The Conversation (0)
Astral Resources NL (ASX: AAR) (Astral or the Company) is pleased to report on its activities during the quarter ended 30 September 2024 (the Quarter).
Highlights
Mandilla Gold Project
- Successful completion of a 70-hole/6,512 metre in-fill reverse circulation (RC) drill program at the cornerstone Theia deposit at Mandilla.
- Assay results from the Theia program were reported subsequent to the end of the Quarter on 9 October 20241.
- Metallurgical results at the Hestia, Eos and Iris deposits demonstrate extremely high gold recoveries (up to 99.5%), fast leach kinetics and low reagent consumptions.
Feysville Gold Project
- Assay results reported from a 32-hole/1,673 metre RC drill program completed during the previous quarter at the Rogan Josh Prospect2,3.
- Assay results reported from a 120-hole/3,664 metre program of reconnaissance air-core (AC) drilling completed during the previous quarter4.
- Cube Consulting currently finalising a maiden Mineral Resources Estimate (MRE) for the Kamperman and Rogan Josh prospects, and a revised MRE for the Think Big deposit, together comprising the Feysville MRE. This work is expected to be reported during October 2024.
Corporate
- Announcement of two-tranche placement to raise approximately $25.0 million (before costs) via the issue of approximately 263 million new fully paid shares at an offer price of $0.095 per share (Placement).
- Tranche 1 of the Placement raised approximately $21.0 million (before costs) and was completed on 1 October 2024.
- Cash of approximately $24.1 million as at 30 September 2024 (inclusive of Tranche 1 Placement proceeds net of costs).
- Tranche 2 of the Placement, which involves the issue of new fully paid shares subject to shareholder approval, is set to raise approximately $4.0 million (before costs).
- Additionally, Company Directors subscribed for 789,474 shares on the same terms as the Placement shares, with their participation also subject to shareholder approval.
- Shareholder approval for the issue of shares under Tranche 2 and to the Directors will be sought at the Annual General Meeting to be held on 20 November 2024.
- Astral is now fully funded to FID including acceleration of exploration activities at the Mandilla and Feysville Gold Projects, and completion of the Mandilla Pre-Feasibility and Definitive Feasibility Study.
Figure 1 – Location map identifying Astral’s projects.
MANDILLA GOLD PROJECT
The Mandilla Gold Project is situated in the northern Widgiemooltha greenstone belt, approximately 70 kilometres south of the significant mining centre of Kalgoorlie, Western Australia.
The area hosts world-class deposits such as the Golden Mile Super Pit in Kalgoorlie owned by Northern Star Resources Limited (ASX: NST) and the St Ives Gold Mine south of Kambalda owned by Gold Fields Limited, as well as the substantial Beta Hunt Gold Mine owned by Westgold Resources Limited (ASX: WGX).
Mandilla is covered by existing Mining Leases which are not subject to any third‐party royalties other than the standard WA Government gold royalty.
The Mandilla Gold Project includes the Theia, Iris, Eos and Hestia deposits.
Gold mineralisation at Theia and Iris is comprised of structurally controlled quartz vein arrays and hydrothermal alteration close to the western margin of the Emu Rocks Granite and locally in contact with sediments of the Spargoville Group.
Click here for the full ASX Release
This article includes content from Astral Resources, licensed for the purpose of publishing on Investing News Australia. This article does not constitute financial product advice. It is your responsibility to perform proper due diligence before acting upon any information provided here. Please refer to our full disclaimer here.
AAR:AU
Astral Resources Investor Kit
- Corporate info
- Insights
- Growth strategies
- Upcoming projects
GET YOUR FREE INVESTOR KIT
Astral Resources
Overview
Astral Resources (ASX:AAR) is a gold mineral exploration company with three gold projects in tier 1 mining jurisdictions of Western Australia. The three assets are the Mandilla gold project, the Feysville gold project, and the Carnilya Hill gold project. The flagship and 100 percent owned Mandilla gold project has a mineral resource containing 1.27 million ounces (Moz) of contained gold. The other key project, 100 percent owned Feysville, hosts a mineral resource estimate of 3 million tons (Mt) at 1.3 grams per ton (g/t) gold for 116,000 ounces (oz) of contained gold. Feysville could potentially become a satellite source of high-grade ore feed for the flagship Mandilla gold project.
