Key Highlights

  • Normandy's hole 26NMDD0008 returned 17 m at 10.50 g/t gold from 65 m at Halleys, including 5.2 m at 26.53 g/t.
  • Valiant's five Boomerang diamond holes all returned multiple intercepts, led by 4.1 m at 7.93 g/t gold from 287.4 m.
  • Desert Minerals' five RC holes at Providence all exceeded 0.5 g/t gold, with a best metre of 28.2 g/t.
  • The three programs reported on 28 October 2026 total about 905 m of core (Normandy), 8,000 m planned (Valiant) and 1,020 m of RC (Desert Minerals).

Normandy Minerals Ltd (ASX:NMD), Valiant Gold Limited (ASX:VAL) and Desert Minerals Limited (ASX:DSM) each released gold drilling results from Western Australian projects on 28 October 2026. Normandy reported a 17 m intercept at 10.50 g/t gold from the Halleys Deposit north of Southern Cross. Valiant posted its first five diamond holes at the Boomerang deposit in the Murchison, and Desert Minerals reported five RC holes at the Providence Prospect near Kalgoorlie. The results differ in drilling method, depth and resource status, but each includes grades above 25 g/t over narrow intervals.

Normandy Minerals at Halleys

Normandy's first two holes in a maiden diamond program were reported from Halleys, about 200 km north of Southern Cross. Hole 26NMDD0008 returned 17 m at 10.50 g/t gold from 65 m, including 5 m at 7.92 g/t and 5.2 m at 26.53 g/t, and also recorded 3 m at 4.75 g/t from 31 m. Hole 26NMDD0014 missed its intended retest of a historical 6.0 m intercept at 102.66 g/t after deviating, but returned 1.0 m at 10.20 g/t from 60.8 m. The company links the repeated intervals to a southeast-dipping system near the Halleys Shear and Moondie Shear junction. About 905 m of core has been drilled, assays on four more completed holes are pending, and a reverse circulation program was due to start in late October.

Valiant Gold at Boomerang

Valiant's holes 26BMDD001 to 26BMDD005 tested the existing Boomerang resource of 5.26 Mt at 2.17 g/t gold for 367,000 oz, part of the Reedy Gold Project about 80 km by road from Meekatharra. Hole 26BMDD003 returned 4.1 m at 7.93 g/t from 287.4 m and 3.6 m at 6.36 g/t from 407.8 m. Hole 26BMDD001 recorded 6.0 m at 5.70 g/t from 469.0 m, and 26BMDD004 returned 6.0 m at 5.01 g/t from 346.0 m. Hole 26BMDD005 intersected 9.3 m at 3.05 g/t from 333.6 m, including 0.3 m at 52.90 g/t. The deposit sits about 45 km by road from Westgold's Bluebird Mill, and Valiant says the lodes were intersected broadly where expected. Two rigs are drilling an 8,000 m program, about half of which is complete.

Desert Minerals at Providence

Desert Minerals drilled 1,020 m across holes 26MNRC0039 to 26MNRC0043 at Providence, part of the Mt Monger Gold Project 45 km southeast of Kalgoorlie. Hole 26MNRC0041 returned 5 m at 6.4 g/t from 113 m, including 1 m at 28.2 g/t, and 26MNRC0042 recorded 3 m at 7.0 g/t from 107 m plus 3 m at 4.6 g/t from 134 m. Intercepts near 50 m depth in the first three holes are interpreted as a new structure northwest of known mineralisation. The company ties the high grades to quartz veining with sulphides, and says the resource remains open to the northwest and southwest. Providence holds an Inferred resource of 204,700 t at 2.5 g/t gold for 16,400 oz.

How the Three Programs Compare

Set side by side, the three releases show different stages of work. Normandy has two reported holes and a model of stacked southeast-dipping lenses beside a pit that finished mining in 2014. Valiant is infilling and extending a 367,000 oz resource with holes drilled to between 436.1 m and 649.2 m. Desert Minerals drilled RC holes of 168 m to 246 m against a 16,400 oz resource. Each company reported downhole widths, and Normandy, Valiant and Desert Minerals all state that true widths are either approximate or yet to be determined. Samples from all three programs were analysed by fire assay at ALS laboratories.