Dalaroo Metals Completes Gold Ridge Soil Sampling at Bondoukou Project

Dalaroo Metals Completes Major Soil Sampling Program at Gold Ridge, Setting the Stage for First Drilling Campaign

Dalaroo Metals Ltd (ASX: DAL; OTCQB: DALMF) has completed the Priority 1 phase of its systematic soil geochemistry program at the Gold Ridge Prospect within the Bondoukou Gold Project in Côte d'Ivoire — a milestone that meaningfully advances the company toward its maiden drilling program. The Dalaroo Metals Gold Ridge soil sampling completion at Bondoukou Gold Project represents a critical step forward, with more than 2,000 samples now submitted for assay and field crews already mobilised to the Priority 2 target area. Dalaroo is, furthermore, building systematic momentum across what it considers one of its most prospective gold assets in West Africa.

What Just Happened — and Why It Matters

The completion of Priority 1 soil sampling represents the first large-scale, systematic geochemical coverage over the south-eastern portion of an interpreted ~9.5km structural gold corridor at the Gold Ridge Prospect. Until now, the project's exploration activity has been largely guided by historical artisanal workings, rock-chip sampling, and geophysical interpretation rather than systematic, grid-based geochemistry.

That changes with this program.

The soil sampling grid — designed to industry best-practice standards at 200m line spacing and 50m sample spacing — is purpose-built to define the extent, continuity, and intensity of gold mineralisation along strike of a previously identified 2.5km × 400m gold anomaly. Historical rock-chip sampling across the project has, in addition, returned grades of up to 17.95 g/t gold, providing strong encouragement for what lies beneath.

"Completing Priority 1 soil sampling at Gold Ridge is an important milestone in systematically unlocking the scale potential of Bondoukou. With over 2,000 samples now submitted for analysis and Priority 2 already underway, we are entering an exciting phase where geochemistry, geology and structural interpretation will combine to define our first drill targets." — CEO John Morgan

Program Snapshot: Key Numbers at a Glance

Understanding Soil Geochemistry: What Is It and Why Does It Matter for Investors?

For investors newer to the exploration cycle, soil geochemistry is one of the most cost-effective tools available to a junior explorer — and it is a critical step between early reconnaissance and drill-ready targets.

How it works: Geologists collect soil samples from shallow pits at regular grid intervals, typically targeting the B-horizon — the layer below topsoil where gold particles and geochemical tracers from underlying mineralisation tend to concentrate. The samples are then analysed in a laboratory for gold and pathfinder elements.

Why it matters: A coherent geochemical anomaly in soil provides a statistical "fingerprint" indicating gold mineralisation at depth. It narrows down the drilling targets from a broad licence area to specific priority zones, consequently reducing cost and increasing the probability of a discovery.

Why it matters to investors specifically: Before a company spends significant capital on drilling — the most expensive phase of early exploration — soil geochemistry is the tool that tells them where to drill. A well-designed soil program, like the one Dalaroo has just completed, substantially de-risks the path to maiden drilling by providing an objective, systematic basis for target selection rather than relying on historical or anecdotal information.

Key Technical Terms Explained

• B-horizon: A soil layer below the surface topsoil, typically enriched in minerals leached from above — the preferred sampling horizon for gold exploration in tropical terrains.
• QA/QC samples: Quality assurance and quality control samples (blanks, standards, duplicates) inserted into the sample stream to verify laboratory accuracy and field sampling consistency.
• Structural corridor: A linear zone controlled by faults or shear zones along which hydrothermal fluids can travel and deposit gold.
• Birimian Greenstone Belt: An ancient geological terrane across West Africa, approximately 2 billion years old, renowned for hosting world-class gold deposits.
• RC Drilling (Reverse Circulation): A first-pass drilling method that produces rock chip samples from depth, used to test subsurface geochemical anomalies identified by surface programs.
• Saprolite: Deeply weathered, clay-rich rock formed in-place, commonly the zone where near-surface artisanal mining occurs in tropical gold terrains.
• Pathfinder elements: Elements such as iron oxides (hematite, goethite, limonite) that are geochemically associated with gold and help identify mineralised zones in tropical, weathered terrains.

The Geology: Building the Case for a Major Discovery

The geological observations from the Priority 1 field program are consistent with what exploration geologists look for above potentially significant gold systems in tropical West African terrains.

Field teams recorded:

• Metasedimentary host rocks with extensive duricrust development — a characteristic lithological setting for Birimian gold mineralisation
• Widespread hematite, goethite, and limonite alteration — iron oxide minerals commonly recognised as pathfinder indicators for weathered hydrothermal gold systems in tropical terrains
• Quartz fragments within the duricrust — consistent with weathered quartz-vein systems at depth, a primary host for orogenic gold mineralisation

At the Dingbi artisanal workings, systematic channel sampling within artisanal adits and trenches collected 28 channel samples along with 4 selective grab samples from zones showing quartz stockworks and strong oxidation. Structural measurements (dip and dip direction) were also recorded to assist with subsurface targeting — a critical dataset that will inform the geometry of planned drill holes.

"The field program has progressed strongly, with systematic sampling confirming the continuity of highly prospective structures associated with historical artisanal workings, quartz veining and widespread alteration. We believe Gold Ridge continues to demonstrate strong exploration potential for a significant mineralised gold system." — Country Manager and Exploration Manager Frank Twum-Berima Bosompem

The presence of active and historical artisanal workings distributed along interpreted regional shear corridors provides surface-level confirmation of near-surface gold occurrences — and raises the question of whether a larger, structurally-controlled system exists at depth. Importantly, no drilling or systematic exploration programs have yet been undertaken by Dalaroo to confirm the extent, grade, or continuity of mineralisation — which is precisely why the current program is so significant.

