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Aureka (ASX: AKA) has extended the known mineralised footprint of its flagship Irvine gold project in Victoria by 725m along strike, following the discovery of two new zones of gold mineralisation north of the existing Resolution Lode resource.
The results from first-pass scout drilling demonstrate the potential for further discoveries beyond Irvine’s current JORC Mineral Resource Estimate (MRE), strengthening the company’s ambitions to develop a significant gold operation in Victoria’s Stawell Corridor.
Diamond drill hole RD057 intersected two mineralised zones approximately 725m north-northwest of the Resolution Lode, within a previously untested conceptual exploration target.
The first returned 4.25m at 1.42 grams per tonne (g/t) gold from 173m, including 1.5m at 3.16g/t.
A second zone delivered 5.65m at 0.83g/t gold from 341.5m, including 0.85m at 3.19g/t.
Both intersections occur within geological settings comparable to those hosting the existing Resolution mineralisation, providing further evidence of the system’s potential to extend along strike.
Aureka managing director James Gurry described the results as an important breakthrough for the project.
“Discovering gold mineralisation this far north of the current JORC Resource is a breakthrough for the team, and means the Irvine project is again growing in footprint, just after we announced growth at depth and mineralisation in the gap between the lodes,” Gurry said.
“The growing extent of the Irvine project solidifies it as one of Victoria’s most significant gold projects.”
The latest results build on previous drilling that has expanded mineralisation at depth and identified additional opportunities between the Resolution and Adventure lodes.
Resolution currently hosts an inferred resource of 4.11 million tonnes grading 2.71g/t gold for approximately 358,000 ounces, following an update in June 2026.
The Adventure Lode contributes a further inferred 40,300 ounces, based on its 2021 maiden resource estimate.
Aureka exploration manager Jozef Story said the new intercepts highlighted the effectiveness of the company’s geological targeting approach.
“These most recent intercepts yet again successfully demonstrate the expansive fertility and under-explored potential of the Irvine mineral system beyond that of the current JORC Mineral Resource Estimate,” Story said.
“It again re-enforces the importance of targeting areas of increased structural complexity and emerging second order structures orthogonal to the main Irvine shear when exploring for additional gold mineralisation within the region of the Resolution and Adventure Lodes that together make up the Irvine gold project.”
The discovery is located approximately 500m south of the Stawell Granite, along trend from Resolution and towards the operating Stawell gold mine.
Despite approximately 59km of drilling completed since Irvine’s discovery in 2017, Aureka believes significant exploration opportunities remain.
Ongoing drilling will investigate mineralisation associated with secondary geological structures and potential extensions of existing lodes.
For investors, the latest results add another dimension to Aureka’s Victorian gold development strategy.
Alongside the expanding Irvine resource, the company is pursuing opportunities involving the Fiddlers Creek underground mine, the nearer-term Comstock project and the Wedderburn processing mill.
Together, these assets provide Aureka with a potential pathway to integrate exploration growth with mining and processing opportunities.
The immediate focus at Irvine remains on determining whether the newly identified mineralisation can develop into additional lodes and ultimately support further resource growth.
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