO and Managing Director Andrew Buxton told the Investing News Network that the hard-rock ET affirms Alice Queen's decision to conduct more drilling at the project, with scoping study results expected in the coming weeks and a potential MRE update underway.
“The numbers presented in this ET are consistent with our long-held view that the Horn Island gold field, while having been discovered over 120 years ago, is still yet to demonstrate its full-scale potential,” Buxton said in an announcement.
“With its existing previously published mineral resource of over 500 kilo ounces of gold, with this ET, and importantly with the record high gold price, the Horn Island gold project will now attract significant new investor interest.”
Watch the full interview with Alice Queen Managing Director and CEO Andrew Buxton above.
With an eye for detail and over a decade of experience covering the mining and metals sector, Charlotte is passionate about bringing investors accurate and insightful information that can help them make informed decisions.
She leads the Investing News Network's video and event coverage, and guides a team of writers reporting on niche investment markets.
Andy Hoese, founder of Finding Value Finance, is bullish on the broader commodities sector, including gold and silver, but right now he's most interested in oil.
In particular, he sees oil as one of the best opportunities for investors right now.
Don’t forget to follow us @INN_Resource for real-time updates!
Securities Disclosure: I, Charlotte McLeod, hold no direct investment interest in any company mentioned in this article.
With an eye for detail and over a decade of experience covering the mining and metals sector, Charlotte is passionate about bringing investors accurate and insightful information that can help them make informed decisions.
She leads the Investing News Network's video and event coverage, and guides a team of writers reporting on niche investment markets.
It was a week of downward momentum for the gold price, which fell from above US$4,800 per ounce early in the period to less than US$4,700.
Silver also trended lower, pulling back after last week's higher levels.
Both precious metals continue to react to news about the Iran war, with the extension of the US-Iran ceasefire providing momentum midway through the week. However, since then turmoil has increased, with tensions ramping up in the Strait of Hormuz.
I heard this week from John Feneck of Feneck Consulting, who said that while it's tough to see gold and silver prices fall, it's not surprising given the circumstances.
Here's how he explained it:
"It's been seven weeks of pain. Has that been something that you did, that I did, that investors did? No — it's the war. I mean, look at the price action. It's telling you that the selloff was generated on March 3, which was a Tuesday, by just a lot of margin calls and people that are too leveraged out there. That's what we call an unwinding of that type of position, where people need to sell because they're losing money in other parts of the market, and they need to cover those positions."
Feneck noted that gold and silver stocks have suffered as well, but encouraged investors to take the time to review whether the thesis has actually changed for their holdings:
"I just would tell investors, hang in there. You have to fact check yourself. Take the weekends and spend a few hours going through your holdings, doing homework on, 'Hey, has this thesis changed with this stock?'
"What's happened from March 3 to now? Not much probably with that stock, right? It's just getting tossed around because of the volatility."
Looking at the broader market, I also heard this week from independent macro strategist Tom Bradshaw, who identified an indicator that's flashing a warning sign for the US economy.
"It looks at the inflation-adjusted gold and oil prices relative to their 12 month averages," he said. "I've used the average of these two, and what I found is when they top 22 percent we've always seen severe periods of economic turmoil going back to the start of the fiat currency era."
According to Bradshaw, this signal was triggered around 1974, 1979 and 2008 — while past isn't necessarily prologue, he's concerned about what's next:
"The most significant thing about this indicator is that gold and oil are rising together ... gold rising shows that investors are pricing in financial and economic risk, and oil rising shows that investors are pricing in geopolitical risk. And when you have three of these issues existing simultaneously, it definitely shows that you've got a lot of problems potentially on the horizon."
Coming up next week, the US Federal Reserve will meet for the third time in 2026.
CME Group's (NASDAQ:CME) FedWatch tool shows that the central bank is widely expected to hold interest rates steady at 3.5 to 3.75 percent. Its last reduction came this past December, and since then inflation concerns caused by the Iran war have thrown future cuts into question.
