Red Mountain Gold Project Remains Open at Depth as Zenith Minerals Highlights Exploration Challenges Ahead

Deep Drilling Confirms Large-Scale Mineralised System

Zenith Minerals Limited (ASX:ZNC) has announced results from its recent deep diamond drilling at the Red Mountain Gold Project in Queensland, extending the known mineralisation to over 700 metres vertically. The deepest hole to date, ZRMCD073, reached 758.1 metres and intersected 167 metres at 0.29 g/t Au from 176 metres, including several higher-grade intervals. Similarly, hole ZRMCD067, ending at 731.3 metres, returned 333 metres at 0.27 g/t Au from 388 metres, with multiple narrow zones exceeding 2 g/t Au. These results confirm the continuity of a broad mineralised breccia system at depth within the breccia corridor.

The mineralisation remains open both at depth and along strike to the northwest, west, and southeast, with multiple high-priority untested target zones identified. The drilling intersected discrete sphalerite–galena–pyrite veins with chalcopyrite at depth, indicating vertical sulphide zonation comparable to other Queensland deposits such as Mount Wright and Kidston, though no direct grade equivalence is implied.

3D Geochemical Modelling Guides Next Drilling Phase

Zenith has developed a new 3D geochemical model based on multi-element assays that defines metal zonation patterns consistent with an intrusion-related gold system. The model highlights a distal Zn–Cd–Pb (±Au) signature in the western breccia system and a more proximal Cu–Bi–Te (±Au) association along the southeastern margin. This intrusion-proximal corridor remains largely untested and is interpreted as the most prospective area for higher-grade mineralisation.

The company plans an approximately 3,000 metre reverse circulation (RC) drilling program to test lateral extensions of the breccia system, particularly targeting the Cu–Bi–Te geochemical zone. The program will also drill two priority geophysical targets characterised by moderate Induced Polarisation (IP) chargeability anomalies coincident with low magnetic and resistivity signatures, which are considered prospective for sulphide-associated gold mineralisation and intense alteration.

Re-assaying Confirms Sampling Robustness

Zenith has completed one-metre split re-assaying of selected 2025 RC composite samples where initial assays exceeded 0.1 g/t Au. The re-assays confirmed the original results and provided improved grade resolution within mineralised intervals, supporting the reliability of the composite sampling method.

Project Context and Geological Comparisons

The Red Mountain Gold Project is located within Queensland’s New England orogen, a region known for significant gold-copper-silver endowment. The project hosts a breccia pipe system approximately 500 by 700 metres in surface projection. Geological characteristics and mineralisation styles show similarities to major Queensland deposits such as Mount Wright, Kidston, Mount Leyshon, and Mount Rawdon, all of which have produced substantial gold resources. Zenith cautions that these comparisons relate to geological style only and do not imply similar resource sizes or economic outcomes.

Preliminary metallurgical test work indicates that much of the gold at Red Mountain is free-milling and non-refractory, with average recoveries of 83.3% by conventional cyanide leaching and up to 95.8% in samples with lower arsenic content. These results suggest a straightforward processing path that could support cost-effective production.

Strategic Positioning within Zenith’s Portfolio

Red Mountain is a key asset in Zenith’s gold portfolio, alongside the Consolidated Dulcie Gold Project in Western Australia, where the company recently announced a 675,000-ounce inferred resource. The ongoing exploration success at Red Mountain complements Zenith’s broader strategy of disciplined resource growth and technical de-risking. The planned RC drilling program follows recent efforts to expand the Dulcie resource, as detailed in Zenith’s latest drilling campaign targeting near-resource zones at Dulcie.

Zenith’s Managing Director Andrew Smith highlighted that the new drilling results and 3D modelling have significantly improved understanding of the system’s geometry and are guiding the company toward higher-grade zones. He emphasised that Red Mountain remains a large-scale, underexplored intrusion-related gold system in a Tier-1 province, with the best mineralisation potentially still to be discovered.