Aurum Resources Ltd (ASX:AUE) has lodged three mining exploitation licence applications covering its Boundiali Gold Project in Côte d’Ivoire, with the latest two submissions filed in December 2025.
The applications are now before the Côte d’Ivoire Ministry of Mines, Petroleum and Energy and span the Boundiali South (BST), Boundiali DS (BD) and Boundiali Minex (BM) tenements, with a combined area of 572.67 km².
The December lodgements relate to the BD and BM applications, covering 130.38 km² and 274.93 km² respectively. These join the earlier BST application (167.36 km²) submitted in March 2025.
Notably, Aurum reported an unaudited cash balance of about $40.1 million as at December 31, 2025, which it said is expected to support its 2026 development and exploration plans across Boundiali and Napié.
"The rapid transition from exploration to mining licence applications across our entire Boundiali footprint is a testament to the quality of our assets and the efficiency of our team," Aurum managing director Dr. Caigen Wang said.
"In 2025, we grew our resource from 1.59Moz to 2.41Moz and completed over 108,000m of drilling at Boundiali. With $40 million in the bank and a clear pathway to a Definitive Feasibility Study (DFS) in late 2026, we are perfectly positioned to deliver significant value this year."
Licence footprint and upcoming work
Aurum is positioning the permitting progress alongside a near-term technical update schedule. The company is targeting several releases during Q1 CY2026, including:
- an updated Mineral Resource Estimate for Boundiali, currently reported at 2.41 Moz
- an updated Mineral Resource Estimate for Napié, currently reported at 0.87 Moz
- a Pre-Feasibility Study for Boundiali
Aurum also outlined its 2026 drilling plan, flagging up to 100,000 metres of diamond drilling at Boundiali across the year. The program includes two additional MRE updates targeted for mid-year and late-year, following the Q1 update.
At Napié, the company is planning a further 30,000 metres of diamond drilling in 2026, alongside the Q1 resource update schedule.
Background
Boundiali is Aurum’s flagship project in Côte d’Ivoire. The company’s latest update frames the three pending exploitation licence applications as a step toward development planning, while the upcoming Q1 CY2026 resource updates and Boundiali PFS are expected to provide fresh technical detail on project scale and economics.