Ordell Builds Towards Its First Barimaia Gold Resource

Barimaia Moves From Exploration Towards Resource Definition

Ordell Minerals Limited (ASX:ORD) is putting its flagship Barimaia project through its most consequential test yet: converting a growing body of drilling into a maiden Mineral Resource Estimate. The company completed approximately 25,000 metres of air-core, reverse-circulation and diamond drilling during FY2026, and has now commenced another approximately 14,000-metre programme across the project.

The immediate focus is McNabs East, where Ordell says drilling has outlined gold mineralisation across more than 800 metres of interpreted strike. The mineralisation begins at about 10 metres below surface, includes higher-grade zones and remains open along strike and at depth. Those features have led the company to describe a potential future open-pit opportunity, although Ordell’s own risk disclosures note that none of its projects currently contains a JORC-compliant Mineral Resource or Reserve.

The current campaign combines roughly 10,000 metres of RC drilling with about 4,000 metres of air-core drilling. RC holes are intended to tighten spacing across the McNabs East Main and Northern zones ahead of the planned resource estimate, while air-core drilling will test gold anomalies and geochemical targets elsewhere along Barimaia’s more than 7-kilometre prospective intrusive system. The company expects the McNabs East estimate in the December 2026 quarter, subject to drilling, assays and technical interpretation.

Cash Has Risen Alongside the Exploration Bill

Ordell’s balance sheet gives it room to pursue that programme, but the numbers also show the cost of remaining an exploration company. Cash and cash equivalents stood at $8.22 million at 30 June 2026, up from $2.76 million a year earlier, after two capital raisings brought in $10.85 million before costs. Net cash used in operating activities rose to $5.04 million, including $4.38 million of exploration expenditure.

The company reported a $6.01 million net loss for the year, compared with a $3.38 million loss in FY2025. Revenue was limited to $164,684 of interest income, while exploration expenditure increased to $4.73 million and share-based payment expense rose to $505,914. Ordell’s funding model remains equity-led: the annual report says the company has no ready access to credit facilities and expects capital raisings to remain its primary funding source as programmes expand.

Goodia and Fisher South Add Longer-Dated Targets

Barimaia is carrying the investment case, but Ordell is also trying to build options beyond its lead project. At Goodia near Norseman, soil sampling produced three coherent surface gold anomalies and further anomalism to the south, with first-pass air-core drilling planned. At Fisher South in the northeastern Goldfields, a 59-hole, 2,717-metre air-core programme identified gold anomalism over an area extending about 2 kilometres, including a best result of 14 metres at 150 parts per billion gold from 45 metres.

Fisher South also returned anomalous tungsten in two bottom-of-hole samples, including 1 metre at 1,718 parts per million tungsten. These results are early-stage exploration signals rather than a resource estimate, and Ordell says future work remains subject to the usual geological, permitting, access and funding risks. The company has committed to minimum exploration expenditure of $497,680 within one year and $2.49 million over the following one to five years.