Aureka Locks in Victorian Mine and Rare Gold Mill to Build 455koz Portfolio

Aureka steps into Victorian gold production with low-cash mill and mine acquisition

Aureka (ASX: AKA) has entered into a binding Share Sale Agreement to acquire 100% of High Grade Holdings (HGH), parent company of Core Prospecting Pty Ltd and Vanning Resources Pty Ltd. The deal brings two operating Victorian assets under Aureka’s control: the Fiddlers Creek Gold & Silver Underground Mine and the Wedderburn Gold Processing Mill.

The base consideration is $8.9 million, comprising $2.5 million cash and $6.4 million in Aureka shares at $0.12 per share, plus reimbursement of Rehabilitation Bonds of approximately $0.5 million. Up to a further $2.0 million in contingent Performance Payments may become payable if specified post-Completion production and project milestones are achieved over three years. HGH’s unaudited management accounts showed positive monthly free cash flow since Q2 2026, positive net tangible assets, and no term debt. Completion remains subject to Conditions Precedent summarised later in this article.

Why the Wedderburn mill changes everything for Aureka

Until this transaction, Aureka held a growing Victorian gold resource base but no processing facility of its own. The Wedderburn Gold Processing Mill changes that position entirely. It is one of only six gold mills in Victoria, licensed for external tolling and third-party ore, with a stated capacity of approximately 42,000 tonnes per annum, gravity and flotation circuits, and wet and dry stack tailings facilities.

The mill currently processes Fiddlers Creek ore, producing a gold, silver and base metals concentrate sold to overseas smelters under an existing offtake arrangement. With spare capacity available, mill ownership could allow Aureka to retain processing margins rather than paying third parties, and creates a potential pathway for the Comstock project located less than 50km away.

James Gurry, Aureka Managing Director

“Overall we have agreed to acquire an operating mill with spare capacity together with the high-grade operating Fiddlers Creek Gold & Silver Underground Mine and operational team in a low cash majority scrip transaction at a compelling price – this is a transformative deal for Aureka and we could not be happier.”

Fiddlers Creek mine: operating, high-grade, with exploration upside

The Fiddlers Creek Gold & Silver Underground Mine restarted production in 2025 as a high-grade, smaller-scale operation. The following FY26 ramp-up data was provided by HGH, reviewed by Aureka against available records, and is presented as unaudited historical operating data only. It is not a production target, forecast, or guidance by Aureka.

• Average head grade mined and milled: 7g/t
• Total gold recovered in 12 months: 416oz (13kg)
• Average recoveries (commissioning phase): 86%, highest 91%
• Average monthly concentrate gold grade: approximately 70g/t
• Flotation circuit commissioned: February 2026
• Payabilities under the existing offtake typically exceeded 90% for gold and silver

The surrounding Percydale field has historically produced over 700,000oz of gold, predominantly from alluvial deposits. Lode mineralisation is believed to remain open down-plunge and along strike, with over 6km of mineralised structure traced and six main mineralised trends identified. Under the transaction, Aureka has a committed obligation to undertake not less than 1,800 metres of drilling on the acquired tenements following Completion.

What is a gold processing mill and why does owning one matter?

A gold processing mill receives mined ore and extracts gold and silver through a series of physical and chemical processes. At Wedderburn, this involves gravity separation (using the weight difference between gold and lighter rock particles) and flotation (using chemicals and air bubbles to separate mineral-bearing particles), producing a concentrate that is then shipped to a smelter for final refining.

For a junior gold company, owning a mill rather than paying to use someone else’s is a meaningful commercial advantage. Toll processing fees reduce the margin a producer earns on every ounce. When you own the mill, that margin stays with the company. It also creates processing optionality for nearby projects that might otherwise face years of waiting for available capacity.

Victoria has only six such gold mills in the entire state. That scarcity matters because permitting and constructing a new mill is capital-intensive, time-consuming, and subject to regulatory approval. For Aureka, acquiring an already-licensed, already-operating facility compresses what could have been a decade-long infrastructure challenge into a single transaction, and puts its regional projects — Comstock and ultimately Irvine — within reach of a processing pathway under single ownership.

