West African gold explorer Aurum Resources has struck high-grade gold, including some bonanza hits, right outside the boundaries of its mammoth 3.22-million-ounce Boundiali gold project in Côte d’Ivoire.
The latest batch of assays received are from 60 diamond drill holes over 12,251 metres, split between infill, step-out and extensional drilling at the BMT1 deposit and the BMT2 prospect. Both targets sit in the northern half of Aurum's BM tenement, in which it holds an 80 per cent interest.
The results are part of a massive 100,000m diamond drilling campaign and included a stunning 2.38-metre intercept grading 22.01 grams per tonne (g/t) gold from 277m, which housed an even higher-grade 1-metre core at a stellar 51.38g/t gold.
Other notable results from the 19 holes and 3790.9- metres of diamond drilling at the BMT2 prospect include a shallow hit of 1.5m assaying a rich 41.78g/t gold from just 27m downhole, with another hole delivering a wider 14.2m section going 2.36g/t gold from 205.8m and further hole landing 5.15m grading a solid 5.85g/t gold from 110m.
Significantly, the headline hit came from the BMT2 prospect, which currently sits outside the project’s defined resource, suggesting Aurum is onto a new zone of mineralisation that could potentially swell its already impressive resource base. The company says the gold system at the new ground remains open in all directions.
Additionally, 8460.65m of diamond drilling across 41 holes at the BMT1 deposit, host to 320,000 ounces of the global Boundiali resource, also delivered the goods. Top hits included a shallow intercept of 1.35 metres at a bonanza 43.32g/t gold from only 17 m, featuring a richer section of 1m at an eye-watering 47.56g/t gold from 182m.
The drill bit also punched into several broader zones of mineralisation at BMT1, returning assays of 19m grading 1.90g/t gold from 243m and 13.45m going 1.31g/t gold from 171.8m.
Aurum Resources managing director Dr Caigen Wang said: “Results from both areas will be assessed for the next Boundiali Mineral Resource update, which is targeted for early in the December quarter. It will then feed into the DFS due late this year.”
Aurum has the drill bit running hot across its West African gold portfolio in 2026, unleashing a colossal 130,000m drilling blitz, with 100,000m of diamond core aimed at fattening up Boundiali and another 30,000m set to put the drill bit to work at the neighbouring Napié project.
A key plank of the company’s strategy has been its ownership of a fleet of 16 diamond drill rigs, giving it the horsepower to explore faster and more cost-effectively than many of its peers.
Adding to Boundiali's momentum, the company was granted environmental approval for a six-million-tonne-per-annum gold mine in May. This was followed by a prefeasibility study in June, which projected an 11-year mine life delivering an estimated 1.5 million ounces of gold and a big maiden reserve of 1.21 million ounces.
For now, the current exploration push at Boundiali is designed to feed into a looming resource update, which is targeted for early in the fourth quarter of this year. The results will then be incorporated into a definitive feasibility study (DFS) for the project, expected in late 2026. The company appears to be well-funded for its ambitious plans, holding a healthy $54.6 million in cash at the end of June.
Alongside its flagship Boundiali play, Aurum owns 100 per cent of the nearby 1.16-million-ounce Napié project, which it picked up through a 2025 takeover of Mako Gold. The acquisition brought another serious chunk of gold into the fold and helped swell Aurum’s global resource to a hefty 4.4 million ounces - a gold endowment that would make many of its peers blush.
Napié features more than 26km of undrilled gold-bearing shear, with the 30,000-metre drilling program set to kick off in the December quarter this year.
With 16 drill rigs turning, a war chest of over $54 million and a clear pathway to a DFS, Aurum looks to be picking up the pace to build its impressive resource base as it continues the march toward its goal of becoming a major West African producer in the first half of 2028.
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By Murray Ward
