Neometals Limited has started drilling beneath and along strike of the historic Barrambie Ranges gold mine in WA’s Murchison after a soil and mapping campaign defined multiple high-priority targets. The company says the 2,000-metre reverse-circulation program will test extensions of previously mined high-grade veins and add new data to its growing Barrambie dataset, which already includes a maiden resource at Ironclad and high-grade hits at Mystery.
Neometals Limited has turned the rig on at its Barrambie Ranges gold project in Western Australia’s Murchison region, launching a 2,000-metre reverse-circulation program aimed at extending high-grade zones below and along strike of the historic Golden Treasure and Barrambie Ranges workings.
The company says drilling will test unmined mineralisation identified from soil sampling and rock-chip work during 2024 and early 2025, when reconnaissance across the 40-kilometre greenstone belt picked up multiple anomalies within 505 square kilometres of tenure. Those lines follow a gold corridor that has historically delivered average production grades of up to 25 grams per tonne (g/t) - small-scale, but high-tenor rock by any measure.
Neometals’ geologists are targeting repeat lodes similar to the Ironclad deposit 20 kilometres to the south, where a maiden resource of 250,000 tonnes at 1.6g/t for 13,000 ounces was tabled in June. A follow-up diamond campaign at Ironclad and Mystery wrapped up in July, with assays pending. The company has also flagged a mining lease application to formalise its ground position.
The latest program extends the narrative from surface mapping to the drill bit. High-grade rock chips of up to 60g/t gold have been logged in the Barrambie Ranges area and several of the new holes are designed to step beneath those results. The campaign will also collect modern structural data to help model the vein network at depth - something never done systematically in the old workings.
Neometals Limited managing director Chris Reed said: “This program represents an exciting return to active gold exploration at Barrambie Ranges. We’re testing extensions below the old Golden Treasure mine and following up anomalies that haven’t seen a modern drill rig. It’s part of a broader effort to crystallise the value of Barrambie’s gold potential while we progress the titanium and vanadium divestment.”
The company’s strategy has visibly shifted this year. Following the sale of its 50 per cent interest in the Primobius lithium-ion battery recycling venture to SMS group for about A$10 million in cash plus royalties, Neometals has simplified its portfolio and replenished its treasury. That decision freed it from future capital calls and allowed management to redeploy funds towards near-term, self-controlled assets, namely Barrambie’s gold.
The “return to gold” mentioned by Reed couldn’t be better timed, with spot gold breaching US$4000 today ($A6095) for the first time ever.
The Barrambie district is no backwater. It sits between Sandstone and Meekatharra, flanked by producers including Ramelius, Ora Banda and Westgold.
Market watchers will note the symmetry. A company that once pioneered battery recycling technology in Europe is now chasing old-fashioned ounces in the Murchison. And, aside from diving into gold as prices run wild, there’s additional logic in the pivot — lower capital intensity, shorter feedback loops, and a resource base that can build optionality around either sale or development.
Neometals’ June-quarter report showed A$4.4 million in cash, no debt and another A$11 million in receivables and investments. Add the Primobius sale proceeds and it has plenty of runway to keep the rigs turning through the end of the year.
If the coming assays confirm extensions beneath Golden Treasure, Barrambie could quickly move from a forgotten pit to a cornerstone of Neometals’ revival story - a company shifting from recycling batteries to chasing gold - the very same precious metal that built its name in the first place.
Is your ASX-listed company doing something interesting? Contact: matt.birney@businessnews.com.au
