Kairos Minerals Ltd has added seasoned mining executive Simon Lill as its new non-executive chairman, shoring up its board as the company launches its largest-ever drilling campaign at the Mt York Gold Project in Western Australia’s Pilbara region.
Lill brings a formidable track record in resource development and capital markets, having served as chairman of De Grey Mining since 2013, through its transformation from a junior explorer into a $6 billion takeover target. His tenure there included the discovery of the 11.2-million-ounce (Moz) Hemi gold deposit and more than $1 billion raised in capital, culminating in last month’s blockbuster acquisition by Northern Star Resources Ltd.
Kairos managing director Dr Peter Turner said Lill’s appointment comes at a pivotal time for the company, which is targeting a significant resource upgrade from the current 1.4 million ounces at Mt York.
“Simon’s proven leadership will be invaluable in supporting Kairos’ strategy of growing the gold resource as well as commencing development plans at Mt York,” Turner said.
“Mt York is one of the Pilbara’s largest, undeveloped, free-milling gold projects that is set to get bigger,” he added. “It is located just 55 kilometres from Hemi, a region Simon knows intimately.”
‘Big opportunity for resource growth’
Kairos’ plans to scale up operations at Mt York as it contemplates the project’s potential to support a large-scale open-pit operation. With two drill rigs now turning and another pair scheduled to arrive, the current drilling effort will help underpin a pre-feasibility study, which is already fully funded.
Lill said the combination of a consolidated resource in a single pit shell, ongoing drilling and strong financial backing gives Kairos a compelling development runway.
“Kairos ticks many development boxes with a strong team, an existing resource of 1.4Moz in a single pit shell, big opportunity for resource growth and cash at bank,” he said. “Incentives are geared towards an MRE of 2Moz of gold, and with drilling under way we look forward to the flow of results in the next weeks and months.”
Lill also noted that the project’s banded-iron-formation (BIF) style of gold mineralisation differs from Hemi’s intrusion-hosted system, offering distinct geological upside.
Positioned for expansion
Lill’s appointment coincides with a broader board reshuffle: director Phil Coulson will step down but remain as an adviser, while Zane Lewis resumes a non-executive director role after serving as interim chairman.
Lill’s remuneration includes a $120,000 annual fee and up to 30 million performance rights, subject to shareholder approval, tied to achieving key milestones such as 2 million ounces of JORC resource and share price targets of 4 and 6 cents.
The appointment reinforces Kairos’ ambition to position Mt York as one of Australia’s next significant standalone gold developments, leveraging deep regional expertise and investor familiarity with Pilbara gold’s potential.
Kairos said next steps for the project are to drill extensions at Mt York and nearby gold prospects for resource increases while targeting near-surface, high-grade shoots to further improve the project’s economics. During this expansion, it will fine-tune its metallurgical processing, geotechnical engineering and mine scheduling for further development studies.