The scoping study completed at Mandilla unveils robust project economics. The cornerstone of the scoping study is the Theia deposit, which alone accounts for 81 percent of the total Mandilla mineral resource estimate. The deposit hosts a mineral resource estimate of 29 Mt at 1.1 g/t gold for 1.02 Moz of contained gold in one large open pit. The scoping study indicates a mine life of 11 years with an annual production of 100,000 oz in the first seven and a half years, dropping to 41,000 oz for the remaining three and a half years. The study outlines compelling financial metrics, including NPV@8 percent of AU$442 million, free cash flow of AU$740 million, and a payback period of nine months.
Astral Resources intends to increase production further. The assay results from the six-hole 1,832-metre drilling program completed at Theia deposit last year indicate a high potential for converting inferred resources to higher confidence indicated resources. Feysville presents another exciting opportunity, which is evident from the recent assay results at the Kamperman prospect. In 2023, Astral drilled 10 holes at Kamperman intersecting high-grade gold, including 4 metres at 94.8 g/t gold, 21 metres at 4.16 g/t gold, 35 metres at 2.19 g/t gold, 10 metres at 4.57 g/t gold, and 5 metres at 5.89 g/t gold.
The presence in Western Australia, a tier 1 mining jurisdiction, is encouraging and should comfort investors. Western Australia has world-class infrastructure and a skilled workforce. The Fraser Institute ranked it fourth globally and first in Australia as the most attractive jurisdiction for mining investment in 2023.
Astral benefits from a team of professionals boasting extensive expertise in geology and mining. The company is led by managing director Marc Ducler, who has more than two decades of experience in the mining industry. The management team has a proven track record of executing several successful exploration and development projects, as well as M&A.
Company Highlights
- Astral Resources is an ASX-listed gold exploration company in the Kalgoorlie region of Western Australia, a tier 1 jurisdiction and a mature mining region with successful development history and granted mining leases.
- The company has three assets - the Mandilla gold project, the Feysville gold project, and the Carnilya Hill gold exploration project.
- The focus is on advancing its flagship Mandilla gold project, with a mineral resource estimate of 37 Mt at 1.1 g/t gold for 1.27 Moz.
- The scoping study at Mandilla highlights the project’s robust economics with a mine life of 11 years, NPV@8 percent of AU$442 million, and free cash flow of AU$740 million.
- Mandilla’s cornerstone Theia deposit, which comprises 81 percent of the project’s resources, contains 29 Mt at 1.1 g/t gold, with 1.02 Moz of contained gold in one large open pit.
- Feysville project hosts a mineral resource estimate of 3 Mt at 1.3g/t gold for 116 koz of contained gold. The project could potentially become a source of satellite ore feed to Astral’s flagship Mandilla gold project.
- The company is led by an experienced team with a proven track record of advancing projects to development and M&A.
Key Projects
Mandilla Gold Project
The Mandilla gold project is located within the northern region of the Widgiemooltha greenstone belt, approximately 70 kilometers to the south of the prominent mining hub of Kalgoorlie, Western Australia. Mandilla includes four deposits namely, Theia, Iris, Eos and Hestia. The cornerstone of the project is the Theia deposit, constituting 81 percent of Mandilla's resources, totaling 29 Mt at a grade of 1.1 g/t gold, amounting to 1.02 Moz of contained gold in a single open pit. We note that Mandilla has a total mineral resource estimate of 37 Mt at 1.1 g/t gold for 1.27 Moz.
The scoping study indicates a mine life of 11 years with an annual production of 100,000 oz in the first seven and a half years, dropping to 41,000 oz for the remaining three and a half years. Astral estimates the pre-production capital spend at AU$191 million, and the project is anticipated to generate a free cash flow of AU$740 million (assuming a gold price of A$2,750/oz). The project’s NPV @8 percent is estimated at AU$442 million, and the IRR at 73 percent.
Drill collars at Theia deposit
Astral continues to advance exploration and resource expansion efforts at Mandilla. The company completed a six-hole 1,832 metre drilling program at Theia deposit last year. The assay results have been released and indicate a high potential for the conversion of inferred resources to higher confidence indicated resources. The assay results include: 39 metres at 5.4 g/t gold, 29 metres at 2.8 g/t gold, 28 metres at 1.4 g/t gold, 8 metres at 8.8 g/t gold.
Astral is planning to commence a pre-feasibility study at Mandilla.
