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Far Northern Resources (ASX:FNR) (FNR or the Company) recently completed a targeted Reverse Circulation (RC) drilling program at the Empire Mining Lease. This program aimed to update and infill the 2020 resource model, with a focus on the primary vein at the northern end of the Empire Stockworks. The drilling results have confirmed the presence of high-grade gold zones (>3 g/t Au), with mineralization remaining open at depth and along strike, indicating further exploration potential.
Highlights Project: The Empire Projects / Chillagoe, North Queensland
- Completion of drilling in North Queensland.
- In the process of updating the Resource Model at Empire.
- Base Case Sensitivity Analysis of Empire North underway.
Drilling Results
Six RC drill holes were completed, all of which intercepted high-grade quartz veins in line with the previous modelling.
The following assay results were announced to the market on 13 September1
- 4m @ 1.24g/t Au from 28m in FNRRC031 (incl. 1m @ 2.90 g/t Au)
- 1m @ 1.20g/t Au from 43m in FNRRC031
- 1m @ 1.01g/t Au from 13m in FNRRC032
- 3m @ 0.93g/t Au from 50m in FNRRC032
- 1m @ 14.96g/t Au from 9m in FNRRC033
- 1m @ 9.05g/t Au from 44m in FNRRC033
- 1m @ 2.49g/t Au from 11m in FNRRC034
- 8m @ 3.03g/t Au from 18m in FNRRC034 (incl. 5m @ 4.31 g/t Au)
- 1m @ 1.32g/t Au from 32m in FNRRC034
- 1m @ 1.02g/t Au from 41m in FNRRC034
- 1m @ 2.80g/t Au from 0m in FNRRC035
- 1m @ 1.45g/t Au from 11m in FNRRC035
- 1m @ 1.24g/t Au from 14m in FNRRC035
- 6m @ 1.23g/t Au from 29m in FNRRC035
- 1m @ 1.30g/t Au from 32m in FNRRC036
These intercepts demonstrate the continuity of high-grade mineralization within the Empire Stockworks, supporting the potential for future mining operations. The assays will be fed into an updated resource and economic model to reflect current gold prices, forming the basis for future feasibility studies.
Far Northern Resources Mineral Resources as at the date of fnr’s prospectus
These figures provide an important foundation as the Company looks to future expansion.
Strategic Positioning
FNR is in a strong position to advance the Empire Project, given its proximity to a mill located less than 20 km from the current mining lease. The mill access greatly enhances the economic feasibility of mining operations and will be crucial as the company moves into more advanced feasibility studies.
Looking Forward
The FNR team remains excited about the exploration potential at the Empire Stockworks. With the deposit still open at depth and along strike, the board is confident that additional drilling will continue to expand the resource base. The securing of funding from the IPO for ongoing exploration activities has ensured that the Company can continue developing the project with the aim of establishing FNR’s first operational mine.
Conclusion
The results from the 2024 drilling campaign have provided valuable new data, confirmed the presence of high-grade gold mineralization and enhanced the Company’s resource model. FNR will continue to focus on exploration at the Empire Project, with the goal of moving toward full feasibility and mining operations in the coming years.
Click here for the full ASX Release
This article includes content from Far Northern 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.
FNR:AU
OPINION — Goldenomics 103: Gold Protects and Performs
By Darren Brady Nelson
US President Donald Trump’s “Liberation Day” tariffs certainly caused quite the stir in the markets on April 2.
Gold dropped about 6 percent, and silver 12 percent. A week later, a pause was announced, which ended on August 1. Gold and silver have since risen approximately 11 percent and 24 percent, respectively.
Six month gold and silver price performance.
Source: Trading Economics (gold) and (silver).
Unless you are a professional, or even amateur, trader, it is best to look at gold and silver investment with a perspective of years or decades, rather than just days, weeks or even months. Since the start of the COVID-19 panic in March 2020, gold and silver have exploded 123 percent and 192 percent.
10 year gold and silver price performance.
Source: Trading Economics (gold) and (silver).
