Terrain Minerals Ltd (ASX:TMX, OTC:TMXAF, FRA:T4Y) has completed a substantial drilling campaign across its Lightning and Wildflower prospects at the Smokebush Gold & Silver Project in Western Australia, marking a key step towards a maiden resource estimate at the Lightning discovery.
The campaign included 39 reverse circulation (RC) holes and four diamond drill holes for a combined 7,739 metres of drilling, with assays now pending and results expected to begin flowing later this month.
Lightning remains central to Terrain’s near-term development strategy, with the latest drilling focused on extending known mineralised zones while also testing new discovery targets.
“This is a major milestone for Terrain, with more than 7,700 metres of RC and diamond drilling now completed across Lightning and Wildflower as part of this campaign,” said Terrain executive director Justin Virgin.
“The Lightning results are central to our strategy of delivering a maiden JORC Mineral Resource by mid-2026, while the diamond core will provide the critical density and geological data required to underpin that estimate.”
New M59/0796 tenement conversion area seen in yellow.
Lightning drilling focused on resource growth
At the Lightning prospect, Terrain completed 26 RC holes for 4,803 metres, with samples already submitted for laboratory analysis and results expected in March 2026.
Most of the program — about 3,350 metres of drilling — was designed to extend known gold mineralisation, while 1,089 metres targeted new discovery zones and a further 364 metres tested a potential repeat of the Lightning-style mineralisation in previously undrilled ground.
Lightning - Indicative drill traces of the now completed 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 acting as traps for thicker, high-grade mineralisation.
In addition to the RC program, the company drilled four diamond holes for 660 metres, with 340 metres of RC pre-collars and 320 metres of diamond core.
These diamond holes are expected to provide critical geological and density data required to support the planned maiden JORC mineral resource estimate for Lightning.
The prospect sits within the Yalgoo Mineral Field, a proven gold district located about 350 kilometres north of Perth and near several operating mines, including the Rothsay gold mine around 15 kilometres away.
Previous drilling at Lightning has returned notable gold and silver intersections, including:
- 22 metres at 2.71 g/t gold and 21 metres at 15.79 g/t silver
- 17 metres at 3.43 g/t gold and 17.88 g/t silver
- 11 metres at 6.03 g/t gold and 43.5 g/t silver
- 13 metres at 8.13 g/t gold
These earlier results underpin the company’s confidence that Lightning could host a meaningful mineral resource.
Wildflower tests new exploration targets
Meanwhile, drilling has also been completed at the nearby Wildflower prospect, where Terrain tested three high-priority targets generated from geological modelling developed at Lightning.
The Wildflower program consisted of 13 RC holes for 2,276 metres, targeting induced polarisation (IP) anomalies associated with large gold-in-soil anomalies.
These targets extend over an interpreted structural corridor of more than 800 metres and are hosted within geological structures similar to those associated with the Lightning discovery.
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), see diagram 2.
The Wildflower targets represent the first systematic drilling of prospects generated using the Lightning geological model and form part of Terrain’s broader strategy to unlock additional discoveries across the Smokebush project area.
Samples from the Wildflower drilling are being transported for laboratory testing, with assay results expected in late April 2026.
Exploration momentum building at Smokebush
Terrain’s Smokebush Gold & Silver Project lies within a prospective mineral corridor in Western Australia’s Yalgoo region and includes several emerging gold and silver prospects alongside the Larin’s Lane gallium discovery.
Location of Terrain Minerals 100% owned Smokebush Gold Prospect.
The company holds a 100% interest in the project and has been progressively advancing exploration through geophysics, soil sampling and drilling programs designed to identify and test new targets.
With drilling now complete across both Lightning and Wildflower, the company’s next major catalysts will be assay results and the ongoing work required to support the planned maiden resource estimate at Lightning.
Virgin said the results from the latest campaign would play a critical role in shaping the project’s next stage of development.
“Lightning RC assay results are expected later this month, with diamond drilling results anticipated in late April 2026, while Wildflower RC results are also expected in late April,” he said.
“I look forward to updating the market as these results come to hand.”
