Ordell Minerals has reported multiple high-grade gold intersections at its Barimaia project’s McNabs East Prospect, underpinning a 15,000m drilling program planned for May to July 2026 targeting resource growth and new discoveries.
- High-grade gold assays up to 89.43g/t Au at McNabs East
- Mineralisation confirmed at depth and along strike
- 15,000m drilling program to test extensions and new targets
- New rock chip sampling reveals 42g/t Au in quartz veins
- Barimaia project adjacent to Ramelius Resources’ Mt Magnet
High-Grade Gold Confirmed at Depth and Along Strike
Ordell Minerals Limited (ASX:ORD) has unveiled a fresh batch of high-grade gold intercepts from its ongoing drilling at the Barimaia Gold Project near Mount Magnet in Western Australia. The standout result came from hole 26BADD026, which returned 4.6 metres at 19.60 grams per tonne (g/t) gold from 177 metres, including a bonanza-grade 0.8 metres at 89.43 g/t Au. These assays confirm that the McNabs East Main Zone mineralisation extends both deeper and along strike, reinforcing the prospect’s potential for resource expansion.
Other notable intercepts include 22 metres at 2.64 g/t Au from 70 metres in 26BADD025 and 15.8 metres at 2.94 g/t Au from 109.8 metres in 26BADD027, which also contained higher-grade sub-intervals. The mineralised zones are spatially associated with potassic alteration and quartz veining, typical of the felsic intrusion-hosted style Ordell is targeting. These results build on previous high-grade hits such as 2 metres at 23.66 g/t Au reported earlier, confirming continuity of mineralisation along a strike length now exceeding 700 metres.
Expanding Shallow and Deep Targets with a 15,000m Drill Program
Following these encouraging results, Ordell is gearing up for a substantial 15,000-metre drilling campaign scheduled from May through July 2026. The program will focus on extending the McNabs East Main Zone and Northern Zone mineralisation, as well as testing new exploration targets like The Furnace Prospect, which covers approximately 1.5 kilometres of prospective granodiorite intrusions. Aircore drilling will also seek to identify additional felsic intrusions that could host significant gold mineralisation.
Ordell’s Managing Director Michael Fowler emphasised the strategic importance of the upcoming work, stating the objective is to “significantly expand the high-grade gold mineralisation intersected to date” and to confirm the continuity of mineralisation in the Northern Zone. The program will employ a combination of reverse circulation (RC), diamond, and aircore drilling, reflecting a systematic approach to delineating both shallow open-pit and deeper mineralised zones.
New Surface Targets Emerge from Rock Chip Sampling
Adding to the exploration upside, rock chip sampling on the western side of the Barimaia Project returned assays up to 42 g/t Au from quartz veining over a 500-metre strike length. This newly identified target area, located about 5 kilometres west of McNabs East, is poised for follow-up drilling pending heritage surveys. The discovery underscores the potential for additional high-grade zones beyond the current drilling focus.
Barimaia’s Strategic Location Near Established Gold Operations
Barimaia lies in a Tier-1 mining jurisdiction and benefits from proximity to established gold processing infrastructure, notably Ramelius Resources’ Mt Magnet mill. The nearby Eridanus deposit, part of Ramelius’s operations, hosts a mineral resource of 1.3 million ounces at 1.7 g/t Au, providing a compelling analogue for Ordell’s exploration model. Ordell’s 80.3% ownership in Barimaia, acquired from Genesis Minerals Limited (ASX:GMD), which remains a significant shareholder, positions the company well to leverage this strategic location.
These latest drilling results complement earlier successes, including shallow, high-grade gold zones reported in February 2026, which highlighted the prospect's open-pit potential and set the stage for the current drilling push. The forthcoming program aims to build on this momentum and explore along the extensive granodiorite strike length identified at Barimaia, which exceeds 7 kilometres in some sections, as demonstrated in previous campaigns.
With assay results for several holes still pending, the market will be keenly awaiting updates as the new drill program progresses. The continuity of mineralisation and its economic viability remain to be fully assessed, but the recent intercepts provide a solid platform for advancing Barimaia towards a resource definition phase.
Bottom Line?
Ordell’s latest high-grade gold hits at Barimaia validate its exploration strategy and set the stage for a major drilling campaign that could reshape the project’s resource profile.
Questions in the middle?
- Will the upcoming 15,000m drilling confirm consistent mineralisation continuity to support a resource upgrade?
- How might the new felsic intrusion targets impact Barimaia’s overall exploration potential?
- What timeline can investors expect for resource modelling and potential feasibility studies following this drilling?