Sunshine Metals Advances Liontown Drilling and Mt Moss Acquisition
Sunshine Metals has reported strong progress at its Queensland projects, highlighted by high-grade drilling results at Liontown, acquisition and planned upgrade of the Mt Moss processing facility, and a strategic divestment of Hodgkinson. The company bolsters its cash position through a $22 million capital raise to fund development and exploration.
- High-grade gold and silver intercepts at Liontown support mine planning
- Mt Moss processing facility acquisition targets mid-2027 gold production
- Detailed airborne magnetics survey underway at Sybil to guide exploration
- Hodgkinson Project divestment for $250,000 to sharpen focus on core assets
- $22 million capital raising completed to fund growth and working capital
Liontown Drilling Delivers High-Grade Gold and Silver Intercepts
Sunshine Metals (ASX:SHN) has wrapped up an expanded reverse circulation grade control drilling program at its Liontown open pit resource in Queensland, delivering a series of compelling high-grade gold and silver results. The program, which increased from 84 to 121 holes totalling over 5,000 metres, achieved close to 12.5m by 12.5m drill spacing across the proposed open pit area.
Noteworthy intercepts include 7m at 5.87g/t gold from surface, with a standout 1m interval hitting 30.10g/t gold near the surface, and a 3m section grading 25.01g/t gold including a 1m spike of 68.80g/t. Silver grades accompanied many gold intercepts, such as 7m at 4.15g/t gold with 19g/t silver. These results underpin the confidence in mine planning and resource upgrades outlined in the recent Liontown Mining Study.
Complementing the open pit program, Sunshine also completed a focused resource drilling campaign at the Gold Panel underground target, situated 150 to 350 metres east of the open pit zone. This drilling, spaced at 25m by 25m, aims to extend and upgrade the resource in the upper underground levels. Highlights include 22m at 20.25g/t gold and 14m at 12.38g/t gold, reinforcing the high-grade potential of the underground development.
Mt Moss Acquisition Sets Stage for Gold Processing Restart
Sunshine has secured 100% ownership of the Mt Moss Operation, a processing facility strategically located near the Sybil and Liontown deposits. The 300,000 tonnes per annum grinding circuit, previously focused on magnetite iron ore, is slated for refurbishment and conversion into a gold processing plant through the installation of leaching, elution, and refining circuits.
The company has completed extensive due diligence and developed a detailed, costed refurbishment plan estimated at A$28.5 million, covering leaching tanks, grinding upgrades, and gold room construction. Discussions with debt providers are advanced to finance the project, targeting first gold processing in the June 2027 quarter.
Mt Moss also presents overlooked copper and zinc skarn mineralisation potential, with historic drill intercepts showing significant grades such as 19.9m at 4.41% copper and 30m at 12.04% zinc. The presence of limestone/marble adjacent to the skarn may aid future sulphide processing.
Sybil Airborne Survey Enhances Exploration Targeting
In June, Sunshine commenced a 2,079 line-kilometre helicopter-borne magnetic and radiometric survey at the Sybil epithermal gold project in northeast Queensland. This first detailed airborne survey at Sybil aims to map the geological and structural framework controlling mineralisation, providing a critical baseline for exploration targeting and resource growth.
The survey supports ongoing exploration alongside the Liontown development and Mt Moss acquisition, with drilling at Sybil planned to start in August 2026. This builds on recent identification of high-grade gold targets within the epithermal system.
Hodgkinson Divestment to EQ Resources Streamlines Focus
Sunshine signed a binding agreement to divest its Hodgkinson Project in Queensland to EQ Resources for $250,000 cash, subject to completion and regulatory approvals expected by August 2026. The sale frees up capital and management bandwidth to concentrate on the Mt Moss refurbishment, Liontown mine start-up, and Sybil exploration.
$22 Million Capital Raise Strengthens Financial Position
To fund its aggressive development and exploration agenda, Sunshine completed a $22 million capital raising through a two-tranche placement and a share purchase plan. The placement raised approximately $17 million at a 15.9% discount to the recent volume-weighted average price, and the SPP raised nearly $7.7 million without scaling back oversubscriptions.
The company ended the quarter with about $20.5 million in cash after paying $7.65 million towards the Mt Moss acquisition. The capital will also support Liontown’s mine start-up, ongoing exploration, and working capital needs.
Looking ahead, Sunshine plans to commence Sybil drilling and update the Liontown mining study in August 2026, followed by the start of Mt Moss refurbishment and gold circuit commissioning by September-October 2026.
Bottom Line?
Sunshine Metals is positioning itself for mid-2027 gold production with strong exploration momentum and strategic asset upgrades, but execution of Mt Moss refurbishment and regulatory approvals for Hodgkinson divestment remain key near-term milestones.
Questions in the middle?
- Will the Mt Moss refurbishment and gold circuit installation meet the mid-2027 production target?
- How will the Sybil airborne survey data translate into new high-grade drilling targets and resource growth?
- What impact will the Hodgkinson divestment have on Sunshine’s capital allocation and exploration focus?
