Krakatoa Resources Ltd (ASX:KTA) has kicked off its second field season at the Zopkhito Antimony-Gold Project in Georgia, with underground core sampling drilling now underway as the company targets a maiden JORC-compliant mineral resource estimate.
The program is focused on known mineralised antimony and gold veins within historical underground workings, with underground panel sampling and bulk sampling expected to begin in the coming weeks.
Focus on resource definition
The 2026 work program is centred on resource definition drilling, metallurgical optimisation and preliminary mining studies, with the aim of converting the project’s current foreign resource estimate into a JORC 2012-standard mineral resource estimate.
Zopkhito is in the Racha region of Georgia and covers 1,779 hectares under an existing mining licence valid until March 2042. Krakatoa holds an exclusive option to acquire up to 80% of the project.
The project hosts a foreign resource estimate of 225,000 tonnes at 11.6% antimony for 26,000 tonnes of contained antimony, along with 7.1 million tonnes at 3.7 g/t gold for 815,119 ounces of gold.
Krakatoa cautions that the foreign estimate is not reported in accordance with the JORC Code 2012 and further work is required before it can be classified as a mineral resource under that standard.
Historic work gives drill targeting advantage
The project benefits from extensive historical exploration, including about 27 kilometres of underground exploration adits, more than 15,000 historical channel and geochemical samples, and previous LiDAR and induced polarisation geophysical surveys.
Krakatoa 2025 drill program confirmed high-grade mineralisation within historical adits and identified an extended gold alteration system, in addition to high-grade quartz-antimony vein development.
CEO Mark Major said the 2026 field season had started after access and site preparation were completed, with the program designed to support a maiden JORC-compliant MRE and advance early mine development studies.
“With antimony emerging as a strategically critical mineral, Zopkhito has the potential to become a rare and significant European source of antimony,” Major said.
Location of the Zopkhito project, Georgia; and associated infrastructure (Roads=White, Rail= Black, Port=Red)
What's ahead
Krakatoa will continue underground drilling while preparing to start adit bulk sampling programs in the near term.
Additional metallurgical optimisation test work, preliminary mining studies, environmental baseline studies and permitting activities are also underway to support future project advancement.
