Highlights

  • DeSoto identified Yarakoura, Woussoubadou and Branama for follow-up within its southwest Siguiri portfolio.
  • Its eight-project southwest Siguiri package covers approximately 687 square kilometres in Guinea.
  • The regional programme collected 202 BLEG samples, including 20 duplicates.
  • Soil sampling has reached 1,105 of 2,239 planned sample points across selected targets.
  • At Timbakouna, 596 of 1,195 planned power auger holes were completed, with laboratory results pending.

DeSoto Resources Limited (ASX:DES) explores for gold in Guinea, where its Siguiri-region portfolio includes multiple early-stage permits and the Timbakouna project. In its 4 November 2026 exploration update, the company reported regional stream-sediment geochemistry and progress on a soil-sampling programme across eight southwest Siguiri projects. The results have helped narrow the next phase of fieldwork toward selected prospects, although they do not yet establish a mineral resource or a drill-defined deposit.

Regional Sampling Identifies Priority Prospects

The southwest Siguiri portfolio comprises Yarakoura, Moussaya, Dalaban, Doutila, Woussoubadou, Branama, Moiko and Alamakono, covering about 687 square kilometres of near-contiguous ground. DeSoto Resources Limited (ASX:DES) describes the portfolio as wholly owned and is working to convert reconnaissance authorisations into exploration permits. The current programme is designed to identify areas warranting more detailed exploration rather than define mineral inventory.

DeSoto collected 202 bulk leach extractable gold (BLEG) stream-sediment samples, including 20 duplicates, across drainage systems in the eight project areas. BLEG testing can identify anomalous gold within a catchment, but a result does not establish the precise source of mineralisation. At Branama, sample BRA_BL_15 returned 56.2 parts per billion (ppb) gold, while BRA_BL_14 returned 18.3 ppb. Yarakoura samples YAR_BL_10 and YAR_BL_08 returned 13.9 ppb and 7.3 ppb respectively.

Following this reconnaissance work, DeSoto Resources Limited (ASX:DES) selected Yarakoura, Woussoubadou and Branama as priorities for follow-up assessment.

Soil Programme Advances Across Siguiri Ground

The company has completed 1,105 of 2,239 planned soil-sampling points, including 466 at Yarakoura. Higher-priority structural targets at Yarakoura, Branama and Woussoubadou are being sampled on a 200-metre by 200-metre grid. Reconnaissance sampling at Moiko and Alamakono uses an 800-metre by 100-metre spacing. DeSoto Resources Limited (ASX:DES) had not included soil assay results in its November update, meaning interpretation of the completed samples remains pending.

The project areas sit within the broader Siguiri geological setting, but nearby mineralisation cannot be assumed to continue onto DeSoto’s ground. The company also cautioned that parts of the regional information comprise historical or legacy data without complete independent verification and quality-control records. The reported stream-sediment results are preliminary indicators, not measurements of a mineable gold zone.

Timbakouna Work and the Next Exploration Decisions

Alongside the southwest Siguiri sampling, DeSoto Resources Limited (ASX:DES) is advancing Timbakouna. In October 2026, it announced an expanded 22,000-metre drilling programme. By the November update, 596 of 1,195 planned power auger holes had been completed, and more than 2,500 samples were awaiting laboratory results. The auger work targets weathered material beneath lateritic cover, providing a different type of evidence from stream-sediment geochemistry.

The immediate programme includes completing the remaining 1,134 soil-sampling points, reviewing pending assays, geological mapping and regolith assessment. Depending on the findings, the company may proceed to further auger work and subsequently reverse-circulation or diamond drilling. DeSoto Resources Limited (ASX:DES) has not reported drilling-defined resources from the southwest Siguiri targets in this update, and the timing and scope of deeper drilling remain dependent on results.

Key Insights

DeSoto Resources Limited (ASX:DES) has moved from broad regional reconnaissance toward a more focused examination of Yarakoura, Woussoubadou and Branama, while continuing auger exploration at Timbakouna. The 2026 sampling totals and identified anomalies provide a basis for prioritising work, but soil assays, geological interpretation and drilling will be needed before the scale or continuity of any gold mineralisation can be assessed.