Feysville Gold Project
The Feysville project is situated in Australia's premier gold belt, merely 14 km south of the Golden Mile deposit, which boasts 70 million ounces, located in Kalgoorlie. The project has a mineral resource estimate of 3 Mt at 1.3 g/t Au for 116,000 oz of contained gold. The project could potentially become a source of satellite ore feed to Astral’s flagship Mandilla gold project.
At Feysville, Astral is focusing on the high-grade Kamperman prospect. A recent 19-hole 2,459 reverse circulation (RC) drilling program at Kamperman returned encouraging assay results. The latest drilling program yielded significant assay results in 14 out of 19 RC holes. This high success rate continues to indicate that Kamperman has the potential to be a substantial source of high-grade satellite ore for the Mandilla processing plant. A further 2,500-metre follow-up RC program is planned to extend known mineralization at Kamperman beyond the current 350-metre strike length.
Carnilya Gold Project
The Carnilya Hill gold project is situated about 20 kilometers south-southeast of the company's Feysville project and approximately 40 kilometers southeast of Kalgoorlie, Western Australia. The project encompasses various tenements – M26/047-049, M26/453 – spanning approximately 2.65 sq. km. Astral holds rights for gold mining, while Mincor Resources NL (ASX:MCR) holds rights to nickel and other minerals.Management Team
Mark Connelly – Non-executive Chairman
Mark Connelly is a mining industry veteran who has held positions of CEO and managing director with several multinational companies across many jurisdictions, including Australia, North America, South America, Africa and Europe. He has a proven track record in deal making and was principally responsible for the merger of Papillon Resources and B2 Gold Corp in October 2014 (value US$570 million), as well as the key person responsible for the merger of Adamus Resources and Endeavour Mining for US$579 million. He is currently the non-executive chair of Calidus Resources, Omnia Metals Group, Alto Metals, Warriedar Resources and Nickel Search.
Marc Ducler – Managing Director
Marc Ducler has more than 20 years of experience in the mining industry. He has held senior operational management roles with GoldFields, BHP, Fortescue Metals, MRL and Roy Hill. He was also the managing director of Egan Street Resources (a gold exploration and development company) until it was acquired by Silver Lake Resources (ASX:SLR).
Peter Stern – Non-executive Director
Peter Stern has experience in corporate advisory, specializing in M&A and capital raising. He has spent six years with Macquarie Bank and three years with UBS and Deutsche Bank. He is a graduate of Monash University with a Bachelor of Science (geology major). Stern is a fellow of the Australian Institute of Company Directors and the chairman of Troy Resources.
David Varcoe – Non-executive Director
David Varcoe is a mining engineer with over three decades of experience. He has extensive operational and managerial experience across various commodities, including gold, iron ore, copper, diamonds, coal, uranium and rare earths. His expertise spans board positions, operations management, project management and consulting. Varcoe is a principal consultant with the leading Australian firm AMC Consulting.
Justin Osborne – Non-executive Director
Justin Osborne is a geologist with over 30 years of experience in exploration. He was previously the executive director at Gold Road Resources (ASX:GOR), where he played a crucial role in developing the world-class Gruyere gold deposit (6.6 Moz gold). Osborne also held senior positions on the exploration executive team at Gold Fields. He was instrumental in developing the Damang Superpit project in Ghana and achieved significant discovery success at the St Ives gold mine.
Brendon Morton – Chief Financial Officer & Company Secretary
Brendon Morton has over 20 years of experience, particularly in the global resources sector across Australia, Africa and Asia. He has held several executive financial and company secretarial roles with ASX-listed and unlisted companies in the resources industry.
Jed Whitford – General Manager Business Development and Projects
Jed Whitford is a mining engineer with over 20 years of industry experience. His expertise primarily encompasses gold and base metals operations, having worked with companies such as Western Mining, Gold Fields, Golder Associates, Xstrata and Glencore.
Julie Reid – Geology Manager
Julie Reid has 36 years of experience working across Australia, Vietnam and Indonesia, covering a variety of commodities in diverse geological terrains. She holds a Bachelor of Applied Science from Curtin University of Technology.
Dynasty Gold
Investor Insight
Dynasty Gold stands apart from its peers, offering a compelling investment value proposition, given its portfolio of brownfield, high-grade gold assets with millions of dollars in exploration expenditures, driven by an expert management and technical team.
