Haranga advances Lincoln restart after 32m gold intercept

Lincoln moves from exploration towards redevelopment

Haranga Resources Limited (ASX:HAR; FSE:65E0) is trying to turn Lincoln from a permitted, historically invested gold project into a financeable restart proposition. During the September quarter, the company completed dewatering of the decline, upgraded underground power and ventilation systems, acquired adjoining land and began a 16-hole drilling campaign designed to strengthen the geological case for development.

The early drilling signal was notable. The first Phase 2 hole, DDH0294, returned 32m at 10.4g/t gold from 143m, including 1m at 51.4g/t. Haranga reports the interval as an uphole length rather than true width, so its eventual significance for mine planning and resource estimation remains to be established. The result nevertheless arrived at the start of a programme aimed at improving confidence in the southern part of Lincoln and testing an under-drilled gap between the Lincoln and Comet zones.

The company’s existing Lincoln resource stands at 2.46 million tonnes at 5.1g/t gold for 402,000 ounces, reported at a 2.0g/t cutoff. About 77% of the contained ounces are classified as Inferred, making resource conversion a central task rather than a footnote. Haranga’s Phase 2 Lincoln drilling had already produced the 32m intercept before this quarterly report, while the remaining holes are intended to provide a broader test of the model.

Independent PFS to combine mine and plant studies

Haranga says the mining, plant retrofit and tailings workstreams will now be folded together with historical studies and new mining and metallurgical work into a Pre-Feasibility Study. An appropriately qualified independent consultant is expected to lead the study, although the company has not yet disclosed the consultant, scope or timetable.

The proposed processing work is being designed around a permitted rate of up to 1,000 short tons per day, or 907 metric tonnes. Strategic Metallurgy and GR Engineering have been working on the flowsheet and restart costing, while Entech has been engaged on mining studies. Further testing is still required across crushing and grinding, flotation, tailings filtration and disposal, water management and the classification of tailings waste. Those are practical redevelopment questions, and the answers will determine whether Lincoln’s existing infrastructure translates into an economically viable operation.

Land purchase expands development flexibility

The company completed the purchase of two adjoining parcels totalling 60 acres on 2 September. The consideration comprised an initial USD 150,000 deposit, USD 450,000 at closing and approximately USD 33,700 in reimbursable seller costs, subject to adjustments and closing costs.

Haranga says the land should improve access for drilling and potential underground development, including a possible extension of the decline towards Medean, South Spring Hill and Keystone. It also creates additional options for surface infrastructure and tailings management. The acquisition does not itself establish a mine plan, but it removes one potential constraint while the PFS work takes shape.

Ibel South adds a second exploration thread

In Senegal, RC drilling at the 100%-owned Ibel South project confirmed high-grade mineralisation identified by earlier aircore drilling. Results included 14m at 7.29g/t gold from 23m and 12m at 5.24g/t from 33m, with mineralisation reported as open along strike and at depth. The company’s Ibel South RC drilling had previously outlined a broad alteration corridor extending for roughly 2km, but the latest work still falls short of a mineral resource.

Haranga has lodged a renewal application for the Ibel South permit. During the renewal process it plans to assess the geological data and design follow-up drilling along the northeast corridor, down-plunge from the high-grade shoots and across the southern extension of the alteration corridor. One southwest target did not return significant mineralisation in the direction tested, leaving the source of an earlier high-grade surface result unresolved.

Cash position puts funding back in the frame

Haranga held $3.33 million in cash at 30 September and spent $1.34 million on exploration and development activities during the quarter. It reported no expenditure on mining, production or development activities in the period, despite the growing emphasis on a possible Lincoln restart. The company also paid approximately $97,000 to directors in fees.

Patrick Mutz, appointed managing director and CEO on 1 September, brings experience in moving resources projects towards production and has made the PFS-led redevelopment process his early priority. The next test is less geological than organisational and financial: whether Haranga can define a credible restart case, quantify the capital required and fund the work needed to reach a construction decision without diluting the project’s appeal.