- 01Hit 20m at 7.77g/t gold, incl. 2m at 54.04g/t.
- 02Pit 4: 36m at 3.53g/t, 80m below pit design.
- 03MRE due March 2027; restart targeted mid-2027.
Maritana Minerals (ASX: MRT) has completed its Boorara gold drilling campaign near Kalgoorlie, with final assays strengthening confidence in planned open pit mineralisation and identifying further gold beneath the southern pit.
The final 52 holes of a 119-hole reverse circulation program included a standout 20 metres at 7.77 grams per tonne gold from 100m, including 2m at 54.04g/t.
Separate drilling beneath Pit 4 intersected 36m at 3.53g/t from 142m, including 1m at 62.44g/t, although its down-plunge orientation means the interval is not a true mineralised width.
The results will feed a revised mineral resource estimate targeted for the March 2027 quarter as Maritana prepares for a proposed mining restart at Boorara in mid-2027.
Sharper Definition Between Pits
Infill drilling concentrated on the ground between previously mined Pits 2 and 4, where additional intersections have improved the interpretation of the principal gold-bearing contact lodes.
Alongside the standout high-grade result, the latest assays returned 19m at 1.63g/t from 108m and another 19m at 1.32g/t from 66m, supporting continuity across the targeted zones.
A further intersection of 10m at 1.67g/t from 30m added evidence of mineralisation in shallower portions of the system, rather than relying solely on the deepest results.
The company has begun revising its mineralisation wireframes after identifying areas where gold-bearing zones appear wider than previously interpreted, with final resource classifications yet to be established.
Southern Pit Remains Open
Two deliberately oriented holes tested mineralisation down dip and down plunge, providing information on gold distribution and vein geometry beyond the conventional infill drill pattern.
One hole beneath Pit 4 returned both the 36m high-grade interval and 20m at 1.75g/t from 34m, with drilling confirming mineralisation below the current pit design.
The deeper intersection sits approximately 80m beneath the designed pit shell, while the broader Boorara system remains open to the north and at depth.
“These final results continue to build confidence in Boorara, with the infill drilling better defining the main contact lodes and indicating that gold mineralisation is wider in places than previously understood,” managing director Grant Haywood said.
“With the Boorara program now complete, these results will be incorporated into an updated MRE and pit optimisation work, supporting Ore Reserve updates and the life-of-mine plan for Maritana.”
Boorara Restart Planning
Located approximately 17 kilometres east of Kalgoorlie-Boulder, Boorara contains the Royal, Regal, and Crown Jewel deposits across roughly 1.5km of strike.
The deposit is a planned ore source for Maritana’s Black Swan Processing Hub, with the company targeting renewed mining activity and first gold through the hub in mid-2027.
Mining at Boorara stopped in December 2025 when an earlier ore purchase agreement ended, with the operation subsequently moved into care and maintenance.
Grade-control drilling and pre-production preparations are expected ahead of the proposed restart, while two earlier-ended holes may be revisited but are not expected to materially affect the MRE update.
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