Regional Context: Location Within a World-Class Gold Province

The Bondoukou Project sits within the Birimian Greenstone Belt of eastern Côte d'Ivoire — one of the world's most productive geological terranes for gold. The project is located approximately 35km northwest of the Tanda gold deposit, operated by Endeavour Mining, placing it firmly within a proven gold-producing region.

Gold mineralisation within Birimian terranes is typically orogenic in style — structurally controlled along major shear zones and lithological contacts that acted as conduits for gold-bearing hydrothermal fluids. The region has a well-documented track record of hosting multi-million-ounce deposits associated with:

• Regional shear zones
• Fold-related structural traps
• Quartz vein systems
• Volcano-sedimentary lithological contacts

The Bondoukou licence area displays geological and structural characteristics consistent with these deposit types across multiple prospective corridors — with particular strength noted in the northern portion of the licence, where artisanal workings are most extensive.

The Path Forward: Upcoming Catalysts

The completion of Priority 1 is not an endpoint — it is, however, the beginning of a well-sequenced exploration workflow that will progressively narrow the target down to drill-ready priorities.

Near-Term Milestones

1. Continue Priority 2 soil geochemistry — field crews are already active in the north-western block, extending systematic coverage toward the full ~9.5km strike corridor
2. Receipt of assay results from Intertek Laboratory for the 2,241+ Priority 1 samples — the key data inflection point
3. Anomaly identification and interpretation — defining coherent gold anomalies along strike and integrating results with geology, artisanal workings, and structural mapping
4. Trenching and auger drilling of the highest-priority soil anomalies — the next layer of confirmation before RC drilling
5. Definition of maiden RC drill targets — the program's ultimate near-term deliverable

Investment Thesis: Why This Announcement Matters to the Market

This announcement advances Dalaroo's de-risking story in a meaningful way. Here is why investors should pay close attention.

1. First Systematic Geochemical Coverage of a Known Gold Corridor

The Dalaroo Metals Gold Ridge soil sampling completion at Bondoukou Gold Project represents a genuine exploration first for this project. For the first time, Dalaroo has systematic, grid-based geochemical data over a portion of the interpreted ~9.5km structural corridor — data that will objectively confirm, refine, or expand the known gold anomalism rather than relying solely on historical surface observations.

2. Scale of the Target System

The program is not testing a small, isolated anomaly. It is designed to systematically evaluate a ~9.5km long interpreted gold corridor, of which a 2.5km × 400m high-priority zone has already been identified. Furthermore, the potential for additional parallel or blind structures along the same trend adds considerable upside to what is already a sizeable target footprint.

3. High-Quality Geological Setting

The Bondoukou Project sits within the Birimian Greenstone Belt — a geological address that has hosted numerous multi-million-ounce discoveries. The combination of favourable host lithologies, well-developed structural architecture, extensive artisanal workings, and pathfinder mineralogy observed in the field supports the thesis that a meaningful gold system could exist at depth.

4. Clear, Logical Path to the Drill Bit

Unlike many early-stage announcements that describe activity without a clear forward pathway, Dalaroo's staged exploration sequence — soil geochemistry → anomaly definition → trenching and auger → RC drilling — is coherent, technically sound, and systematically progressing. The assay results from Priority 1 will consequently serve as the next material data point in this sequence.

5. Earn-In Structure Provides Exposure with Managed Expenditure

Dalaroo is earning up to an 80% interest in the Bondoukou Project through staged exploration expenditure and project advancement milestones via its joint venture arrangement with Goldridge SARL — a structure that provides meaningful leverage to the exploration upside while aligning expenditure with exploration progress.

Why Investors Should Keep a Close Eye on Dalaroo Metals

Dalaroo is at the beginning of a systematic, well-structured exploration campaign on a project with genuine discovery potential in one of the world's premier gold belts. With Priority 1 soil sampling completed, over 2,000 samples awaiting assay, and field crews already active in the Priority 2 area, the company is entering what CEO John Morgan has described as an "exciting phase" of exploration.

The coming weeks and months will deliver the first systematic geochemical dataset over the Gold Ridge Prospect — results that will define whether the ~9.5km structural corridor carries the kind of coherent, along-strike gold anomalism that justifies moving to the drill rig.

In a region where systematic exploration has historically been underutilised despite prolific mineralisation — and where neighbours like Endeavour Mining have demonstrated the scale of what these terranes can host — the Dalaroo Metals Gold Ridge soil sampling completion at Bondoukou Gold Project reflects exactly the kind of disciplined, data-driven approach that warrants continued investor attention.

Dalaroo Metals has positioned itself as a systematic explorer in one of West Africa's premier gold belts, with the Bondoukou Gold Project now entering a critical inflection point. The receipt of assay results from over 2,000 soil samples, combined with ongoing Priority 2 field activity, will deliver the first objective, large-scale geochemical dataset over a ~9.5km interpreted gold corridor — the foundational data required to define maiden RC drill targets. With a clear pathway from soil geochemistry to the drill bit now firmly in motion, Dalaroo's upcoming catalysts deserve close monitoring.

Ready to Follow Dalaroo's Journey to the Drill Bit?

With over 2,000 soil samples submitted for assay, Priority 2 field crews already active, and a clear pathway toward its maiden RC drilling campaign at the Bondoukou Gold Project, Dalaroo Metals (ASX: DAL) is entering a pivotal phase of systematic exploration. Investors seeking to understand the full scope of the Gold Ridge Prospect, the company's earn-in structure, and its upcoming catalysts can find everything they need at the Dalaroo Metals website.