BOA Resources Eyes First Copper Resource at Ricci Lee With 7,500m Drill Campaign
BOA Resources clears final hurdles for maiden drilling at Neds Creek Copper Project
BOA Resources is weeks away from its maiden drill program at the Neds Creek Copper Project, with drilling expected to commence in early August 2026. The company has completed three critical prerequisites: heritage surveys are finalised, drill contracts have been signed, and Programme of Works (PoWs) approvals are in hand. The program comprises a 7,500m, 53-hole reverse circulation (RC) drilling campaign, with the Ricci Lee prospect confirmed as the first-priority target. The objective is to define a maiden copper resource at Ricci Lee, converting months of planning into imminent on-ground activity and delivering a clear near-term catalyst for investors.
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Inside the Neds Creek Copper Project
The Neds Creek Copper Project spans approximately 1,378km² of highly prospective tenure in the Murchison district of Western Australia. The project already hosts the Thaduna and Green Dragon copper deposits, which together hold a combined JORC Mineral Resource of 5.3Mt @ 2.3% Cu for 121kt contained copper.
For investors, an existing JORC Mineral Resource represents an established, measured base of contained metal that has been independently verified and classified to Australian industry standards. This de-risks a project significantly compared to pure greenfield exploration, where no resource has yet been defined.
BOA recently announced a transaction to acquire Thaduna, Green Dragon and numerous exploration tenements, consolidating its WA Murchison copper strategy. The acquisition positions the company to build a broader resource inventory across the district, with Ricci Lee and other advanced prospects offering significant resource growth potential.
| Metric | Detail |
|---|---|
| Project area | ~1,378km² |
| Existing Resource (Thaduna + Green Dragon) | 5.3Mt @ 2.3% Cu for 121kt contained Cu |
| Maiden RC program | 7,500m, 53 holes |
| Aircore program | 7,500m AC |
| Priority target | Ricci Lee |
| Expected start | Early August 2026 |
Ricci Lee: the priority target for resource definition
Ricci Lee is an advanced, drill-ready copper prospect hosted in the Thaduna Formation, approximately 2km southwest of the Thaduna Copper Deposit. The prospect comprises a 500m-long mineralised structure defined by historic workings, eight RC holes and shallow RAB drilling. Mineralisation remains open along strike to the north and south and at depth.
The standout historic hole is THC035, which intersected 5m @ 3.48% Cu and 10m @ 5.12% Cu from two separate structures at approximately 200m vertical depth. This interval was logged in fresh rock with chalcopyrite and bornite copper sulphides, indicating primary mineralisation with potential for continuity.
Ricci Lee is interpreted to be a geological analogue of the nearby Thaduna Copper Deposit, which hosts a JORC Mineral Resource of 4.1Mt @ 2.5% Cu for 103kt contained copper. Located within the same stratigraphy and structural setting as Thaduna, Ricci Lee has the potential to develop into another significant copper resource within the Neds Creek Project.
The planned drilling is designed to test extensions to the known mineralisation and provide sufficient drill density to support a maiden Mineral Resource estimate. This represents the key value-creation event, transforming Ricci Lee from an advanced prospect into a quantified resource with economic potential.
Selected historic intercepts at and near Ricci Lee include:
- THC035: 5m @ 3.48% Cu / 10m @ 5.12% Cu
- THC039: 7m @ 3.41% Cu
- THC002: 7m @ 2.33% Cu
Graeme Purcell, Managing Director
“After months of planning, we’re excited to be a couple of weeks from the start of our maiden drill program at Neds Creek. We’ve successfully cleared all the prerequisites, including completing Heritage Surveys and receiving approval of our Programme of Works, as well as announcing BOA’s acquisition of Thaduna and Green Dragon, substantially strengthening our copper strategy in the WA Murchison province.”
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What comes next for BOA investors
The Neds Creek drilling program targets two principal structural orientations, both of which have returned ore-grade intersections from historical drilling and sampling:
- Northwest-striking, west-dipping structures consistent with the Thaduna orientation
- East-west-striking, north-dipping structures consistent with the Green Dragon orientation
BOA’s broader 2026 exploration pipeline includes:
- Ricci Lee (priority, resource definition)
- Rooney’s
- Four additional priority prospects across Neds Creek
Managing Director Graeme Purcell emphasised that the August drill program is “only the beginning,” framing Ricci Lee as the first step in a systematic campaign to grow BOA’s copper inventory to economic scale. The company states it is well funded to execute drilling and other exploration activities, positioning it to advance multiple targets across the project without immediate capital requirements.
For investors, the program converts months of planning and acquisition activity into imminent drilling results, with Ricci Lee offering the potential for a maiden resource estimate in the near term. The combination of an existing resource base at Thaduna and Green Dragon, together with the potential to define new resources at Ricci Lee and other advanced prospects, positions Neds Creek as a district-scale copper opportunity in the Murchison province.
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