Leeuwin Metals Ltd has finalised its acquisition of the Marda Gold Project in Western Australia’s Eastern Goldfields and is preparing to start its maiden drilling program in the coming weeks.
The acquisition was completed after shareholders gave their approval at a meeting on March 17. The company has now assumed 100% ownership of the project, with field activities already underway, drilling contractors engaged and mobilisation in progress.
A detailed review of the project database is well advanced, aimed at validating historic data, identifying new exploration targets and outlining extensions to known zones of gold mineralisation.
These targets will be the focus of the upcoming drill program and the company plans to drill 10,000 metres this calendar year, which will be funded through proceeds from the recently completed A$3.25 million share placement.
“We received overwhelming support from shareholders for the Marda acquisition and now we are undertaking the final preparations for our first drilling program there,” Leeuwin executive chairman, Christopher Piggott, said.
“We have worked hard to ensure that we can implement our exploration strategy immediately upon completion of the acquisition and we are looking forward to testing some of the targets we have identified.”
Significant exploration potential
The Marda Gold Project covers more than 500 square kilometres of granted mining, exploration and prospecting leases and is approximately 120 kilometres north of Southern Cross in Western Australia. The project hosts eight open pits and numerous historical workings, with substantial exploration upside underscored by multiple high-priority targets requiring immediate follow-up.
Marda Regional Location showing greenstone belt extents. Map projection: MGA94 z50.
Leeuwin intends to prioritise under-explored areas with high-grade potential, where mineralisation remains open and untested by modern drilling. The company views Marda as an advanced-stage gold asset offering near-term development opportunities alongside longer-term exploration growth.
Multiple targets
Marda is made up of multiple targets across four key areas: Marda Central, Marda North, Marda South and Marda West. These targets span a range of exploration stages, from resource definition around existing open pits and historical workings to geochemical anomalies and untested conceptual targets.
Marda Central Mine Trend (Left) and Evanston Mine Trend (right), multiple high-priority targets requiring follow-up exploration as at 20 December 2024. Historical production figures from Marda are sourced from Ramelius Resources' Annual Report released on 18 October 2024.
The diversity gives Leeuwin the ability to design and implement multiple exploration work programs throughout 2025, with an initial focus on the more advanced targets.