Australia's East Scotia Gold Project Seeks Exploration Tenement Covering 738 Square Kilometers

en.Wedoany.com Reported - On September 2, Nex Wongatha JV Pty Ltd, a joint venture formed by Nex Metals Explorations and Wangkatja Tjungula Aboriginal Corporation (WTAC), lodged four exploration licence applications aimed at further expanding the tenure footprint of the East Scotia Gold Project in Western Australia. The four applications collectively cover approximately 738 square kilometers; if all are granted and the previously announced tenement acquisition is completed, the project's total granted and pending tenure would reach approximately 873.1 square kilometers. All four applications are currently in the statutory approval process and do not confer any right to conduct exploration activities on the joint venture until formally granted.

The new applications are ELA29/1349, ELA29/1350, ELA29/1351, and ELA29/1352, covering approximately 190.2 square kilometers, 207.8 square kilometers, 208.7 square kilometers, and 131.2 square kilometers, respectively. The existing East Scotia transaction scope includes three exploration licences, E24/222, E24/223, and E24/224, as well as prospecting licence P24/5496, totaling approximately 135.1 square kilometers. These granted tenements are currently still held by the original holder, Kalgoorlie Mining Associates Pty Ltd, and the transfer to the joint venture has not yet been completed.

Nex Metals and WTAC finalized the acquisition of the above-mentioned 135.1 square kilometers of tenements on August 14, with a purchase price of A$100,000 plus a 2% net smelter return royalty. Of the A$100,000 consideration, 75% is payable upon completion of the transaction, with the remaining 25% payable after the successful transfer of the tenements; the transaction is also subject to the satisfaction of due diligence and other conditions precedent. The parties have set December 31, 2026, as the transaction deadline, after which either party may terminate the deal if completion has not occurred. The project acquisition costs are funded by WTAC under the parties' joint venture arrangement.

The East Scotia Project is located in the Eastern Goldfields of Western Australia, distributed along the Goldfields Highway approximately 60 to 130 kilometers north of Kalgoorlie-Boulder. The expanded project covers the northern portion of the Scotia–Kanowna granodiorite and sits within the same regional structural setting as the Golden Cities and Kanowna Belle deposits. The Mount Monger Fault transects the northeastern part of the project, while the Bardoc Shear Zone lies to the west of the Scotia intrusion. Based on publicly available government exploration records and geological data, Nex Metals considers that the northern areas covered by the new applications have received relatively limited modern systematic exploration to date.

In the next phase, the joint venture will concurrently progress the approval of the four new exploration licences, the conditions precedent and transfer process for the previously announced tenement acquisition, and continue to enhance the project's geological database. Following receipt of the relevant approvals and satisfaction of ground-disturbance activity conditions, the initial field work program will include broad-scale auger geochemical sampling and geological reconnaissance to verify existing geological and geophysical data and to define priority target areas for follow-up exploration. The original East Scotia exploration plan announced in August also includes an initial program of reverse circulation or air-core drilling, although such work is likewise subject to obtaining the necessary approvals.