Key Highlights

  • Skylark Minerals (ASX:SKM) has executed binding agreements to earn interests of up to 97% in the Amie and Yaou gold projects in south-eastern Côte d’Ivoire.
  • Both projects are early-stage, and the earn-in structure is staged, with no royalties payable under the agreements.
  • Amie hosts a 3-kilometre historical gold geochemical anomaly, with about 80% of the application area yet to be systematically explored.
  • The acquisitions expand the portfolio around the flagship 1.2 million ounce Zaranou Gold Project.

Skylark Minerals Limited (ASX:SKM) announced on 9 November 2026 that it has executed binding agreements to acquire interests in two early-stage gold projects in south-eastern Côte d’Ivoire. The Amie and Yaou projects are located near the company’s flagship Zaranou Gold Project, which the company describes as containing 1.2 million ounces of gold. The agreements form part of a multi-asset growth strategy.

The Amie and Yaou Projects

Amie hosts a historical gold geochemical anomaly about three kilometres long, coincident with a mapped structural contact. The company says roughly 80% of the application area has not yet undergone systematic geochemical exploration, leaving much of the ground untested.

Yaou sits on the Ahafo-Bibiani-Chirano belt, which the company describes as a highly prolific, regional-scale gold corridor extending north-east into Ghana. The project’s location in that belt is the basis for the exploration interest, though no drilling results from Yaou have been reported.

Earn-In Structure and Synergies

The agreements give Skylark a staged pathway to earn up to 97% ownership of each project, with no royalties. The staged structure means the company will commit funds in stages as it earns its interest, rather than paying for full ownership up front.

Skylark says the projects will benefit from its existing teams, infrastructure and in-country relationships at Zaranou, which should allow early exploration to proceed at lower cost. Planning for a large-scale program at Zaranou is described as well under way.

Because the agreements stage the earn-in, Skylark’s commitments will be tied to exploration progress. This structure allows the company to test each project before committing further capital, though the timing of full ownership depends on the work and spending set out in the agreements. Shared infrastructure at Zaranou is expected to reduce the cost of early work, but those savings are not quantified.

Early-Stage Risks

Both projects are early-stage, and the historical anomaly at Amie has not been confirmed by drilling. Resource estimates, grades and exploration budgets for either project are not provided, so the scale of the opportunity is not yet known.

Earn-in arrangements can be terminated if the company does not meet its expenditure or work commitments. Gold exploration also carries the risk that initial anomalies do not translate into economic mineralisation, and that the costs of testing them exceed initial expectations.

Final Word

Skylark is adding early-stage gold ground to its Côte d’Ivoire position, with staged terms that limit the upfront commitment. The value of the acquisitions will depend on exploration results at Amie and Yaou, which have not yet been reported. The next checkpoints will be the start of exploration on each project and any results released from the work.

Exploration progress on Amie and Yaou will determine whether the earn-in steps proceed as planned, and the results from those early programs will indicate whether the projects Warrant further Investment within the staged structure.