Reach Resources (ASX:RR1) metallurgical results strengthen processing pathway and reduce early development risk

Jeremy Bower, Chief Executive Officer of Reach Resources, joins MarketOpen today to discuss the company’s latest metallurgical testwork results from the Murchison South Gold Project and what they mean for processing pathways, third party treatment options, and near term development sequencing.

What do these metallurgical test results change in practical terms for how Murchison South ore can be processed?

The test program confirms that mineralisation from Murchison South is free milling, relatively soft, and amenable to conventional gravity and cyanide leach processing using conditions aligned with nearby toll and ore purchase facilities.

Across three composites representing early production material, gold recoveries between 95.2% and 97.4% were achieved at P80 106µm, with low lime and cyanide consumption and no significant deleterious elements identified under the test conditions.

Work was completed using representative site water and parameters consistent with third party plant requirements, which ties the outcomes directly to external processing scenarios rather than laboratory only settings.

The ore responds well under standard gravity and cyanide leach conditions that match nearby third party plants.

How do these recovery and reagent results affect the case for toll milling or ore purchase arrangements?

The metallurgical results provide technical support for assessing treatment through third party toll milling or ore purchase facilities located within cost effective trucking distance of the project, because the flowsheet tested mirrors those plant configurations.

Testwork shows rapid leach dissolution, minimal grind sensitivity above P80 150µm, and favourable crushing and comminution characteristics, which together indicate compatibility with conventional circuits used by nearby operators.

Reagent consumption remained low and no preg robbing behaviour was observed across the tested composites, which limits additional processing complexity under the gravity and cyanide leach approach.

Recovery, grind size, and reagent profiles are aligned with third party plant settings rather than requiring specialised processing.

What does the grind sensitivity and comminution work indicate about processing flexibility and throughput?

Comminution and grind sensitivity testwork shows the material is suitable for Ball Mill, SAG, or combined SAG and Ball Mill circuits, and that overall gold extraction remains high across multiple grind sizes including P80 75, 106, 150, and 212µm.

Minimal sensitivity between P80 106 and 150µm means acceptable recoveries can be maintained without requiring ultra fine grinding, while the ore is described as competent though relatively soft, which supports higher plant throughput scenarios under conventional milling circuits.

These characteristics were recorded across both master composites and the variability composite that represents early weathered material likely to appear in initial production. Recovery remains robust across a range of grind settings, which supports operational flexibility at third party plants.

Were any processing risks identified through deleterious elements, preg robbing, or environmental testwork?

Comprehensive head assays on the master and variability composites recorded very low concentrations of common deleterious elements and heavy metals for a gravity and cyanide leach plant, and BLEG testing showed high cyanide leachable gold extraction for samples above 0.5g per tonne with negligible cyanide extractable copper present.

Leach testwork reported no evidence of preg robbing and low reagent consumption, while acid mine drainage characterisation of leach residues classified the tested composites as non acid forming at the assessed grind size.

Rheological testing at P80 106µm indicated no pumping or handling challenges for the main composites, with only fully weathered material potentially requiring additional spray water when treated on its own. No material metallurgical or materials handling barriers were identified under the tested conditions.

How does this metallurgical program fit into the broader project study and development sequence?

The metallurgical program was designed and managed to reflect third party processing requirements and early production composites, and it forms part of the technical base used to evaluate processing pathways at Murchison South.

The company confirms that a Scoping Study remains in progress and that no Scoping Study results or conclusions are included in or should be inferred from this announcement, which keeps the metallurgical outcomes clearly separated from study level economics.

The results support further assessment of processing options using gravity and cyanide leach flowsheets and external facilities, based on measured recoveries and processing characteristics from representative material.

This work reduces processing uncertainty while formal study work continues in parallel.

Third party processing options move into executable assessment phase

Reach Resources is applying verified metallurgical performance under representative third party plant conditions to support external processing assessments using conventional gravity and cyanide leach circuits, with Jeremy Bower, Chief Executive Officer, linking the latest program directly to the next stage evaluation of toll treatment and ore purchase pathways.

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