Pro-forma portfolio: approximately 455koz across production, development and exploration

Following Completion, Aureka’s Victorian gold portfolio would encompass:

1. Fiddlers Creek Mine — operating underground gold and silver mine, production restarted 2025
2. Wedderburn Gold Processing Mill — operating, spare capacity, licensed for third-party ore
3. Irvine Gold Project (Stawell Corridor) — flagship asset, 398koz Inferred JORC Mineral Resource at 2.59g/t, located 16km from the Stawell Gold Mine (production history of over 5Moz)
4. Comstock Gold & Silver Project (St Arnaud) — 56koz Inferred JORC Mineral Resource at 1.21g/t, production licence in application, less than 50km from Wedderburn
5. Percydale Exploration Licence — approximately 39 square kilometres surrounding Fiddlers Creek
6. Jubilee Gold Exploration Project (near Ballarat), Morning Bill Gold and Base Metals Project (Stawell Corridor), and critical minerals potential in the greater St Arnaud area

The combined total portfolio stands at approximately 455koz Inferred JORC Mineral Resources at 2.27g/t Au.

Aureka’s high-grade gold intercepts from its 2025 drilling programs established the geological confidence underpinning the Inferred resource base that now anchors the combined 455koz portfolio.

Source: Table 1, Aureka ASX Announcement 7 September 2026. All Mineral Resources are Inferred classification under the JORC Code 2012 Edition. Minor discrepancies may occur due to rounding.

Capital structure: placement, SPP and performance milestones

To underpin the acquisition, Aureka has received signed commitment letters for a two-tranche placement raising A$5.65 million at $0.12 per share (47,084,593 shares), cornerstoned by a small number of Aureka’s most significant shareholders.

• Tranche 1: 37,830,063 shares, to be issued under existing Listing Rule 7.1 and 7.1A placement capacity
• Tranche 2: 9,254,530 shares, subject to shareholder approval

Aureka also proposes to offer a Share Purchase Plan (SPP) to shareholders registered at 7.00pm (Melbourne time) on 4 September 2026 with an address in Australia or New Zealand. The SPP seeks to raise up to approximately $1.5 million at $0.12 per share, with each eligible shareholder able to apply for up to $30,000 of shares. The SPP is expected to remain open for approximately two weeks. The $0.12 issue price represents a discount of approximately 3.5% to the five-day volume weighted average price before announcement. Notably, all three pricing points (vendor consideration, placement, and proposed SPP) are set at $0.12 per share. The illustrative maximum pro-forma equity value across 318,660,658 shares at $0.12 is $38,239,279.

The contingent Performance Payments are structured as follows. These are contractual payment milestones only and are not production guidance or a forecast by Aureka that the milestones will be achieved:

• Milestone 1: Cumulative production of at least 900oz of gold within 12 months post-Completion → $500,000
• Milestone 2: Cumulative production of at least 2,500oz within 24 months → $500,000
• Milestone 3: Cumulative production of at least 4,000oz within 36 months → $500,000
• Milestone 4: Publication of JORC Mineral Resource and Ore Reserve estimates for Fiddlers Creek, grant of the pending Mining Licence for Fiddlers Creek, and an increase in tailings capacity at Wedderburn → $500,000

No single HGH shareholder is expected to hold 5% or more of Aureka following Completion.

Key timetable:

1. SPP opens: September 2026
2. Notice of Meeting dispatched: September 2026
3. Shareholder meeting: October 2026
4. Capital raise completed: before transaction Completion
5. Completion: as soon as possible after the Shareholder Meeting, subject to Conditions Precedent
6. End Date under the SSA: three months after execution

Kenneth Bush, Director, High Grade Holdings Pty Ltd / Core Prospecting Pty Ltd

“Bringing Fiddlers Creek, Wedderburn, Comstock, Irvine and the regional exploration ground under one owner, with listed-company capital access and complementary technical and operating capability behind them, gives HGH shareholders exposure to a range of outcomes that a cash sale would have closed off.”

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