Western Ridge Launches $1.31M Placement for Murchison Drill Programme
Key Takeaways
- Western Ridge has entered a binding heads of agreement to acquire four granted Murchison tenements, with Programmes of Work for RC drilling already approved across three of the four licences.
- The Seven Mile Well Gold-Antimony Project sits 7km along strike from the Big Bell Gold Deposit, which has produced over 2.6 million ounces of gold, with a conceptual exploration target of 2Mt to 11Mt at 1g/t to 5g/t Au for 130,000oz to 1,000,000oz of contained gold.
- Antimony is listed as a critical mineral in both Australia and the United States, with spot prices at approximately US$28,300/tonne as at 24 September 2026, adding a strategic commodity dimension beyond gold alone.
- A A$1.31 million placement at $0.025 per share has been completed to fund maiden drilling at Murchison and advance the Keystone Project in Nevada, with shareholder approval expected at the mid-November 2026 AGM.
- RC drilling at Seven Mile Well is targeted for December 2026, with Lady Alma's 2,000m maiden drilling programme and a Gradient Array IP survey at Seven Mile Well both commencing from November 2026.
WRX secures drill-ready Murchison gold-antimony portfolio with maiden drilling targeted for Q4 2026
Western Ridge Resources Limited (ASX: WRX) has entered into a binding heads of agreement with Odin Capital Group Pty Ltd to acquire a portfolio of four granted tenements in Western Australia’s Murchison region, with Programmes of Work for Exploration (PoWE) already approved for RC (Reverse Circulation) drilling across three of the four tenements. The acquisition adds dual commodity exposure to gold and antimony, a critical mineral listed in both Australia and the United States.
The acquired portfolio is led by the Seven Mile Well Gold-Antimony Project, situated approximately 7km north along strike from the Big Bell Gold Deposit (which has produced over 2.6 million ounces of gold) within the Big Bell Shear Zone. To fund the maiden exploration programme and advance its existing Keystone Project in Nevada, Western Ridge has received firm commitments to raise A$1.31 million through a placement of 52,400,000 new shares at $0.025 per share from high-net-worth and sophisticated investors. Exploration commencement is targeted for Q4 2026.
Dr Matthew Cobb, Managing Director
“The Seven Mile Well Gold-Antimony Project offers exposure to both highly sought after commodities in an established Western Australian mining region; a combination we see as increasingly valuable for our shareholders. Entering into this agreement reflects the confidence we have in the project and the immediate opportunity to progress an exploration programme. We now intend to advance this agreement towards its completion in parallel with advancing our exploration activities at the Keystone Project in Nevada, United States.”
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Inside the Murchison portfolio — three shear zones, three independent prospects
The acquired portfolio spans three separate mineralised shear zones, with each project carrying its own geology, independent exploration targets, and its own timetable. No single project outcome determines the others.
Seven Mile Well Gold-Antimony Project (E20/1061 and E20/1062)
Seven Mile Well is located approximately 30km north-west of Cue, positioned on the Big Bell Shear Zone on the western limb of the Big Bell Anticline. A 2025 auger sampling programme across both licences delineated two parallel mineralised zones: a western zone of approximately 2.5km strike length (open to the north and never drill-tested) and an eastern zone of approximately 1km strike length, interpreted as the extension to the Big Bell stratigraphy.
Western Ridge, assisted by MinVal Pty Ltd, has developed a conceptual Exploration Target over the two interpreted mineralised shears of between 2Mt to 11Mt at 1g/t to 5g/t Au for 130,000oz to 1,000,000oz of contained gold. The eastern shear is assessed as potentially the higher grade of the two, at 3g/t to 5g/t Au, while the western shear is assessed at 1g/t to 2g/t Au.
Cautionary Statement — Exploration Target: The potential quantity and grade of the Exploration Target is conceptual in nature. There has been insufficient exploration to estimate a Mineral Resource, and it is uncertain whether further exploration will result in the estimation of a Mineral Resource. The Exploration Target has been reported in accordance with the JORC Code (2012 Edition) and should not be misconstrued as representing a Mineral Resource.
Historical drilling has also confirmed antimony and arsenic pathfinders (Sb ≥7ppm, As ≥100ppm) across the project area — established indicators of Big Bell-style mineralisation beneath cover, where gold itself historically presents a weak and patchy surface response.
Lady Alma Gold Project (P51/3159) and Jasper Star Gold Project (M51/877)
Key attributes of the two additional projects:
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Lady Alma: A 156.7ha granted prospecting licence on the Gabanintha Shear Zone; hosts structurally controlled gold on cross-faults, contacts, and reef systems; field inspection has identified visible native gold, including gold ribbons within an ironstone-quartz reef structure; PoW approved for RC drilling.
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Jasper Star: A granted mining lease with an Aboriginal heritage agreement in place, approximately 6km south of New Murchison Gold Limited’s Crown Prince Gold Project; historical workings on gold-rich quartz stringers; historical production grades reportedly approximately 31g/t Au; previous operator Kestrel Mining NL reported 16m at 29.4g/t Au from RAB hole GR341, including 1m at 395g/t Au from 18–19m.