In the shorter term, the gold price is driven by what economist John Maynard Keynes called “animal spirits.” In the longer term, it is driven by “monetary spirits.” And not just as protection, but also for performance. The Presidential Gold Guide highlights both in chapters four and five.
Source: Fisher Liberty Gold.
Gold unsurprisingly protects
Economist and investor Mark Skousen has wisely noted that: “Since we left the gold standard in 1971, both gold and silver have become superior inflation hedges.” Gold has more than countered the results of inflation, as measured by CPI, and the drivers of inflation, as measured by M3.
And the numbers back that up. The Gold Protects chart below compares the gold price, CPI and M3 in terms of cumulative growth of each from 1971 to 2025. That is throughout the whole era of gold as an investment, which officially started in 1974 once private ownership was restored.
During this era, gold grew by 541 percent, CPI by 214 percent and M3 by 384 percent. Annual average growth for gold was 10 percent, CPI at 4 percent and M3 at 7 percent. Maximums were 92 percent, 14 percent and 29 percent, respectively. CPI only failed to grow twice, ie. 0 percent in 2009 and 2015. M3 decreased twice, by -4 percent in 2023 and -6 percent in 2024.
Gold surprisingly performs
The highly respected In Gold We Trust (IGWT) report states: “When dealing with the specific level of gold allocation, it is advisable to differentiate between safe-haven gold and performance gold. The Big Long strategy emphasizes the potential of performance gold in the coming years.”
IGWT thus recommends an investment portfolio "rule of thumb" that includes 15 percent in “safe-haven gold” and 10 percent in “performance gold.” The Gold Performs chart below compares gold price, S&P 500 and nominal GDP in terms of cumulative growth of each from 1971 to 2025.
Gold grew by 541 percent, the S&P 500 by 484 percent and GDP by 339 percent. Annual average growth for gold was 10 percent, with the S&P 500 at 9 percent and GDP at 6 percent. Maximums were 92 percent, 45 percent and 14 percent, respectively. Gold did have a higher standard deviation of 27 percent, compared to 17 percent for the S&P 500 and 3 percent for GDP.
Animal and monetary spirits
Gold protects as a hedge or safe haven, not just from inflation, but from the flip side of that same coin of the boom-bust cycle. Both are driven, in the longer term, not by “animal spirits,” but by “monetary spirits.”
Inflation is when money inflation has a widespread impact as price inflation. A bubble is when money increases have a more concentrated impact such as in certain asset values. The bubble eventually bursts when “monetary spirits” are finally reined in by monetary realities.
I say “monetary spirits” because of the role of fiat money, as indicated by, say, M3. When money supply outstrips money demand in a localized way, then that is a bubble, and when in a general way, that is inflation.
The former shows up in certain asset, wholesale and/or producer prices, whilst the latter shows up in CPI. Asset prices include the S&P 500. But nominal GDP is also "ginned up" as it is ultimately a price times quantity measure as well. Price is expressed in money terms.
Conclusion
Gold can have ups and downs, as standard deviation indicates, due to the “animal spirits” of fear and uncertainty, that tend to be daily, weekly or monthly. Yet gold both protects and performs due to the “monetary spirits” of inflation and boom-bust, which tend to be decennially.
In particular, gold performs when the S&P 500 does not, like in the aftermaths of the 2001/2002 dot-com collapse, the 2008/2009 global financial crisis and 2020/2021 COVID-19 lockdowns.
Therefore, when it comes to gold, “follow the money” of central bank “money printing” and fractional reserve bank “fountain pen money,” for both superior inflation protection and boom-bust performance.
And besides, Skousen rightly "begged the question" as follows: “Gold and Silver have always had value, never gone to zero. Can you say the same for stocks and bonds?”
About Darren Brady Nelson
Darren Brady Nelson is chief economist with Fisher Liberty Gold and policy advisor to The Heartland Institute. He previously was economic advisor to Australian Senator Malcolm Roberts. He authored the Ten Principles of Regulation and Reform, and the CPI-X approach to budget cuts.
Click here to read Goldenomics 101: Follow the Money, and here to read Goldenomics 102: The Shadow Price of Gold.
