Terrain Minerals Ltd (ASX:TMX, OTC:TMXAF) has temporarily paused its 2025 reverse circulation (RC) drilling campaign at the Smokebush Gold Project in Western Australia for the Christmas and New Year period, with field activities set to resume in early January 2026.
The pause follows steady progress at the Lightning prospect, where 12 of a planned 21 reverse circulation holes have been completed as part of a broader 6,800-metre program across the Smokebush project area. Terrain said the break allows geological staff and contractors to stand down safely over the festive period, with drilling expected to recommence in the second week of January.
Lightning - Indicative drill traces of the current reverse circulation drilling program superimposed over the open-file Western Australian government aeromagnetic data for the prospect area. Early modelling suggests a north-trending shear zone acts as a gold fluid pathway with east west high magnetic lithological units are acting as traps for thicker, high-grade mineralisation.
Lightning drilling progresses towards maiden JORC target
At Lightning, Terrain has now drilled 2,459 metres across 12 holes, with assays to be released once results from the full program are received. The Lightning campaign is designed to underpin a maiden JORC Mineral Resource, which the company is targeting before mid-2026.
The 4,500-metre Lightning program is focused primarily on extending known gold zones along strike and down-plunge, building tonnage around existing high-grade intercepts and testing for potential new discoveries. Previous drilling at Lightning has returned encouraging gold and silver results, including multiple broad, high-grade intervals, reinforcing the prospect’s development potential.
The Lightning tenements were successfully converted to a granted Mining Lease earlier this month, strengthening the project’s development pathway and providing greater flexibility for ongoing drilling and future studies.
New M59/0796 tenement conversion area seen in yellow.
Read more: Terrain Minerals secures Lightning mining licence ahead of 2026 maiden resource push
Rig to move to Wildflower after Lightning completion
Once drilling at Lightning is completed, Terrain plans to mobilise the rig to the nearby Wildflower prospect, where a 13-hole, 2,300-metre RC program is scheduled to begin in January.
Wildflower hosts multiple induced polarisation (IP) targets beneath gold-in-soil anomalies and sits within a similar geological setting to Lightning, adjacent to the same granite intrusion. Terrain has identified three priority structures extending over more than 800 metres, with drilling aimed at testing whether the mineralisation style seen at Lightning repeats across the broader Smokebush system.
Wildflower - Chargeability models overlain on the open-file Total Magnetic Intensity first vertical derivative (TMI 1VD) aeromagnetic image. Interpreted structural breaks, including faults, are marked in orange. The chargeability anomaly observed on 834000N, 838000N and 842000N is outlined by a dashed red ellipse. This interpreted chargeability anomaly, which appears centred on the T16 target, extends for more than 800 metres and remains open to the northeast and southwest (extending into Terrain Mineral’s 100% owned granted tenement E 59/2345).
Results from the Wildflower drilling program are expected in April 2026, providing another near-term catalyst as Terrain works to grow its gold footprint in the Yalgoo Mineral Field.
Funding and location support ongoing work
Terrain enters the new year well funded, having raised $2.75 million during the December quarter, including $450,000 in director participation, subject to shareholder approval. The company said the capital raise supports its ongoing exploration programs and resource definition work across Smokebush.
Read more: Terrain locks in $1.42 million December placement to fully fund 2026 drill programs
The Smokebush project area is located about 350 kilometres north of Perth and benefits from established access via regional roads and historic exploration tracks. Lightning is located around 15 kilometres from Vault Mining’s operating Rothsay gold mine, placing it within a proven gold district.
Location of Terrain Minerals 100% owned Smokebush Gold Prospect.
Broader project pipeline
Beyond Smokebush, Terrain maintains a diversified exploration portfolio across Western Australia and Queensland, spanning gold, copper, rare earths, lithium and gallium. The company said it continues to assess additional growth opportunities while prioritising near-term resource development at Lightning.
With drilling set to resume in January and multiple assay results due in the first half of 2026, Terrain is positioning itself for a busy start to the new year as it advances toward its first gold resource.