Highlights

  • Mandilla hosts a Mineral Resource of 53.5Mt at 1.0g/t gold for approximately 1.74Moz.
  • Astral’s broader portfolio, including Feysville and Spargoville, contains approximately 2.07Moz of gold.
  • The latest substantive update on 18 August 2026 confirmed a Land Use Agreement covering Mandilla and Spargoville, meaning all tenements included in the Mandilla DFS are now covered by such agreements.
  • The DFS remains targeted for completion in the March quarter of 2027, while infill and deep drilling continue at Theia.

Astral Resources NL (ASX:AAR) is advancing its 100%-owned Mandilla Gold Project near Kalgoorlie, Western Australia, through a combination of resource growth, infill drilling, development studies and land-access agreements.

Mandilla is located around 70 kilometres south of Kalgoorlie and is supported by nearby infrastructure, established Mining activity and proximity to the national highway.

The project is centred on several deposits, with Theia forming the largest part of the current resource and proposed development plan.

Astral’s most recent substantive update came on 18 August 2026, when the company announced a Land Use Agreement with the Marlinyu Ghoorlie Native Title Claimant Group covering the Mandilla and Spargoville tenements.

Resource Base

Mandilla’s April 2026 Mineral Resource Estimate totals 53.5Mt grading 1.0g/t gold for approximately 1.74Moz.

This represented a 22% increase in contained gold compared with the previous estimate.

Measured Resources account for 1.3Mt at 1.3g/t gold for 57koz, while Indicated Resources total 32.6Mt at 1.0g/t for approximately 1.01Moz.

A further 19.6Mt at 0.9g/t for 588koz is classified as Inferred.

Across Mandilla, Feysville and Spargoville, Astral’s total group resource stands at approximately 62Mt at 1.1g/t gold for 2.07Moz.

The higher-confidence resource base is important because it gives the DFS a stronger geological foundation and supports detailed mine scheduling.

Land Agreement

The 18 August Land Use Agreement is an important development milestone.

The agreement covers the Mandilla and Spargoville tenements and establishes protocols for heritage surveys, site protection, mining clearances and participation opportunities for the Marlinyu Ghoorlie People.

Astral had previously signed a separate Land Use Agreement covering the Feysville tenements in October 2025.

With the latest agreement now in place, every tenement incorporated into the Mandilla DFS is covered by a Land Use Agreement.

This reduces a key area of development uncertainty and provides a clearer framework for progressing heritage, permitting and future mining activities.

For a project approaching a definitive feasibility stage, having land-access arrangements aligned across the development footprint is strategically important.

Theia Drilling

Theia remains the cornerstone deposit within Mandilla.

In July 2026, Astral reported further high-grade results from Stage 1 infill drilling designed to convert the early mine inventory into the Measured category.

Results included 31 metres at 3.03g/t gold from 12 metres, including 1 metre at 59.8g/t.

Another hole returned 19 metres at 2.70g/t from 41 metres, including 1 metre at 36.2g/t.

A third returned 11 metres at 3.93g/t from 106 metres, including 1 metre at 34.3g/t.

These results were broadly consistent with the company’s geological model and support higher confidence in the proposed early mine plan.

Theia Deeps

Deep drilling has also materially expanded the geological understanding of Theia.

The company’s Theia Deeps program has intersected broad zones of gold mineralisation well below the current resource shell.

One hole returned 358 metres at 1.03g/t gold, including 127.27 metres at 1.20g/t and 81.46 metres at 1.35g/t.

Other deep drilling reported 54 metres at 2.38g/t gold below the current resource pit shell.

The mineralised system remains open at depth.

This is important because the current DFS is focused primarily on an open-pit development, while deeper mineralisation could create longer-term underground optionality.

Astral expanded the original deep drilling program from six holes to 12 holes and approximately 7,500 metres.

PFS Foundation

The 2025 Pre-Feasibility Study provides the current development benchmark.

It outlined seven open pits feeding a 2.75Mtpa processing plant.

Average gold production was estimated at approximately 95koz per year across the first 12 years.

At a gold price assumption of AUD 4,250/oz, the study generated a post-tax NPV of approximately AUD 1.4 billion.

The current DFS is intended to refine mine design, processing assumptions, Capital requirements and operating costs.

The resource growth achieved since the PFS gives Astral more flexibility to optimise the production schedule.

The company is targeting DFS completion in the March quarter of 2027.

Feysville Option

Feysville provides another potential source of ore outside Mandilla.

The project hosts a Mineral Resource of approximately 5Mt at 1.2g/t gold for 196koz.

The Think Big and Rogan Josh deposits are covered by Mining Lease M26/846, granted in January 2026.

Astral has been evaluating Think Big as a potential early-production opportunity that could provide satellite feed before or alongside the broader Mandilla development.

This could potentially reduce development risk by allowing the company to establish operating capability while larger-scale work continues at Mandilla.

However, any production decision remains subject to detailed mining and economic assessment.

Funding Position

Astral ended the June 2026 quarter with approximately AUD 65 million in cash.

This provides funding for ongoing drilling, DFS work, permitting and project-development activities.

During the quarter, the company completed almost 19,600 metres of drilling.

The broader infill program is designed to convert Stage 1 resources into the Measured category and improve confidence in the early mine schedule.

For Astral, maintaining a healthy cash position is important because technical studies and resource drilling are progressing simultaneously.

Additional funding would still be required before full-scale mine construction.

Development Focus

The next phase is increasingly about reducing uncertainty around the Mandilla development case.

Infill drilling needs to confirm grade continuity.

Deep drilling will determine how much additional gold may exist below the current open-pit model.

The DFS will need to refine capital, operating costs, mine scheduling and processing assumptions.

Land-access agreements now provide a clearer framework for heritage and future mining activities.

Together, these workstreams are gradually moving Mandilla from an exploration-led story toward a more defined development project.

Final Takeaway

Astral Resources has continued to strengthen the Mandilla development case during 2026.

The project now hosts 1.74Moz of gold, while the broader group resource stands at approximately 2.07Moz.

Recent Theia drilling has improved confidence in the proposed Stage 1 mine inventory and demonstrated that mineralisation extends well below the current resource shell.

The 18 August 2026 Land Use Agreement also means all tenements included in the DFS are now covered by formal land-use arrangements.

For Astral Resources (ASX:AAR), the key near-term focus is completion of the Mandilla DFS in the March quarter of 2027.

Further resource conversion, deep-drilling results, permitting progress and assessment of Feysville’s early-production potential will determine how the project evolves toward a future Investment decision.