Lunnon Metals (ASX:LM8) expands Lady Herial system with new gold structure at Defiance Dolerite
April 2, 2026Lunnon Metals has reported a combination of steady mining progress at its Lady Herial operation and encouraging exploration results from the Defiance Dolerite, reinforcing the broader structural continuity of the Foster-Baker Gold Project in the St Ives district.
The update centres on early production metrics alongside the identification of a new gold structure northwest of the existing pit, providing additional geological context to a system already demonstrating depth and scale.
Highlights
- 38,287t @ 1.56 g/t Au mined to date for over 1,750oz gold
- First “Collection Notices” issued under the Ore Purchase Agreement with St Ives Gold Mining Co. Pty Ltd
- New gold structure identified at the Agnes prospect within Zone 4 of the Defiance Dolerite
- Key intercept of 8m @ 1.99 g/t Au from 179m returned
- Mineralised system interpreted to extend more than 550m down plunge
- Over 2.3km of prospective strike remains untested to the northwest at surface
Mining at Lady Herial, the company’s first gold operation, is progressing in line with the January 2026 Feasibility Study, despite wet weather earlier in the month.
During March, the first collection notices were issued under the Ore Purchase Agreement, marking the transition into ore delivery and processing.
Since mining commenced, material has been signed off and made available for collection, with performance tracking in line with the previously stated schedule.
From a cost perspective, the company noted no negative impact relating to diesel availability.
It continues to monitor price fluctuations, while the average A$ gold price applicable under the Ore Purchase Agreement to date is higher than the base case modelled in the Feasibility Study, assisting to offset potential increases in operating costs.
Mining activities are expected to continue as planned, supported by coordination with the mining contractor and processing counterparty.
Exploration outcomes from the Defiance Dolerite program provide the primary incremental update, with reverse circulation drilling at the Agnes prospect initially returning limited shallow results before deeper follow up intersected quartz veining with sulphides in dolerite, leading to the delineation of a new gold structure.
Intercepts include 8m @ 1.99 g/t Au from 179m and 3m @ 1.37 g/t Au from 124m, with mineralisation occurring at depths currently beyond the defined open pit envelope.
Additional drilling targeting the down plunge extension of the Lady Herial Upper Structure returned intercepts including 7m @ 1.40 g/t Au from 98m, 3m @ 0.97 g/t Au from 159.8m and 11.3m @ 1.54 g/t Au from 137.4m.
These represent the deepest intercepts drilled by the company to date on that structure, now defining a drilled plunge extent of more than 300m.
A reinterpretation of historical diamond drilling completed in the 1970s has further extended the conceptual scale of the system.
Previously unrecorded zones of quartz veining, shearing and sulphides identified from original geological logs align down dip with the Lady Herial Upper Structure, and when integrated into the current geological model suggest a plunge extent of more than 550m with the system remaining open.
This structural continuity is occurring within the Defiance Dolerite, a known favourable host unit within the broader St Ives and Kambalda gold camp.
The orientation of the newly identified Agnes structure remains under investigation, with one interpretation suggesting a steep northward dip potentially linking with, or terminating against, the Northwest prospect structures.
As Lunnon Metals Managing Director Edmund Ainscough stated,
“The broader Lady Herial structural system continues to grow and now encompasses the three structures (Upper, Middle and Lower) currently being mined in the open pit, the NWP and Agnes to the northwest, as well as Hustler just 400m to the southeast. These mineralised gold structures are displaying plunge lengths of over 500m and the system shows great continuity at depth, plunging towards our nickel Mineral Resources hosted at the Foster nickel mine. This opens up the exciting potential for future exploitation from underground, both gold and nickel, after the open pit mining phase has concluded.”
Looking ahead, exploration will continue along strike where over 2,300m of Defiance Dolerite remains untested to the northwest, with a further approximately 1,500m to the southeast also yet to be assessed.
The immediate focus is on refining the geometry and continuity of the newly defined structures and assessing their role within the broader development sequence.
Within the context of a well-established mining district with existing infrastructure and processing capacity, the combination of active production at Lady Herial and expanding structural definition at depth supports a staged development approach.
The project is advancing through open pit extraction while building a geological framework that may underpin future underground considerations as drilling continues to extend the system.
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