Johnson Range Drilling Boosts Aurumin’s Development Prospects Amid Market Rally
Aurumin Limited has reported impressive high-grade gold assay results from its recent drilling at the Gwendolyn deposit, setting the stage for a resource upgrade and advancing development plans at the Johnson Range Gold Project.
- 6m at 16.5g/t gold including 1m at 76.1g/t from shallow depths
- 18 reverse circulation drill holes completed, validating existing resource
- Resource upgrade from inferred to indicated underway
- Potential for low-cost open pit mining due to shallow mineralisation
- Project located on granted mining lease near multiple processing centres
Strong Drilling Results Revive Johnson Range Prospects
Aurumin Limited (ASX: AUN) has delivered a compelling update from its April 2025 reverse circulation drilling program at the Gwendolyn deposit, part of the Johnson Range Gold Project in Western Australia. This marks the first drilling activity at Johnson Range since 2013, aimed at infilling and validating the existing inferred mineral resource of approximately 64,700 ounces at 2.5 grams per tonne gold.
The highlight intercepts include a standout 6 metres grading 16.5 grams per tonne gold starting at just 65 metres depth, which notably contains a 1 metre section assaying an exceptional 76.1 grams per tonne. Other significant results include 7 metres at 9.3 grams per tonne from 16 metres and 9 metres at 3.6 grams per tonne from 111 metres. These shallow high-grade zones underscore the potential for a low-strip ratio, open pit mining operation, which could be economically attractive in the current gold price environment.
Resource Confidence and Development Pathway
The 18 drill holes totaling 1,353 metres targeted three high-priority zones within the top 80 metres of the deposit. The program successfully confirmed the continuity of mineralisation and is expected to support an upgrade of the Gwendolyn resource classification from inferred to indicated. This upgrade is a critical step in advancing the project towards development, feeding into ongoing technical studies and mine permitting processes.
Located on a granted mining lease, Gwendolyn benefits from proximity to multiple regional processing centres, enhancing the project's logistical and economic appeal. Aurumin’s Managing Director, Daniel Raihani, emphasized the significance of these results, noting that the timing aligns well with gold prices trading above A$5,000 per ounce, making it an opportune moment to push the asset closer to production.
Next Steps and Strategic Outlook
Aurumin is progressing with detailed resource modelling and plans to submit 1-metre samples from anomalous composite intervals for further analysis. The company intends to update the mineral resource estimate based on the latest drilling results and initiate scoping-level economic studies. Follow-up drilling is also planned to explore down-dip and strike extensions, aiming to expand the resource base.
This drilling success at Johnson Range complements Aurumin’s broader Sandstone gold production strategy, where the company holds a significant portfolio of projects and resources. The integration of Gwendolyn into this portfolio could enhance Aurumin’s production profile and shareholder value in the near term.
Bottom Line?
Aurumin’s high-grade drilling results at Johnson Range set a promising foundation for resource upgrade and potential low-cost gold production.
Questions in the middle?
- How will the resource upgrade impact Aurumin’s valuation and project economics?
- What are the timelines and capital requirements for advancing Johnson Range to production?
- Could further drilling reveal additional high-grade extensions beyond current targets?
