Geopacific Hits High-Grade Gold Across Seven Targets Adding Upside to $1.3B Project
Key Takeaways
- Geopacific's 29-hole drilling program at Woodlark returned significant intercepts across eight prospects, including 36.0m at 1.48 g/t Au at Woodlark King NW and a 0.4m core interval grading 90.70 g/t Au at Little MacKenzie.
- Management confirmed the results provide potential upside to the DFS completed in May 2026, which underpins a post-tax NPV of A$1.3 billion, a 50.6% IRR, and an 18-month payback period on a 1.98 Moz resource.
- Future infill and extensional drilling has been flagged at Woodlark King NW and Little MacKenzie, with both targets delivering results that support revised geological models and potential resource updates.
- A regional soil and auger sampling program is already underway across 12 exploration prospects within ML508 and ELs 1172 and 1279, with results to be reported once the program is complete.
- All material assumptions underpinning the DFS Production Target and Forecast Financial Information have been confirmed as unchanged, preserving the integrity of the project's development case alongside the new drilling upside.
Woodlark drilling program delivers high-grade gold intercepts across multiple prospects
Geopacific Resources has completed a multi-prospect drilling program at its 1.98 Moz Woodlark Gold Project in Papua New Guinea, with assay results now received across eight target areas. The program, comprising 29 reverse circulation and diamond drill holes, delivered a series of high-grade intercepts that extend mineralisation at both near-mine and regional targets. Management confirmed the results provide potential upside to the Definitive Feasibility Study (DFS) completed in May 2026, which confirmed a post-tax NPV8% of A$1.3 billion, a post-tax IRR of 50.6%, and an 18-month payback period.
Hamish Bohannan, Managing Director
“The latest results from drilling across Woodlark continue to strengthen our geological understanding of the Project, reinforce the scale of the opportunity ahead of us and provide potential upside to the DFS. The program has delivered a series of high-grade gold intercepts across near-mine and regional target areas, supporting the potential for resource growth and improved confidence in future mine planning. We also continue to advance a clear pipeline of near-mine and regional exploration programs, including testing for extensions to known mineralisation under shallow cover in areas that have seen limited exploration. This exploration momentum will ensure that we continue to build a growth pathway for the Project.”
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Drilling highlights — what the results show
The program tested potential resource extensions, emerging discovery targets, and geological controls across multiple mining centres. Results span a broad range of widths and grades, demonstrating both large-scale continuity and localised high-grade shoots across the project.
Top intercepts at a glance
- Woodlark King NW: 36.0m @ 1.48 g/t Au from 60.0m (WKDD26002)
- Little MacKenzie: 2.3m @ 16.40 g/t Au from 114.7m, including 0.4m @ 90.70 g/t Au (LMDD25032)
- Little MacKenzie: 3.0m @ 4.67 g/t Au from 21.0m and 4.0m @ 2.64 g/t Au from 28.0m (LMRD26001)
- Busai Deeps: 1.4m @ 29.40 g/t Au from 257.0m, including 0.4m @ 76.30 g/t Au (BSRD25008)
- Great Northern: 2.7m @ 9.34 g/t Au from 110.0m, including 0.7m @ 14.60 g/t Au (KURD25024)
- Wayai Creek: 9.0m @ 4.20 g/t Au from 141.0m (WCRD25016)
- Wayai Creek: 11.0m @ 2.38 g/t Au from 44.0m and 2.0m @ 13.40 g/t Au from 59.0m (WCDD26002)
- Little MacKenzie: 7.2m @ 3.30 g/t Au from 97.8m (LMRD25016)
| Prospect | Drill Hole | From (m) | Width (m) | Grade (g/t Au) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Woodlark King NW | WKDD26002 | 60.0 | 36.0 | 1.48 |
| Little MacKenzie | LMDD25032 | 114.7 | 2.3 | 16.40 |
| Little MacKenzie | LMRD26001 | 21.0 | 3.0 | 4.67 |
| Little MacKenzie | LMRD25016 | 97.8 | 7.2 | 3.30 |
| Busai Deeps | BSRD25008 | 257.0 | 1.4 | 29.40 |
| Great Northern | KURD25024 | 110.0 | 2.7 | 9.34 |
| Wayai Creek | WCRD25016 | 141.0 | 9.0 | 4.20 |
| Wayai Creek | WCDD26002 | 44.0 | 11.0 | 2.38 |
Results by mining centre
At the Kulumadau Mining Centre, drilling at Great Northern continued to demonstrate consistent mineralisation throughout the deposit, with both broad moderate-grade intervals such as 8.0m @ 1.75 g/t Au and high-grade shoots including 2.7m @ 9.34 g/t Au indicating a continuous mineralised system. Boscalo North returned three mineralised intervals within a single drill hole, with the 3.7m @ 2.63 g/t Au intercept confirming locally enhanced gold mineralisation and supporting the interpretation of a structurally controlled target with potential for further lodes.
