Larvotto Sets 656,000 oz Gold-Equivalent Target at Hillgrove’s Midas Lode

Significant Near-Term Growth Opportunity at Hillgrove

Larvotto Resources Limited (ASX:LRV) has announced an initial Exploration Target for the Midas Lode within the Metz Mining Centre (MMC) at its 100%-owned Hillgrove Antimony-Gold Project in New South Wales. The preferred target stands at 3.95 million tonnes grading 5.16 g/t gold equivalent (AuEq), equating to approximately 656,000 AuEq ounces. This target is notable not only for its size but also for its accessibility, being directly reachable from surface and existing underground workings, an advantage that could accelerate its inclusion in mining schedules.

The Midas Lode's Exploration Target spans a broad range, from a conservative 2.7 million tonnes at 2.58 g/t AuEq (223,000 ounces) to an upper estimate of 10.7 million tonnes at 8.55 g/t AuEq (2.95 million ounces). This reflects variability in grade and width observed in drilling and historical data, with the preferred scenario incorporating a 40% reduction in tonnage to account for geological variation and ore availability.

Geological Continuity and Strategic Location

The Midas Lode is interpreted as the northern strike extension of the Syndicate Lode, a historically mined system producing over 333,000 tonnes at 2% antimony and 1.92 g/t gold between 2014 and 2016. The Syndicate Lode remains the current mining focus, with underground development extending to within 50 metres of Midas, providing a rare infrastructure advantage for early-stage exploration and drilling.

Drilling to date has tested the Midas Lode down to 560 metres, with mineralisation remaining open to the north and at depth. The lode exhibits a narrow, subvertical shear-hosted quartz-carbonate vein system, with gold hosted in arsenopyrite and as free visible particles, accompanied by antimony and tungsten mineralisation. Surface geochemistry and induced polarisation surveys have delineated coincident chargeability and resistivity anomalies supporting a strike length of over 900 metres.

Drilling and Resource Definition Plans

Larvotto’s exploration strategy involves an aggressive drilling campaign to convert the Exploration Target into a Mineral Resource. Currently, drilling is ongoing with assays pending for several holes, and planning is underway for a systematic resource definition program comprising approximately 45 holes totalling 15,000 metres. This program aims to provide sufficient coverage at nominal 125-metre spacing both horizontally and vertically to support a maiden Mineral Resource Estimate.

The Midas Lode’s accessibility from both surface and underground drill positions contrasts with Larvotto’s other targets at Hillgrove, such as the deeper Eleanora-Garibaldi and MMC targets, which require vertical mine development before effective drilling can proceed. This positions Midas as a near-term growth driver with a shorter timeline to potential production inclusion.

Enhancing Hillgrove’s Production Profile

The Midas Lode target supplements Larvotto’s existing Exploration Target at Hillgrove, which ranges between 670,000 and 1,080,000 AuEq ounces beneath current operations. Together, these targets form a robust pipeline of near-mine growth opportunities that could materially extend the current mine life, which is presently estimated at eight years.

Managing Director Ron Heeks highlighted the significance of the Midas Lode, noting that it represents one of the most important near-term growth opportunities at Hillgrove. He emphasised the conservative nature of the Exploration Target’s grade assumptions relative to existing Mineral Resources and pointed to the adjacent Coxes Reef target, a parallel structure identified through exploration modelling but yet to be drilled.

Larvotto is operating four diamond drill rigs across multiple mining centres at Hillgrove, including MMC and Clarks Gully, to advance several high-priority targets concurrently. The company is also reviewing tungsten potential across the field, with regulatory approvals secured for drilling at Curry’s Block, reflecting tungsten’s growing strategic importance.

Technical and Market Considerations

The Exploration Target and associated grades are calculated using a gold equivalent formula that incorporates metal prices and metallurgical recoveries for gold, antimony, and tungsten. Metallurgical testwork supports recoveries of approximately 84% for gold, 90% for antimony, and promising 90% tungsten recoveries, underpinning the potential economic viability of the mineralisation.

While the Exploration Target is conceptual and not yet classified as a Mineral Resource under the JORC Code, the geological continuity with the Syndicate Lode and supporting geophysical and geochemical data provide a solid foundation for further resource definition. Larvotto’s ongoing drilling and exploration work will be critical in converting this target into a defined resource and ultimately into mineable ore.