Medallion Metals says final infill drilling at Gem has confirmed the high-grade lode geometry underpinning the first year of underground mining at Ravensthorpe. Development remains on schedule, while commissioning at Forrestania moves the company closer to first gold production.
- 22-hole, 3,093-metre Gem infill program broadly confirms grade, width and lode geometry
- Best results include 2 metres at 21.3 g/t gold and 0.8% copper
- Ravensthorpe box-cut excavation is 55% complete, with first underground ore targeted for Q2 2027
- A 9,000-metre Kundip resource-extension program is due to begin in November
- Cosmic Boy commissioning is underway, with first gold targeted in the coming weeks
Gem drilling validates early underground mining areas
Medallion Metals Limited (ASX:MM8) has received the kind of drilling result a mine developer wants at this stage: not a dramatic new discovery, but confirmation that the orebody it intends to mine first still looks like the orebody in its plan. Final infill results from the Gem deposit at the Kundip Mining Centre broadly confirmed the grade, width and geometry of the high-grade gold-copper lodes scheduled for the first 12 months of underground operations.
The 22-hole, 3,093-metre program returned several sharp intersections, including 2 metres at 21.3 grams per tonne gold and 0.8% copper from 58 metres, and 3 metres at 17.8 g/t gold and 0.3% copper from 66 metres. Other results included 4 metres at 6.6 g/t gold and 0.7% copper from 252 metres, and 7 metres at 3.9 g/t gold and 0.6% copper from 62 metres.
The results are reported as down-hole lengths, rather than confirmed true widths. Medallion said the drilling generally supported the existing interpretation of narrow, structurally controlled and stacked lodes within a broader lower-grade mineralised envelope. Some short-strike lodes were closed off at their interpreted margins, giving the mine planning team additional information for stope design and cross-cut locations.
Ravensthorpe development advances towards first ore
The drilling update arrives as Ravensthorpe shifts further from study work into physical development. Box-cut excavation at the project is 55% complete, and underground development is scheduled to begin in November, with first underground ore targeted for the second quarter of 2027. That timetable remains consistent with the company's previous development milestones, including the Ravensthorpe development launch after final approvals were secured.
Medallion said the project remained on schedule and within budget, and that it had secured personnel across underground mine planning and geology. The company will undertake further infill and grade-control drilling from underground platforms in early 2027, work intended to support detailed mine design and scheduling rather than establish a new resource in this announcement.
9,000-metre program targets mine-life extensions
A separate 9,000-metre resource-extension and exploration campaign is due to start at Kundip in November. It will target extensions to known gold-copper mineralisation at Gem Restored, Harbour View, Hillsborough and Flag, alongside deeper targets identified through geological interpretation and downhole electromagnetic surveys. The stated objective is to grow resources and potentially extend mine life, although the announcement does not provide a revised resource estimate.
Forrestania commissioning approaches first gold
At Forrestania, commissioning of the Cosmic Boy Concentrator is also underway. Equipment testing and wet commissioning have begun, refurbishment and modification work is about 30% complete, and the processing workforce is in place. Medallion has 55,000 tonnes of ore on the run-of-mine pad, comprising 30,000 tonnes of third-party material and 25,000 tonnes from its Teddy Bear stockpiles. The company plans to process an initial 5,000 tonnes of Teddy Bear ore under its Early Production Strategy, with first gold targeted in the coming weeks. That places execution of the Cosmic Boy commissioning plan alongside the longer-dated test of developing Kundip into underground production.
The drilling results are encouraging because they reduce, rather than eliminate, geological uncertainty in the earliest planned mining areas. AuEq grades in the announcement rely on assumed commodity prices, recoveries and payability, while significant intersections have not been independently verified. The next practical tests are whether underground development starts on time, whether grade-control drilling preserves the current interpretation, and whether Forrestania converts commissioning progress into actual gold production.
Bottom Line?
Gem has so far delivered confirmation rather than a material change to the mine plan; the more consequential milestones now move underground, into commissioning and first production.
Questions in the middle?
- Will underground drilling and grade control preserve the projected grade continuity and stope geometry at Gem?
- Can Cosmic Boy move from wet commissioning to first gold production in the coming weeks?
- Will the 9,000-metre Kundip campaign add enough mineralisation to extend the planned mine life?