Companies with both gold and iron ore projects report progress across very different development stages. Legacy Iron Ore Limited (ASX:LCY) did so in its Quarterly Report for the period ended 30 June 2026, dated 30 July 2026.

Company overview

Legacy Iron Ore Limited (ASX:LCY) is a Perth-based company listed since 2008, focused on iron ore, base metals, tungsten and gold. Its portfolio spans three project areas (the South Laverton Project, Mount Bevan Project and East Kimberley Project), with ten prospects across 25 tenements.

South Laverton and the Mount Celia Gold Project

Metallurgical testwork for heap leach on mineralised waste and low-grade samples was completed at Bureau Veritas in Perth. A Mount Celia resource estimate update was completed (ASX release of 14 April 2026), and a heap leach pre-feasibility study by Mincore is ongoing. Techtonic Mining Solutions has started an independent review of the pre-feasibility study and Ore Reserve sign-off work.

A UAV magnetic survey over the Yilgangi Project identified several high-priority targets along strike from known gold mineralisation.

Mount Bevan magnetite project

Hydrology work continued, with 63 exploration aircore holes (6,179 metres) and 14 shallow monitoring bores (399 metres) completed and the first of three planned production and monitoring bore sets finished. Rail and port modelling is under way in joint studies with Arc Infrastructure and the Southern Ports Authority.

Mount Celia resource and operations

The Mount Celia Gold Project deposits are in the Laverton Tectonic Zone, 40 kilometres south of the Sunrise Dam Gold Mine, with known gold occurrences across 11 tenements (seven mining and four exploration). Current operations are limited to the Kangaroo Bore and Blue Peter areas within three mining leases. The combined Mineral Resource is 8.8 million tonnes at 1.38 g/t gold for 390,150 ounces as at March 2026.

Development work is focused on extending gold production beyond the current mine life.

Heap leach study workstreams

The heap leach testwork at Bureau Veritas in Perth covered coarse ore bottle roll tests, crush size optimisation, agglomeration and percolation tests and column leach tests on mineralised waste, low-grade stockpile and pit samples. The testwork report is being compiled by JT Metallurgical Services, and Mincore is progressing the heap leach plant pre-feasibility study.

Legacy has received a request for information on its works approval application for the heap leach plant and is responding. Discussions are in progress about Debt funding for the heap leach plant project.

Yilgangi geophysics

A UAV magnetic survey interpretation by Newexco Exploration identified three major magnetic domains and several shear structures and faults associated with the Keith-Kilkenny structure within the Yilgangi tenements, generating high-priority targets.

Sector backdrop

Goldfields heap leach projects aim to treat low-grade material at lower Capital cost, while magnetite projects require water, rail and port solutions, so hydrology and logistics studies are early steps.

Heap leaching is used on low-grade gold material because it avoids the cost of grinding and a full processing plant, but needs approvals for the leach pad and process water management. Legacy’s approach would treat mineralised waste and low-grade stockpiles.

The South Laverton region has several operating mines, and exploration companies use geophysics to find extensions along the same structures.

Risks shareholders should weigh

The Mount Celia pre-feasibility study is ongoing and subject to independent review, and no Ore Reserve sign-off has been completed.

Mount Bevan needs water, logistics and funding before development. Several workstreams depend on third parties such as rail and port operators.

The company has multiple projects across commodities, and funding for each is not described.

The release states no funding for the heap leach plant is yet secured, with debt discussions only in progress.

Ore Reserve sign-off and the works approval are both pending, so a development decision is some way off.

What’s next

Legacy continues the Mount Celia study and review, hydrology and logistics work at Mount Bevan and target follow-up at Yilgangi. Shareholders may wish to watch for the Ore Reserve and study results.

The report’s next-quarter activities follow the study and review items described.