Overview
Dynasty Gold (TSX-V:DYG) is a Canadian mineral exploration and development company with a compelling, high-grade gold project located in Northwest Ontario, Canada. The 100 percent owned Thundercloud project is a highly prospective property with significant exploration upside backed by extensive, historical exploration data. The property was acquired from Teck Resources in 2021, with $10 million in previous exploration expenditure and an NI 43-101 resource estimate completed in December 2021.
A brownfield project, Thundercloud represents a lower-risk investment opportunity potentially delivering huge value as exploration continues and the resource is expanded and upgraded. Previous drilling at the property has returned high-grade gold assays, including 73.5 m of 8.4 g/t, 34 m of 6.5 g/t, 12m of 11.0 g/t, and 14.8m of 7.14 g/t.
Since taking over the project, Dynasty has completed 7,000 meters of drilling at Thundercloud, which has resulted in considerable resource increase from 187,000 ounces inferred to 232,000 ounces measured and indicated at a high grade of 8.04 g/t gold at 3.03 g/t cut-off (internal estimate, not NI 43-101 compliant). The project also suggests a potential for open-pit mining, as more than 90 percent of the drill holes to date are less than 250 meters and it opens at depth. Despite the impressive drill results to date, about 90 percent of the property still has seen very limited drilling, presenting a tremendous opportunity for further discoveries.
Dynasty’s secondary exploration project, Golden Repeat, is located within the Midas Gold Camp in Elko County, Nevada. The project is drill-ready with permits in place.
Established in 2000 and Dynasty Gold is led by a highly experienced management and technical team setting the company on a strategic path for success. Max Baker, the former chief geologist for Newcrest Mining with over 35 years of experience in greenfield and brownfield exploration, is the lead geologist. A tightly held share capital structure with approximately 61 million issued shares, more than 40 percent of the company is owned by insiders and long-term shareholders, including Rob McEwen, Dynasty’s largest shareholder.
Company Highlights
- Dynasty Gold has two highly prospective, high-grade gold projects in North America - Thundercloud and Golden Repeat.
- The flagship Thundercloud project, acquired from Teck Resources in 2021 with 12,000 meters of drilling and more than $10 million in previous exploration expenditures, is the current focus of Dynasty’s exploration and drilling program.
- Drilling and exploration work done by Dynasty to date has effectively increased the resource at Thundercloud from 187,000 ounces inferred to 232,000 ounces measured and indicated at a high grade of 8.04 g/t gold calculated at a possible open pit cut-off grade of 3.03 g/t. At 0.5 g/t cut-off, the project hosts 439,000 ounces at 2.14 g/t.
- To date, more than 90 percent of the drill holes are less than 250 meters in length with 90 percent of the property seeing only spaced drilling.
- Thundercloud is a brownfield project with extensive historical data, making it a lower-risk investment compared to other greenfield exploration projects.
- A tight share capital structure with approximately 61 million shares issued and outstanding, more than 40 percent of the company is owned by insiders and long-term shareholders, including Rob McEwen, Dynasty’s largest shareholder.
- The project is led by a highly accomplished technical team and directors with a track record in discoveries.
Key Projects
Thundercloud Project
The Thundercloud gold project is Dynasty Gold’s flagship asset, located in the Archean Manitou-Stormy Lakes Greenstone Belt in Ontario, Canada. The property spans 2,250 hectares and is part of the Wabigoon Subprovince, which hosts several significant gold deposits. The gold mineralization at Thundercloud is primarily associated with shear zones and quartz-carbonate veins, typical of orogenic gold deposits. These types of deposits are known for their size and high-grade gold potential. The property is 47 km from Dryden, Ontario, and within a 4-hour drive from Winnipeg or Thunder Bay airport.
*Internal resource estimate, not NI 43-101 compliant
Previously owned by Teck Resources, the project has been de-risked with about $10 million dollars spent on drilling and exploration in the 2000s. Dynasty has benefited from this vast historical dataset and has been able to expedite its exploration and advance it to the current resource stage in a span of two years.
Historical drilling and exploration at Thundercloud – consisting of 87 drill holes for approximately 16,793 meters of drilling – have identified several zones of gold mineralization, with high-grade intercepts suggesting the presence of an extensive gold system. Drill holes have intercepted mineralization at depths of up to 350 m below surface. Gold mineralisation has been defined along a strike length of 1.5 km east-west trend in the Pelham Zone. The West Contact Zone is untested.
