Key Highlights

  • Zenith completed 34 RC holes for 4,601 m, including 24 holes at Dulcie Central, and 20 of those 24 returned gold above the 0.3 g/t cut-off.
  • The best Dulcie Central result was 6 m at 4.14 g/t gold from 123 m in SRRC182, including 3 m at 7.75 g/t.
  • Forrestania Resources held 397,419,666 Zenith shares, or 61.42%, at 27 October 2026 after declaring its offer unconditional.
  • Zenith ended the quarter with A$4.37 million in cash after A$1.02 million of exploration spending.

Zenith Minerals Limited (ASX:ZNC) used the September 2026 quarter to complete a 34-hole, 4,601 m reverse circulation program at the Consolidated Dulcie Gold Project in Western Australia while an off-market takeover offer from Forrestania Resources Limited (ASX:FRS) moved through Takeovers Panel proceedings. Assays received after quarter end show that 20 of the 24 holes drilled at Dulcie Central returned gold above the 0.3 g/t cut-off. Forrestania declared its offer free of all defeating conditions on 22 October 2026, and on 27 October it disclosed a relevant interest in 61.42% of Zenith shares.

Dulcie Central Drilling Results

The program ran from 30 July to 16 September 2026 and covered Dulcie Central, Water Bore, Scott's Grey and Dulcie South. It included the first drilling on mining lease M77/599, acquired on 29 April 2026, which spans the roughly 600 m corridor between the Dulcie North and Dulcie deposits and sits outside the existing resource. Of the 34 holes, 24 were drilled at Dulcie Central and two tested extensions at Water Bore.

Early results on 25 September included 3 m at 2.48 g/t gold from 130 m in SRRC179 and 6 m at 0.93 g/t from 46 m in SRRC178. On 15 October, Zenith reported 6 m at 4.14 g/t from 123 m in SRRC182, with 3 m at 7.75 g/t, and 10 m at 0.84 g/t from 48 m in SRRC184. At Scott's Grey, SRRC201 returned 4 m at 3.05 g/t from 71 m. The final ten Dulcie Central holes, reported on 27 October, produced eight intercepts above cut-off, including 5 m at 1.59 g/t from 41 m in SRRC193. The Dulcie Mineral Resource remains an Inferred 21.3 Mt at 1.0 g/t for 675,000 oz.

Planned Work and Other Projects

Zenith is assessing whether the results support a maiden resource estimate at Dulcie Central and whether Scott's Grey and Dulcie South warrant an update to the existing estimate. It is also preparing Programme of Work applications for about 850 RC holes, mostly on a nominal 40 m by 40 m spacing against the roughly 80 m spacing behind the current resource.

No exploration was reported at Red Mountain in Queensland this quarter. Deep diamond holes there earlier in 2026 showed the breccia system extends beyond 700 m vertically, with low grades over broad widths such as 333 m at 0.27 g/t gold. Zenith also holds 25% of the Earaheedy zinc joint venture with Rumble Resources, and its Rio lithium deposit hosts an Inferred resource of 11.9 Mt at 0.72% Li2O.

The Forrestania Takeover Offer

Under a Takeover Implementation Deed signed on 8 June 2026, Forrestania offered one of its shares for every 4.3 Zenith shares, with the offer opening on 16 June. The Takeovers Panel made a declaration of unacceptable circumstances on 27 August and final orders on 17 September, and a review panel affirmed both on 28 September after accepting disclosure undertakings from the two companies. The Panel later declined to conduct proceedings on a further application by Ida Metal Investments on 23 October.

On 2 October Zenith received a non-binding indicative proposal from Aurenne Group Holdings, which the board determined on 3 October was not a Superior Proposal. Forrestania's holding stood at 58.23% on 31 August and 61.42% on 27 October. Accepting shareholders may withdraw acceptances until 5 November, and the offer is scheduled to close at 5:00pm AWST on 12 November 2026 unless extended. Zenith's annual general meeting is set for 30 November.

Financial Position at Quarter End

Zenith finished the quarter with cash of A$4.37 million and exploration spending of about A$1.02 million, mainly on the Dulcie drilling and assays. The exercise of 21,722,936 listed options at $0.077 raised about A$1.67 million, and 647,007,016 shares were on issue at 26 October 2026. The company also holds 43.9 million shares in Bradda Head Holdings and 9.4 million shares in Oxley Resources, representing about 26%.