Aurum hits thick gold ahead of West African resource upgrade

Aurum Resources has once again displayed its enduring knack for pulling rabbits out of its West African hat by further extending gold mineralisation at its flagship 3.22-million-ounce Boundiali gold project in Côte d’Ivoire. The drill bit delivered another suite of solid hits across three separate targets just days before the drill collar cut-off date ahead of a major resource upgrade.

The company's latest batch of 25 diamond drill holes was headlined by a broad 57-metre intersection grading 2.34 grams per tonne (g/t) gold from 290m at the BST1 deposit in the southern extremity of the Boundiali grounds. That intercept included a high-grade two-metre slice that comfortably cleared the bonanza benchmark of "one ounce of gold per tonne", coming home with a stellar 37.95g/t grade for the yellow metal.

Intriguingly, gold mineralisation at BST1 remains open along strike and at depth. While results from the latest crop of drill holes will be assessed for inclusion in the next resource update, Aurum is already planning follow-up drilling to chase the mineralisation beyond the existing resource boundaries.

At the BST1 deposit, which already holds a 570,000-ounce gold resource, the 57-metre hit landed outside the current resource estimate, pointing to strong potential for the deposit to contribute additional ounces in the upcoming resource update. Other notable results from BST1 include another long run of 38m at 0.89g/t gold from 215m, including 6m going 1.89g/t gold.

Drilling at the BMT2 prospect in the extreme north of the company's eastern 'BM' tenement, where no resource has yet been defined, returned a broad 28.35m hit at 2.02g/t gold from 116.45m, enclosing a richer seven-metre length of core grading 4.80g/t gold. Another hole at BMT2 delivered a high-grade punch, with 1.5m assaying 31.29g/t gold at a downhole depth of just 39m.

At Aurum's 750,000-ounce BMT3 deposit, in the northernmost third of the 'BM' ground, drilling produced a solid 10-metre run grading 2.65g/t gold from 45m, including 7.3m going 3.52g/t gold. A longer 25.5-metre section in the same deposit gave up a grade of 2.65g/t gold from 74m, including 1.5m going a respectable 5.65g/t gold.

The most recent run of solid hits comes from a mix of infill, step-out and extensional drilling across the BST1 and BMT3 gold deposits, and the BMT2 prospect and forms part of the company's massive 150,000m drilling campaign at Boundiali.

Aurum Resources managing director Dr Caigen Wang said: “We have received assays for a further 25 diamond holes totalling 5,651m across BST1, BMT2 and BMT3, all drilled before the 30 September 2026 cut-off date for our next Boundiali Mineral Resource Estimate. Standouts include 57m at 2.34 g/t gold from 290m at BST1, and 28.35m at 2.02 g/t gold from 116.45m at BMT2; both intercepts are outside of the current Mineral Resource."

The latest findings provide the final pieces of the puzzle ahead of Aurum’s eagerly anticipated Boundiali resource update, due to land at month-end. With many new intercepts falling outside the existing resource envelopes, the market will likely be watching closely for a potential uplift to the already impressive 3.22-million-ounce Boundiali resource.

The company is pursuing an aggressive dual-track strategy of resource expansion and project development. It remains well funded for the task with a war chest of more than A$95 million, following a recent $52.5 million placement.

Aurum has a formidable exploration machine on the ground in West Africa, with a fleet of 16 company-owned diamond drill rigs working to complete a massive 180,000m program this calendar year. This includes 150,000m committed to Boundiali and a further 30,000m aimed at testing its 1.16-million-ounce Napié gold project, 100km southeast of Boundiali. Together, the two assets now hold a hefty combined resource of 4.38 million ounces of gold.

On the development front, Aurum has been steadily ticking the boxes at Boundiali, securing crucial environmental approvals in May before delivering a pre-feasibility study and maiden ore reserve in June. The company is now awaiting the grant of its mining licences, as it pushes towards a definitive feasibility study due in the final days of 2026. From there, the focus will shift to a final investment decision and construction, with first gold production firmly in its sights for the first half of 2028.

Boundiali and Napié are both hosted within Côte d'Ivoire's richly endowed Birimian Greenstone Belt, a massive prospective geological region that extends across a total of five West African nations and which can only be described as elephant country for gold.

The company’s ground sits in the same geological neighbourhood as several multi-million-ounce deposits, including Resolute Mining’s nine-million-ounce Syama mine in Mali, north of Boundiali and Montage Gold’s eight-million-ounce Koné project, 80km south of Boundiali.

Aurum appears to be building out a major gold system as it works through a veritable swarm of targets within the Boundiali tenement block, some of which have yet to feel the bite of the drill bit. Amazingly, drilling at Boundiali so far has only targeted the most obvious outcropping or shallow anomalies. The company says it sees a strong likelihood for further discoveries, potentially underpinning further resource growth through this year and beyond.

With the drill rigs still active, a resource update just around the corner and a war chest that would make many of its peers envious, Aurum seems to have all the ingredients for success in place. The next few weeks could prove particularly interesting, and potentially pivotal, as the new resource numbers are tallied.

Is your ASX-listed company doing something interesting? Contact: matt.birney@businessnews.com.au