During the 2022 and 2023 drilling seasons the company successfully increased its non-compliant internal resource estimate to approximately 232,000 oz gold at 8.04 g/t. At 2.14 g/t, the project hosts 439,000 oz gold (this is an internally generated new resource model, not NI 43-101 compliant). Nearly 2,200 meters of the 4,000 meter 2024 drill program have been completed. Assays are pending as further drilling continues on the property. The company aims to have an updated NI 43-101 Resource Estimate by the end of 2024.
Thundercloud’s high-grade mineralization sets it apart from neighbouring gold projects with relatively lower grade gold intercepts, including NexGold’s Goliath and Goldlund gold projects which has a resource of 1.5 Moz of gold at 1.5 g/t, and 2.3 Moz gold at 1.5 g/t, respectively. NexGold’s similar market valuation, highlights the market’s underappreciation of Dynasty Gold’s advanced-stage, higher-grade asset.
Thundercloud comprises two main zones – Pelham and West Contact – with planned follow-up drilling in these zones expected to take place in September-October 2024.
Pelham Zone
The Pelham Zone is the most advanced exploration target within the Thundercloud project. It is 47 m south-east of Dryden in Northwest Ontario. It has been the focus of much of the drilling and exploration efforts due to its substantial high-grade, open-pit gold potential. During the 2022 exploration season, the discovery hole DP22-03 returned 8.42 g/t over 73.5 m including 6.5 m of 72.2 g/t. The zone is characterized by a series of east-west trending shear zones containing quartz-carbonate veins with visible gold. These shear zones are hosted within mafic metavolcanic rocks, which have undergone significant hydrothermal alteration.
West Contact Zone
The West Contact Zone is located 1 km to the southeast of the Pelham Zone. Limited drilling in the West Contact Zone has encountered gold mineralization associated with quartz veins and brecciated zones, with grades comparable to those found in the Pelham Zone. Further exploration is planned to expand on these initial findings. A rock chip sampling program was completed in the West Contact zone, an area immediately to the south of where Teck’s trenching data returned 8.02 g/t gold over 39 meters. The assay results from the company’s trenching program extended the mineralization by 30 meters. Total surface mineralization is 69 meters averaging 5.85 g/t gold.
Management Team
Ivy Chong – President, CEO and Director
Ivy Chong has held senior executive positions in the mining and oil and gas industries since 1996. She was credited for closing several option and joint venture agreements with Teck, AngloGold Ashanti, Azimut, Avocet Mining, and others. Chong has assisted multiple companies with their IPOs and raised capital for resource companies in Asia, Europe and North America. Prior to entering the resource industry, she worked for the Hong Kong Stock Exchange and Deloitte and Touche, LLP.
Roman Shklanka – Director
Roman Shklanka is an explorationist with over 45 years of international experience in the mining industry. His past positions include, chairman of Canico Resources, which was acquired by CVRD (Vale) in 2005; chairman of Sutton Resources, acquired by Barrick Gold Corporation; and vice-president of exploration for Placer Dome. He was responsible for the acquisition and exploration of numerous major mines, among them the Australian Granny Smith gold mine, Osbourne copper mine and the Kidston gold mine. He has received a number of achievement awards and was inducted into the Canadian Mining Hall of Fame in 2009.
Larry Kornze – Director
Larry Kornze brings more than 30 years of international gold exploration experience. Kornze was credited with the discovery of Barrick's 40 million ounce gold deposit at the Betze Mine on the Carlin Trend in Nevada, in the late 80s. He was part of Barrick's team responsible for the discovery of the Miekle, Deepstar, Screamer and Rodeo deposits in Nevada. Kornze has held positions with Newmont and Getty Mining in North America, prior to joining Barrick Gold.
Richard Redfern – Director
Richard Redfern is a certified professional geologist and “qualified person” under NI 43-101 and a consultant with 35 years of exploration and mining industry experience worldwide. He held positions as senior exploration geologist with Barrick Gold in Mexico, VP Exploration for Goldstake Explorations in South Dakota and Australia, and has worked for Homestake Mining in the western United States. Redfern has extensive exploration experience in gold and porphyry-type prospects in the southwestern US, Mexico and British Columbia. He was instrumental in the recent discovery of the Moly Dome molybdenum-rhenium-gold-silver porphyry deposit in northern Nevada.
Astral Resources Investor Kit
- Corporate info
- Insights
- Growth strategies
- Upcoming projects