Spartan Resources has launched an ambitious 85,000-metre drilling program at its Dalgaranga Gold Project, aiming to expand and upgrade its high-grade gold resources. Early results from late 2024 drilling show promising extensions beyond current estimates.
- 85,000m combined surface and underground drilling program underway in 2025
- Late 2024 drilling intersected 9.85m at 3.38g/t Au above Pepper resource envelope
- Underground development progressing with 1,230m of decline completed
- Focus on expanding Freak, Never Never, Pepper, Four Pillars, and West Winds prospects
- Next Mineral Resource Estimate update scheduled for mid-2025
Spartan Accelerates Exploration at Dalgaranga
Spartan Resources (ASX: SPR) has commenced a major exploration push at its 100%-owned Dalgaranga Gold Project in Western Australia's Murchison region. The company announced a substantial 85,000-metre drilling program for 2025, split between 20,000 metres of surface drilling and 65,000 metres underground, targeting resource growth and upgrading inferred resources to indicated status.
This drilling campaign follows a landmark resource upgrade in December 2024, which saw the Dalgaranga project’s Mineral Resource Estimate (MRE) rise to 2.868 million ounces of gold. The recent surface drilling completed late last year delivered encouraging results, including a notable 9.85-metre intercept grading 3.38 grams per tonne gold at the Pepper deposit, extending mineralisation beyond the current resource envelope.
Strategic Focus on High-Grade Zones
Spartan’s Executive Chair, Simon Lawson, highlighted the momentum gained from the previous year’s achievements, including a $220 million capital raise. The company is now intensifying exploration efforts with two diamond rigs already operating on surface, focusing initially on the newly discovered Freak Prospect and the Sly Fox deposit. Additional surface rigs will mobilise in the coming months to test near-mine targets such as areas north of Never Never and south of Freak.
Underground drilling is set to ramp up with Australian Underground Drilling (AUD) mobilising to site, expected to deliver 65,000 metres of drilling across key prospects including Never Never, Pepper, Freak, Four Pillars, and West Winds. The underground exploration decline, known as the Juniper Decline, has advanced over 1,230 metres, providing critical access for drilling platforms and ventilation infrastructure.
Extending the Resource Base
Recent assay results reinforce the potential for resource expansion. At Pepper, drilling intersected high-grade mineralisation 100 metres above the current MRE, while Four Pillars drilling confirmed lateral extensions that could increase the strike length. The Freak Prospect, discovered in 2024 just south of Pepper, has shown high-grade gold intercepts approximately 300 metres down-dip, prompting aggressive follow-up drilling plans.
Spartan is applying a systematic approach to exploration, mirroring the successful strategy used for the Pepper discovery earlier in 2024. This involves detailed geological modelling and targeted drilling to build a robust dataset for future resource updates and feasibility studies.
Outlook and Upcoming Milestones
The company anticipates delivering its next comprehensive MRE update by mid-2025, followed closely by a Feasibility Study on restarting operations at Dalgaranga. With the gold price reaching new highs, Spartan is well positioned to capitalise on its high-grade resource base and existing processing infrastructure.
Operationally, the development of underground infrastructure is progressing on schedule, with the Juniper Decline expected to reach within 100 metres of the Never Never deposit by mid-year, a critical milestone for advancing underground drilling and eventual production.
Spartan’s exploration and development activities at Dalgaranga underscore its ambition to establish one of Australia’s premier high-grade gold operations, delivering sustained value for shareholders and stakeholders alike.
Bottom Line?
As drilling intensifies and infrastructure advances, Spartan’s Dalgaranga project is poised for a pivotal year of growth and value creation.
Questions in the middle?
- Will the ongoing drilling convert a significant portion of inferred resources to indicated or measured categories?
- How will the upcoming Feasibility Study address potential production timelines and capital requirements?
- What impact will the expanding resource base have on Spartan’s market valuation and investor sentiment?