Ausgold’s Regional Drilling Raises Questions on Satellite Deposit Viability

Ausgold’s Regional Exploration Momentum

Ausgold Limited (ASX: AUC) has unveiled a significant step forward in its regional exploration campaign with assay results from 32 reverse circulation drill holes across four key prospects along the Stanley Thrust in Western Australia. These results, announced on 14 May 2025, highlight broad zones of gold mineralisation, including several high-grade intercepts, reinforcing the potential for a network of satellite deposits complementing the company’s flagship Katanning Gold Project (KGP).

High-Grade and Broad Zones at Zinger and Beyond

The standout results come from the Zinger prospect, located about 40km southeast of the KGP, where drilling intersected wide and high-grade gold zones such as 10 meters at 4.75 grams per tonne gold, including a 2-meter interval grading 23.20 grams per tonne. These intercepts confirm the presence of a substantial gold-bearing structure with true widths suggesting a scalable mineralised system. Additionally, broad mineralised zones were reported at Stanley Hill, Moulyinning, and McDougalls prospects, with continuous gold mineralisation over significant strike lengths, some extending over several kilometers.

Strategic Implications for Ausgold’s Growth Pipeline

These drilling results support Ausgold’s strategy to expand its resource base beyond the KGP by identifying satellite deposits within a 40km radius. The Stanley Thrust, a regionally significant fault zone extending over 100km, appears to host multiple mineralised zones that could feed into the KGP operation, enhancing the project’s scalability and long-term viability. The company’s Executive Chairman, John Dorward, described the findings as the “last piece of the puzzle” in the current exploration campaign, underscoring the potential to define a significant gold district around Katanning.

Ongoing Drilling and Upcoming Catalysts

Ausgold continues to advance its drilling program with diamond drilling underway at the Datatine prospect in the KGP Northern Zone, targeting extensions of high-grade gold mineralisation. Results from this phase are expected later this quarter and are eagerly anticipated by the market. What's more, the company plans to extend drilling at Zinger to test hypogene mineralisation beyond current intercepts and to evaluate the economic potential of oxide gold zones, which could offer near-surface mining opportunities given their proximity to infrastructure.

Balancing Optimism with Caution

While the assay results are encouraging, Ausgold acknowledges that further drilling is required to establish resource continuity and to delineate higher-grade domains within these regional prospects. Some diamond drilling results remain pending, and the company is yet to complete its feasibility study for the KGP, which will provide a clearer picture of the project’s economic robustness. Nonetheless, the expanding footprint of mineralisation bodes well for Ausgold’s growth trajectory in the competitive Western Australian gold sector.