Cautionary Statement — Historical Drilling Results: The drilling and production results reported for Jasper Star Gold Project are historical results generated by prior operators. Western Ridge has not independently verified them. Reported grades should not be assumed to be an established representation of grade over any width or continuity.
Why antimony matters — the critical mineral dimension
Antimony is listed as a critical mineral in both Australia and the United States. Critical mineral status matters to investors because it signals strategic importance to governments and can attract policy support, offtake interest, and project funding that commodity-only assets may not access.
Spot prices as at the dates disclosed in the announcement were approximately US$4,271/oz for gold (as at 25 September 2026) and approximately US$28,300/tonne for antimony (as at 24 September 2026, according to Shanghai Metals Market). The Murchison region is emerging as a significant antimony province: Capricorn Metals’ Ricciardo Deposit, acquired via the takeover of Warriedar Resources, is reported as Australia’s largest open-pit mineable antimony Mineral Resource.
For processing precedent, Larvotto Resources (ASX: LRV) has demonstrated a combined gold and antimony concentrate flowsheet at its Hillgrove Antimony-Gold Project in New South Wales and has recently commenced gold and antimony concentrate production. For WRX shareholders, this means antimony exposure sits naturally within an already-established gold exploration framework, requiring no new commodity class or processing infrastructure logic.
Drill programme lined up — what’s coming and when
The work programme is specific and near-term, with two activities commencing from November 2026 and RC drilling at Seven Mile Well targeted for December 2026.
| Timing | Project | Activity | Purpose |
|---|---|---|---|
| November–December 2026 | Seven Mile Well | Gradient Array IP survey | Assess potential source at depth beneath the pathfinder geochemical anomaly |
| November–December 2026 | Lady Alma | 2,000m maiden drilling programme, 68 collars across 12 drill fences | Test the parallel gold-shedding reef systems east and west of the anticline |
| December 2026 | Seven Mile Well | RC drilling under approved Programme of Work | Test ranked chargeability targets through cover into rocks of the Lower Felsic Unit |
Timing is indicative and subject to completion of the acquisition, completion of the placement, contractor and rig availability, and weather and access conditions.
The acquisition terms are structured to be capital-efficient for WRX shareholders. Non-contingent consideration totals A$700,000, with all performance-related consideration tied to share price, drilling, or resource milestones:
- Cash: A$200,000 paid in 12 equal monthly instalments (reimbursement of tenement costs)
- Consideration Shares: Value of A$500,000 divided by the 30-day VWAP at the agreement date
- Class A Performance Shares: 6,250,000 — proposed to convert on a 30-consecutive-trading-day VWAP ≥ $0.08
- Class B Performance Shares: 6,250,000 — proposed to convert upon achieving at least 100m aggregate mineralised downhole intercepts at ≥1g/t Au (with each qualifying intercept having a grade-width product of ≥3 gram-metres)
- Class C Performance Shares: 20,000,000 — proposed to convert upon delineation of a JORC Mineral Resource of ≥1,000,000oz AuEq at ≥1g/t AuEq (antimony contribution capped at 25% of AuEq; maximum 60% Inferred), prepared by an independent third party selected by WRX
- Royalty: 1% NSR to Odin shareholders plus 1% NSR to the transaction adviser
The performance milestone structure means vendor payouts are contingent on genuine project progress, preserving capital efficiency for WRX shareholders throughout the exploration phase.
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Funding secured and strategic fit confirmed
The placement of 52,400,000 new shares at $0.025 per share raised A$1,310,000 from high-net-worth and sophisticated investors. The new shares will rank equally with existing ordinary shares and are subject to shareholder approval at the upcoming Annual General Meeting, anticipated to be held in mid-November 2026. The placement was unbrokered and undertaken directly by the Company.
Proceeds are allocated to funding the maiden Murchison drilling programmes, advancing the Keystone Project, tenement maintenance fees, and general working capital.
Strategically, the Murchison portfolio adds no new commodity class. Gold and antimony sit directly alongside WRX’s existing precious metals and critical minerals focus at Keystone, and Western Australia is a tier-1 mining jurisdiction. The three independent shear zone targets mean exploration news flow is not dependent on any single project outcome.
Keystone Project gold and silver results from the Nevada programme established the high-grade credentials that now sit alongside the Murchison portfolio, giving WRX dual-jurisdiction exposure across two active exploration fronts.
The Company also intends to issue up to 44 million Performance Rights under its Employee Securities Incentive Plan, distributed among directors, key employees, and contractors. Proposed vesting conditions include a 5-day VWAP of $0.05, a 5-day VWAP of $0.10, and a Keystone mineralisation milestone. The issue of Performance Rights is subject to shareholder approval. These rights are intended as an alignment incentive, tying management rewards to shareholder value creation milestones.
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