If all goes as planned, next week's Fed meeting will be the last for Chair Jerome Powell, whose term ends on May 15. However, it's possible he may remain in the position longer — Powell has said he will stay on temporarily if nominee Kevin Warsh isn't confirmed by that time.
Warsh's confirmation hearing took place this week, and brought questions about Fed independence — a key concern given US President Donald Trump's clashes with Powell over rates and comments showing he believes Warsh will be more likely to do his bidding.
Interestingly, it's Trump's feud with Powell that could end up extending his stay at the Fed — Republican Senator Thom Tillis, who is part of the Senate Banking Committee, has said he won't vote for Warsh until Trump drops a Department of Justice investigation into Powell. That happened on Friday (April 24), potentially clearing Warsh's path; Tillis has not yet commented on this development.
Agnico Eagle Mines (TSX:AEM,NYSE:AEM) announced a slew of deals this week in a bid to consolidate Finland's Central Lapland greenstone belt. The major miner plans to acquire Rupert Resources (TSXV:RUP,OTCQX:RUPRF) and Aurion Resources (TSXV:AU,OTCQX:AIRRF), as well as B2Gold's (TSX:BTO,NYSEAMERICAN:BTG) 70 percent stake in Fingold Ventures. Because Aurion owns the other 30 percent of Fingold, Agnico will end up wholly owning that joint venture as well.
The resulting land package will cover almost 2,500 square kilometers, and Agnico executives say it could become a gold production hub capable of producing 500,000 ounces annually within the next decade. Synergies are estimated at US$500 million.
Want more YouTube content? Check out our expert market commentary playlist, which features interviews with key figures in the resource space. If there's someone you'd like to see us interview, please send an email to cmcleod@investingnews.com.
And don't forget to follow us @INN_Resource for real-time updates!
Securities Disclosure: I, Charlotte McLeod, hold no direct investment interest in any company mentioned in this article.
Editorial Disclosure: The Investing News Network does not guarantee the accuracy or thoroughness of the information reported in the interviews it conducts. The opinions expressed in these interviews do not reflect the opinions of the Investing News Network and do not constitute investment advice. All readers are encouraged to perform their own due diligence.
With an eye for detail and over a decade of experience covering the mining and metals sector, Charlotte is passionate about bringing investors accurate and insightful information that can help them make informed decisions.
She leads the Investing News Network's video and event coverage, and guides a team of writers reporting on niche investment markets.
Jeff Baird of Merritt Point Partners shares his thoughts on oil supply, demand and prices as the Iran war continues, honing in on how the impact of the conflict is developing.
"We have some time still, but we don't have a lot of time before things potentially start to get a lot more serious here in the near term," he said.
Don’t forget to follow us @INN_Resource for real-time updates!
Securities Disclosure: I, Charlotte McLeod, hold no direct investment interest in any company mentioned in this article.
With an eye for detail and over a decade of experience covering the mining and metals sector, Charlotte is passionate about bringing investors accurate and insightful information that can help them make informed decisions.
She leads the Investing News Network's video and event coverage, and guides a team of writers reporting on niche investment markets.
Independent macro strategist Tom Bradshaw shares his price targets for gold and silver.
He expects both precious metals to move much higher than they are currently, although he thinks a recession will drive them lower in the near term before that happens.
Don’t forget to follow us @INN_Resource for real-time updates!
Securities Disclosure: I, Charlotte McLeod, hold no direct investment interest in any company mentioned in this article.
With an eye for detail and over a decade of experience covering the mining and metals sector, Charlotte is passionate about bringing investors accurate and insightful information that can help them make informed decisions.
She leads the Investing News Network's video and event coverage, and guides a team of writers reporting on niche investment markets.
The gold price had ups and downs this week, but overall moved higher, spending a decent amount of time above the US$4,800 per ounce level and even approaching US$4,900.
