Turaco Gold has confirmed depth and strike extensions at the Begnopan deposit in Côte d’Ivoire, including several high-grade gold intersections from the first 69 holes of a 113-hole program. The results could support a resource classification upgrade and eventual inclusion of Begnopan in Afema’s ore reserve, but no revised resource or reserve has yet been published.
- 11m at 4.33g/t gold, including 4m at 10.50g/t
- 24m at 3.30g/t from infill drilling
- Mineralisation extended along strike and at depth
- Begnopan’s current 260koz resource is mostly Inferred
- Afema resource update targeted for Q4 2026
Begnopan drilling opens new growth zones
Turaco Gold Limited (ASX:TCG) has added more geological weight to its Afema development story, with drilling at the Begnopan deposit confirming mineralisation beyond the current resource footprint and identifying new shallow, sub-parallel zones.
The strongest reported extension included 11 metres at 4.33 grams per tonne gold from 72 metres, including 4 metres at 10.50g/t. Other notable step-out results included 15 metres at 3.41g/t, 23 metres at 1.95g/t and 10 metres at 3.78g/t. The company said the results demonstrate both depth and strike extensions across Begnopan’s approximately 2.5-kilometre drilled strike.
Those are downhole intersections, although Turaco says the reported drilling was designed perpendicular to the interpreted mineralisation and the intercepts are approximately true thickness. As with any exploration update, the results establish geological continuity and growth potential rather than a revised mineable inventory.
Infill results target a resource upgrade
The program has also returned substantial infill intersections inside the existing resource area. These include 24 metres at 3.30g/t, 5 metres at 7.26g/t including 3 metres at 10.54g/t, 9 metres at 3.97g/t and 6 metres at 4.99g/t.
Begnopan currently carries an open-pit constrained Mineral Resource Estimate of 5.1 million tonnes at 1.5g/t gold for 260,000 ounces, reported at a 0.5g/t cut-off. About 70% of that estimate is classified as Inferred, which is why the deposit was excluded from Afema’s maiden JORC Ore Reserve. Turaco says the new drilling is intended to improve confidence in those tonnes and potentially allow Begnopan to enter a future reserve update.
Afema resource update set for fourth quarter
Results have been received from 69 of the 113 holes completed in the latest 13,000-metre Begnopan program, leaving further assays to come. Drilling is continuing at Begnopan, Woulo Woulo and Adiopan, with four rigs operating across the project.
Turaco is targeting an update to Afema’s 4.65-million-ounce MRE in the fourth quarter of calendar 2026. The update is expected to include drilling completed by the end of September and is intended to feed into the Definitive Feasibility Study now under way. The company has flagged potential resource growth at Woulo Woulo, Asupiri-Adiopan and Begnopan, as well as a maiden resource for Niamienlessa.
Begnopan’s metallurgy provides some support for its development case: fresh mineralisation produced approximately 89% overall gold leach extraction in test work using a flotation, ultra-fine grinding, oxidative and cyanide leach process. That result is encouraging for the processing flowsheet, but it does not by itself establish project economics or guarantee Begnopan’s inclusion in future reserves.
A drilling gap remains near Aboullie
One unresolved feature is a roughly one-kilometre gap in historical drilling between the south-eastern portion of Begnopan and Adiopan. Turaco has not yet drilled the area around Aboullie village to minimise community disruption, leaving a potentially important section of the mineralised trend untested.
For now, the key milestones are the remaining Begnopan assays, the classification work behind the Q4 resource update and whether the deposit can move from a 260,000-ounce resource into Afema’s reserve base. The geology is expanding; the mine plan still has to catch up.
Bottom Line?
The drilling strengthens Begnopan’s case as a resource-growth engine, but its investment significance will depend on how many ounces move into higher-confidence categories and ultimately into the ore reserve.
Questions in the middle?
- How much of Begnopan’s 3.7 million ounces of Inferred resource can be upgraded through the completed drilling?
- Will the remaining assays extend the high-grade shoots enough to influence the Afema mine plan?
- Can Turaco resolve the undrilled gap near Aboullie without delaying resource definition or creating further community constraints?