Kalamazoo Resources jags 50m cracker ahead of WA gold resource update
Kalamazoo Resources (ASX: KZR) has capped off a major resource definition drilling campaign at its cornerstone Mt Olympus gold deposit in Western Australia's Ashburton region, with a stellar 50-metre diamond core intercept grading a solid 4.9 grams per tonne (g/t) gold from 193m depth.
The impressive hit has put a definitive stamp on the last batch of assays from the company's recently completed 72-hole, 13,726m drilling program at its 100 per cent-owned Ashburton gold project, 35 kilometres south-east of Paraburdoo.
The latest batch has consistently delivered strong results, with a second notable new intercept of 59m at 3.2g/t gold from 206m, including 33m assaying 4.3g/t gold from 207m and a richer 11-metre chunk going 5.6g/t gold from 228m.
Other notable hits included one 53-metre run grading 2.4g/t gold from 198m, which included 39.8m going at 3g/t gold from 199.2m. Another hole returned 14m at 5.4g/t gold from 150m and 29m at 2.1g/t gold from a shallow 42m, featuring a solid 10m going 4g/t gold from 47m depth.
The entire program has now chalked up an impressive 38 intercepts exceeding 50 gram-metres, with 16 of those tipping the scales at over 100 gram-metres, a metric that multiplies the grade by the intercept width, to normalise and highlight the scale and significance of a drill hit for comparative purposes.
Management says the results demonstrate the continuity of broad, high-grade mineralisation at the project and provide a solid foundation for an updated resource estimate, on track for delivery in the final quarter of this year.
These final assays complete an outstanding 72-hole resource definition program at Mt Olympus. The result of 50m at 4.9g/t gold, together with the broad intersections in the second and third best holes, reinforces the grade and continuity of the mineralised system. Importantly, drilling has also identified mineralisation approximately 80m below the Scoping Study pit shell, which remains open at depth and down-plunge. Kalamazoo Resources executive director Dr Ben Ackerman
The company's Ashburton project already hosts a global mineral resource of 16.19 million tonnes grading 2.8g/t gold for 1.44 million ounces. The Mt Olympus deposit is the project’s heavyweight, contributing 12.24 million tonnes at 2.7g/t gold for 1.07 million ounces.
A key objective of the recent drill-out was to increase confidence in the existing resource by tightening the drill spacing to around 20m by 20m across key areas. This step is crucial for converting inferred resources to the higher-confidence indicated category, paving the way for their potential inclusion in a future ore reserve estimate and feeding into the company's prefeasibility study in the first quarter of 2027.
Tantalisingly, the company’s work has also highlighted significant growth potential. The second best hole in the latest run of results hit a new zone of deep gold mineralisation 80m below the project’s conceptual scoping study pit shell and 90m outside of the key Zoe Fault structure. At this stage, the new zone remains open at depth and down-plunge to the south-east, offering a tempting target for future underground mining potential.
The drilling has also intersected gold mineralisation both within and beyond the current resource model, but still inside the conceptual A$4000-per-ounce open pit shell from Kalamazoo's 2025 scoping study. With the price of the precious metal continuing to flirt with levels well north of that figure, at around A$5868 per ounce today, any additional ounces within the open pit shell could have a material impact on the project’s economics.
The ongoing drilling is also improving the geological understanding of the deposit, identifying steep “feeder structures” which appear to control the high-grade mineralisation. The company believes these structures can be projected beyond the currently drilled areas, pointing to further growth potential.
With the final assays now in hand from its successful resource definition program, Kalamazoo looks to be in a strong position. It has ticked off the necessary boxes to increase its confidence in the Mt Olympus deposit and, in the process, uncovered significant additional potential both outside the existing resource envelope but within the scoping study pit shell and at depth below it.
All eyes will now be on the upcoming mineral resource update, which looks set to provide the next major catalyst for this quietly advancing Pilbara gold story.
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