Silver also fared well, breaking through US$82 per ounce.
Prices for both precious metals have taken hits since the Iran war began, and this week's upward momentum comes on the back of hopes that a resolution may be in sight.
That same line of thinking pushed the S&P 500 (INDEXSP:.INX) to a new record high during the period.
The situation continues to develop quickly, but at the time of this writing a ceasefire was still in place between the US and Iran, with the potential to extend it beyond the initial 10 days.
Israel and Lebanon have also agreed to a 10 day ceasefire.
Uncertainty still surrounds the Strait of Hormuz — while Iran says it’s now fully open to commercial vessels, President Donald Trump said the American blockade will remain in place until the US reaches a deal with Iran. About 20 percent of the world's oil and LNG typically passes through the strait, and its closure has led to major disruptions in those markets and elsewhere.
I heard this week from Bob Moriarty of 321Gold, who said he thinks it's still very early in the cycle for gold. In his view, the catalyst for its next move up will be a broader realization of the inflationary pressures the war is creating. Here's how he explained it:
"I went through the Arab oil embargo in 1973, and 6.5 million barrels of oil were taken off the market. They weren't taken off the market in terms of blowing up a refinery, they were taken off because the Arabs just shut the taps. So when everybody was happy, all they had to do was turn the tap back on. But the price of a barrel of oil went from US$3 a barrel to US$20 a barrel virtually overnight.
"Now, the amazing thing to me — and this is so much worse, in every measure, than 1973 or 1979. I am absolutely staggered to drive by a gas station and not see a line 2 miles long. We pay US$13 a gallon for diesel in Europe. I live in France, and the strange thing is, people drive, are still driving cars around. They're not filling their car up. They're not standing in line. One day soon they're going to realize, 'Hey, wait a minute, this is very serious. We need to do something now.'"
Moriarty emphasized that we're living through a dangerous time, and encouraged investors to protect themselves with physical gold and silver, and by securing supplies of fuel and food.
However, to make money, he buys resource stocks, and he sees gold companies in particular as "absurdly cheap" right now compared to "everything else."
Don Durrett of GoldStockData.com, who I also spoke to this week, made a similar point during our conversation. He's spent years amassing a vast portfolio of gold and silver stocks, but he said he still sees companies with 10 bagger potential right now.
It's also worth noting how the latest US producer price index (PPI) data may affect gold and silver. Released on Tuesday (April 14), it points to an increase of 0.5 percent from February.
The lower-than-expected reading has helped boost expectations that the US Federal Reserve will still be able to cut interest rates in 2026. Of course, some experts have pointed out that the March PPI numbers don't reflect the full impact of the war.
The Fed's next meeting is scheduled for April 28 to 29, and at the moment CME Group's (NASDAQ:CME) FedWatch tool shows most market participants expect officials to hold rates steady.
The Silver Institute's latest World Silver Survey, released this week, indicates that the white metal is set to record its sixth consecutive deficit in 2026.
The shortfall is estimated at 46.3 million ounces, which is higher than 2025's deficit of 40.3 million ounces. It's expected to come even with rising supply and lower demand.
Overall, the institute describes its outlook on silver as "constructive," but does identify several threats to the story, including industrial demand damage due to the Iran war, and the possibility of central banks selling gold, which could weigh on silver as well.
Want more YouTube content? Check out our expert market commentary playlist, which features interviews with key figures in the resource space. If there's someone you'd like to see us interview, please send an email to cmcleod@investingnews.com.
And don't forget to follow us @INN_Resource for real-time updates!
Securities Disclosure: I, Charlotte McLeod, hold no direct investment interest in any company mentioned in this article.
Editorial Disclosure: The Investing News Network does not guarantee the accuracy or thoroughness of the information reported in the interviews it conducts. The opinions expressed in these interviews do not reflect the opinions of the Investing News Network and do not constitute investment advice. All readers are encouraged to perform their own due diligence.
