The decision follows the receipt of assays from a further 79 Reverse Circulation drill holes totalling 11,369m.

These returned broad, high-grade intersections from extensional and infill drilling at the Central Zone and broad intervals of significant mineralisation outside the 2.44Moz Resource at the Southern Zone.

Notable assays from Central Zone include:

  • 14m grading 3.91g/t Au from a down-hole depth of 41m including 9m at 5.42g/t from 45m (BSRC1956 – Jinkas)
  • 10m at 1.86g/t Au from 72m (BSRC1917 – White Dam); and
  • 12m at 1.19g/t Au from 76m including 5m at 2.3g/t from 81m (BSRC1953 – White Dam).

Adding further interest for Ausgold (ASX:AUC), metallurgical diamond drilling within the early mine schedule returned locally higher grades than previously interpreted with assays such as 8m at 9.54g/t Au from 90m including 5.8m at 13.15g/t from 90m and 11.2m at 1.93g/t from 72m (BSDD050 – Jinkas).

Meanwhile, resource extension drilling at Southern Zone returned assays such as 20m at 1.2g/t Au from 180m (BSRC1880 – Dingo) and 23m at 0.93g/t from 186m (BSRC1879 – Dingo).

“These latest results from the Central and Southern zones continue to reinforce the scale and continuity of the mineralised system at the Katanning Gold Project,” AUC executive chairman John Dorward said.

“The decision to expand the program to 54,000 metres reflects our confidence in the opportunity in front of us.

“With an additional diamond rig now mobilising to site – increasing the total to five rigs – and multiple growth fronts now active across Jinkas, Jackson, White Dam and Datatine, we are deliberately accelerating drilling to unlock further Resource growth.”

The Katanning Gold Project lies within a major mineralised structural corridor, with exploration to date outlining a 15km trend with multi-lode gold mineralisation across three key Resource zones.

AUC’s drill campaign is aimed at growing resources at the project, support future reserve conversion, improve confidence in early mine life areas and target new discoveries across its 3000km2 of regional tenure in WA’s southwest.

It has completed 232 holes totalling 33,588m to date with assays pending for about 12,000m.

The most recent Central Zone results consisted of 49 holes that were broadly evenly distributed between the Jinkas-White Dam system and the footwall-hosted Jackson deposit.

Of these, 19 holes drilled to test mineralisation beyond the resource extended mineralisation across all major deposits.

The results demonstrate strong potential for resource growth down-dip with future pit optimisations expected to progressively capture the full extent of mineralisation along the synformal hinge.

Infill holes broadly confirmed modelled mineralisation, with more than three-quarters of these holes reconciling in line with or above block model expectations.

Diamond drilling aimed at collecting additional metallurgical composites from material scheduled within the first one or two years of the mine life returned positive grade reconciliation that provides increased confidence in grade distribution and supports expectations for higher grade feed early in the mine life.

At Southern Zone, 14 of the 28 reported holes were drilled to test mineralisation outside the current Resource and definitive feasibility study pit designs.

These returned significant mineralisation that highlighted the potential to extend the mineralisation down-dip beyond the Resource and mine design envelopes.

Infill drilling returned locally improved or consistent widths and grades relative to the current Resource model.

Drilling to extend the primary Jinkas lode down-plunge is in progress to complement previously reported down-dip extensions.

AUC is awaiting the imminent arrival of an additional diamond rig to accelerate drilling at Datatine and Jinkas Deeps.

It is also awaiting outstanding assays from the Jackson and White Dam lodes, which are relatively shallowly tested compared to Jinkas and Dingo.

This presents opportunities to materially grow the Resource through systematic down-plunge drilling of mineralised shoots.

RC drilling of regional targets such as Nanicup Bridge and Kulin will begin in March 2026 to expand the company’s growth focus beyond the current resource footprint.

An updated resource is also expected in Q3 2026.