Why Altair Minerals (ASX:ALR) is awaiting gold assays after logging visible gold at North Peters in Guyana

Sonal Goyal

15 October 2026 10:45 PM AEDT

Why Altair Minerals (ASX:ALR) is awaiting gold assays after logging visible gold at North Peters in Guyana

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Geologists logged visible gold in two quartz-carbonate vein systems in diamond hole NPDD26011 at North Peters.
The observations are visual only, and laboratory assay results are expected in November 2026.
About 7,200 metres have been drilled at Greater Oko so far, within a broader 75,000-metre program.

Altair Minerals Limited (ASX:ALR) has told the market that geologists logged visible gold in two quartz-carbonate vein systems in diamond hole NPDD26011 at North Peters, part of the Greater Oko gold project in Guyana. The company stressed that these are visual observations of drill core and not laboratory assays, and that assay results are still pending.

What was logged

According to the announcement, the upper vein system sits at an interval of 45.5 to 47.0 metres, with visible gold noted at 45.6 metres and 45.7 metres. The lower system, at 107.0 to 108.3 metres, is tourmaline-bearing and contains pyrite, with visible gold recorded at 107.4 metres and 107.7 metres. The company describes each observation as a point occurrence of roughly one to two millimetres.

Altair also listed other zones of interest from the hole, again based on visual estimates only. These include a brittle-ductile zone between 63.4 and 68.0 metres with up to 15 per cent pyrite, a strong brittle zone from 113.3 to 116.3 metres with about 15 per cent quartz-carbonate veining and roughly 3 per cent fracture pyrite, and a strongly altered brittle zone between 129.4 and 143.9 metres with about 3 per cent disseminated and fracture pyrite.

NPDD26011 was drilled at an azimuth of 020 degrees and a dip of minus 50 degrees, reaching a total depth of 221.0 metres.

Relationship to historic drilling

Altair placed the new observations in the context of earlier drilling by other parties. The lower vein system lies about 12 metres below the base of a historic intercept of 84.5 metres at 4.81 grams per tonne gold in hole MM0105. The company notes that this is a historic result and not a result from the current hole. The upper visible gold sits about 50 metres from historic drilling that intersected more than 1 gram per tonne gold.

Program scale and progress

The announcement says about 7,200 metres have been drilled at Greater Oko so far, within a broader 75,000-metre program. At South Oko, two reverse circulation rigs are operating with an average downhole depth of about 62 metres. At North Peters, average diamond holes have reached about 213 metres and average reverse circulation holes about 48 metres.

Altair expects to dispatch the remaining Greater Oko samples early next week. A detector-based tool, referred to as DetectORE, is due to be mobilised and operating at South Oko this month, and the company says a scaled South Oko exploration strategy will be reported imminently once finalised. Phase II diamond drilling is planned to test extensions at North Peters, including an offset structural target identified through field mapping.

Assays, conditions and risks

Samples from the hole have been sent to two ISO-certified laboratories. Altair says typical turnaround is five to seven weeks from dispatch, and it expects first assay results in November 2026.

The announcement is careful about what the observations do and do not show. Altair states that visual estimates of mineral abundance should never be considered a proxy or substitute for laboratory analyses. It also notes that visible gold has a strong nugget effect, so its presence does not indicate grade, width or continuity, and that true widths are not yet known. Results from neighbouring projects, including those of G2 Goldfields and Reunion Gold, do not guarantee similar outcomes at Greater Oko.

On tenure, Altair has the right to earn up to a 70 per cent interest in Greater Oko, subject to conditions precedent. The company states that all tenements are in good standing. The release also contains forward-looking statements that carry risks and uncertainties.

What to watch

The confirmed near-term milestones are the dispatch of remaining samples, the mobilisation of DetectORE at South Oko, the release of the scaled South Oko strategy, and the first assay results in November 2026. Until those results are published, the grade and significance of the visible gold remain unknown.

FAQs

Q: What did Altair Minerals report from North Peters?

A: Altair reported visible gold in two quartz-carbonate vein systems in diamond hole NPDD26011, at 45.5 to 47.0 metres and 107.0 to 108.3 metres. The company describes each as a point occurrence of roughly one to two millimetres.

Q: Are these laboratory results?

A: No. Altair states these are visual observations of drill core and not laboratory assays. It also notes visible gold has a nugget effect, so its presence does not indicate grade, width or continuity.

Q: When are assay results expected?

A: Samples have been sent to two ISO-certified laboratories, with typical turnaround of five to seven weeks. Altair expects first assay results in November 2026.

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