At the Woodlark King Mining Centre, drilling at Wayai Creek outlined a coherent zone of shallow, high-grade mineralisation along the southern extension of the main lode, with the combination of broad intervals and locally higher-grade shoots consistent with a structurally controlled hydrothermal system. At Little MacKenzie, exceptional intercepts including 2.3m @ 16.40 g/t Au and the 0.4m @ 90.70 g/t Au core interval reinforced the revised geological model, while the 36.0m @ 1.48 g/t Au result at Woodlark King NW confirmed a broad and continuous mineralised zone with favourable geometry for future resource updates.
At Busai Deeps, resource drilling successfully tested down-dip extensions to the high-grade western lode. Broad intervals of 8.8m @ 1.56 g/t Au, 9.0m @ 1.79 g/t Au, and 9.0m @ 1.31 g/t Au demonstrated strong grade continuity at depth, while the 1.4m @ 29.40 g/t Au intercept confirmed a high-grade shoot within the western lode consistent with structurally controlled gold distribution observed elsewhere at Busai.
Understanding drill intercepts — what high-grade results mean for resource growth
Making sense of drilling results requires understanding a few core concepts. Here is what the numbers actually mean and why they matter to investors.
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“g/t Au” is grams of gold per tonne of rock. Grade matters, but so does width. A narrow high-grade interval and a wide moderate-grade interval can both be economically significant depending on mining method. The combination of both in a single system is what geologists want to see.
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Near-mine drilling is a lower-cost path to resource growth than greenfield exploration. Drilling close to existing infrastructure and known mineralisation is faster and cheaper than exploring entirely new areas. Most of Woodlark’s current program sits in this category, which is why results can convert quickly into resource updates.
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“Gram-metres” is the unit geologists use to assess economic viability. It is calculated by multiplying grade by width (e.g., 36.0m @ 1.48 g/t = 53.3 gram-metres). A higher gram-metre figure signals a more economically interesting interval, even if the headline grade looks modest.
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Results showing both broad moderate-grade intervals and high-grade shoots suggest a layered mineralised system. This is particularly valuable because the broader zones provide mining flexibility, while the high-grade shoots can significantly improve the economics of individual ore blocks.
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Infill drilling converts lower-confidence Inferred resources into Indicated or Measured categories. Higher-confidence classifications are required for mine planning and bankable feasibility studies. Each step up in classification strengthens the project’s financing and development case.
For GPR investors, the critical context is that these results add potential upside to a project that already underpins an A$1.3 billion post-tax NPV. Resource growth here is additive to an already-confirmed, technically robust development project, not a discovery-stage bet on unproven ground.
What comes next for Geopacific and Woodlark
With drilling activities concluded as of May 2026, Geopacific is now advancing a clear pipeline of geological and geochemical work designed to feed into the next phase of mine planning and exploration targeting.
Next steps include:
- Detailed geological interpretation and review of geological models across all completed drill areas
- Integration of new assay results with existing geological, geochemical, and structural datasets
- Regional soil and auger sampling program underway across 12 exploration prospects within ML508 and ELs 1172 and 1279, with results to be reported once the program is complete and all analytical results finalised
- Field mapping ongoing in conjunction with the geochemical programme
- Assessment of further geophysical surveys to support next-phase exploration targeting
- Future infill and extensional drilling flagged at Woodlark King NW and Little MacKenzie
These activities are designed to strengthen geological models ahead of mine planning and may support future Mineral Resource updates. The company has not specified timing or outcomes beyond what is disclosed in the announcement.
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Woodlark by the numbers — project snapshot
The table below summarises the key project metrics underpinning Woodlark’s development case. DFS financial figures are sourced from the 20 May 2026 DFS announcement, and Geopacific has confirmed all material assumptions underpinning the Production Target and Forecast Financial Information continue to apply and have not changed materially.
| Metric | Figure | Metric | Figure |
|---|---|---|---|
| Total Mineral Resource | 1.98 Moz Au (70.1 Mt @ 0.88 g/t) | Ore Reserve | 1.2 Moz Au (34.3 Mt @ 1.09 g/t) |
| DFS post-tax NPV8% | A$1.3 billion | Post-tax IRR | 50.6% |
| Payback period | 18 months | Annual production target | Forecast >100,000 oz Au pa |
| All-in Sustaining Costs | Below A$2,000/oz | DFS announcement date | 20 May 2026 |
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