Aspiring gold producer Forrestania Resources has firmed up another piece of its production puzzle, tabling a new mineral resource estimate for its recently acquired Symes Find gold deposit in Western Australia’s Wheatbelt region.
The updated JORC-compliant resource clocks in at 803,600 tonnes grading one gram per tonne (g/t) gold for 25,800 ounces using a 0.5g/t cut-off grade.
The new resource defines what’s left in the ground after previous owner, mid-tier producer Ramelius Resources, mined 42,000 ounces of higher-grade 2.41g/t gold from the deposit’s open pits in 2024. Notably, the ore was trucked 121 kilometres to the Edna May processing plant, which Forrestania now owns.
Forrestania acquired the project as part of the package from Ramelius in September. The resource is broken down into 220,000 tonnes at 0.83g/t gold in the high-confidence measured category, 406,900 tonnes at 1.07g/t in the indicated category and 176,700 tonnes at 1.07g/t gold in the inferred category.
Importantly, more than 75 per cent of the remaining gold ounces sit in the higher-confidence measured and indicated categories, giving Forrestania a solid handle on the deposit's remaining riches as it pushes ahead with mining studies.
The resource update comes as the company ticks off a series of important milestones at the Edna May operation, putting it on a fast track to restart gold production in mid-December. As a tangible sign of confidence in its production readiness, Forrestania has already delivered the first ore from its nearby Johnson Range mine to the Edna May run-of-mine pad.
Forrestania Resources chairman David Geraghty said: "Symes Find is an excellent example of Forrestania's strategy of acquiring advanced gold assets within trucking distance of Edna May. Following successful mining from the deposit, this updated resource confirms a meaningful remaining gold inventory and further strengthens Forrestania's pipeline of future production opportunities as we move toward first gold at Edna May in December 2026.”
The Edna May restart will mark a big step in Forrestania's strategy to build a leading Western Australian gold business using a classic hub-and-spoke model, underpinned by its two strategic processing hubs. While all eyes are on the imminent Edna May restart, the company is also rapidly pushing ahead with refurbishment of its second hub at Lake Johnston, slated for commissioning and production in early 2027.
Forrestania has been quietly assembling a significant inventory of ore sources to feed its two hubs, building a global mineral resource inventory that now tops two million ounces. The tally includes the recently acquired 223,300-ounce Tampia project along with its Tycho, British Hills and Johnson Range deposits.
The company's restart timetable is emerging against a strong Australian gold backdrop, with spot prices consolidating around a handsome A$6000 per ounce, providing a powerful commercial tailwind for its production ambitions.
In other news today, Forrestania has drawn a line in the sand on its takeover of Zenith Minerals, confirming its offer, first launched on June 9, will close at 5pm (AWST) on November 12. The company says it will not extend the now-unconditional offer unless its hand is forced under section 624(2) of the Corporations Act 2001, which provides for an automatic extension in certain circumstances.
With 62.04 per cent of Zenith already in its grasp, Forrestania appears firmly in the driver's seat as it eyes the 90 per cent ownership threshold generally required to pursue compulsory acquisition and lock away another piece of its broader WA gold consolidation strategy.
With first ore already on the ground at Edna May and a new parcel of ounces confirmed at Symes Find, Forrestania looks to be methodically de-risking its production plans. As the final pieces fall into place for a pre-Christmas restart at Edna May and Lake Johnston making rapid progress towards its 2027 start-up, the two-hub strategy is edging closer to reality, setting the stage for the company to establish itself as a serious new force in WA's gold sector.
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