Dalaroo puts diamond rigs behind its Bondoukou gold discovery

Diamond rig targets Wilfred extensions

Dalaroo Metals Limited (ASX:DAL, OTCQB:DALMF) is about to put diamond drilling behind its most important Bondoukou result to date. Easy Drill has begun mobilising equipment and personnel to the Bondoukou Gold Ridge Project in Côte d’Ivoire, with drilling expected to start around 16 November 2026, subject to site readiness, mobilisation and operating conditions.

“Vertical long section through the BDRC002 collar (looking NE, true scale), showing the BDRC001 and BDRC002 intercepts and proposed step-out holes 80 m NW and 80 m SE of BDRC002.”

Caption and image © Dalaroo Metals Ltd. From “Diamond Drill Mobilises to Bondoukou Gold Ridge Project”, 12 Nov 2026.

The initial programme comprises five holes totalling about 1,750 metres, with each hole planned to reach roughly 350 metres. The work will test down-dip and along-strike extensions of the Wilfred mineralisation intersected in BDRC001 and BDRC002, including the previously reported 18 metres at 7.31 g/t gold from 63 metres and 23 metres at 2.14 g/t from surface. Those are downhole widths; true widths, geometry and continuity remain unknown.

“Long projection (looking NE) showing the staged follow-up drilling strategy around BDRC002: 80 m step-outs along strike, followed by infill to 40 m and 20 m centres.”

The campaign is an expanded version of the five-hole programme previously outlined at about 1,250 metres. The first hole will test beneath BDRC002, while two holes on each of sections about 80 metres to the north-west and south-east will probe whether the mineralised zone continues along strike. The earlier plan had been covered in planned Wilfred step-outs, but the timetable has now slipped from the previously indicated mid-to-late October mobilisation window.

Oriented core replaces RC follow-up

Diamond drilling will take over from RC drilling for follow-up work once the current orientation programme is complete. Dalaroo says oriented core should provide structural information unavailable from RC drilling, including the dip and direction of veins, shears, contacts and foliation. That information is intended to help determine true widths and guide the orientation of later holes.

“Easy Drill equipment being mobilised”

The shift matters operationally as well as geologically. Several RC holes did not reach planned depths because of deviation or excessive water, while the diamond holes are designed to extend to about 350 metres. Dalaroo also says the smaller diamond rig footprint should reduce surface disturbance and crop compensation where applicable, although the company previously expected RC drilling to offer a greater speed advantage.

Second rig to test northern mineralisation

A second Easy Drill rig is expected on site by the end of November to work on the BDRC010C-BDRC011B section, approximately 1.25 kilometres from the original Wilfred discovery. That area returned 13 metres at 2.67 g/t gold from 87 metres in BDRC010C and 60 metres at 0.85 g/t from 148 metres in BDRC011B. The northern results were the subject of northern Bondoukou intercepts, but Dalaroo says additional drilling is still needed to establish their geometry, true widths and continuity.

“3D cut-away of the Wilfred target showing the planned follow-up drilling (FUDD001 and FUDD003–006) around BDRC002, and the staged 80 m step-out and infill strategy on a…”

Caption and image © Dalaroo Metals Ltd. From “Diamond Drill Mobilises to Bondoukou Gold Ridge Project”, 12 Nov 2026.

The northern follow-up will test the upper zone, deeper mineralisation and roughly 80-metre step-outs in both strike directions. Final hole positions will depend on the company’s geological model, RC assays and induced polarisation results. Dalaroo plans to review results stage by stage, moving from 80-metre step-outs to potential 40-metre and 20-metre infill where warranted. Nothing in the announcement amounts to a Mineral Resource estimate.

Cash position and equity-linked drilling terms

Dalaroo held approximately A$2.04 million in cash at the beginning of November. It also identified 263.0 million in-the-money options that could generate about A$13.54 million if exercised in full, although there is no certainty those proceeds will materialise.

The Easy Drill contract provides for an estimated 20,000 metres using two rigs. Monthly invoices are payable 50% in cash and 50% in Dalaroo shares unless the company elects to pay more in cash. Shares would be issued at the greater of the 30-trading-day VWAP and A$0.05, with total shares capped at 30 million and subject to the usual capacity and approval requirements. The arrangement therefore preserves some cash flexibility, but could also create equity issuance if the share component is used.

Assays and structural model are next tests

Near-term catalysts now include the start of diamond drilling, arrival of the second rig, RC assays from BDRC012 to BDRC018 and the planned IP survey over Wilfred, Mag and Ali. Dalaroo intends to combine those results with oriented core to refine its three-dimensional structural model and decide whether further drilling is warranted.

The key question is no longer simply whether gold has been intersected. It is whether the reported intervals represent a coherent zone with measurable true width and continuity beyond the initial holes. The upcoming core and assays should begin to answer that, but the company’s exploration story remains at the stage where each result will determine the next hole.