Follow-up drilling usually tests whether first-phase gold intercepts extend. Venus Metals Corporation Limited (ASX:VMC) announced on 29 September 2026 that a Stage 2 RC program had started at its Bellchambers Gold Project in Western Australia.

Company overview

Venus Metals Corporation Limited (ASX:VMC) is a Subiaco-based explorer with gold, copper, base metals, lithium, titanium and vanadium projects in Western Australia, and a shareholding in Rox Resources. It holds 90% of Mining Lease M57/671 at the Sandstone (Bellchambers) project, about 23 kilometres south-west of Sandstone and 70 kilometres by road from the Youanmi Gold Mine being developed by Rox.

Stage 2 program and Stage 1 results

The planned seven-hole RC program follows Stage 1 intersections reported on 25 August 2026, including 20 metres at 2.72 g/t gold from 186 metres in 26BRC4 (including 6 metres at 5.52 g/t and 1 metre at 9.92 g/t) and 6 metres at 2.24 g/t gold from 212 metres in 26BRC3.

Resource and Exploration Target

The Bellchambers global resource is 766,000 tonnes at 1.27 g/t gold for 31,400 ounces (8,800 Measured, 18,100 Indicated and 4,500 Inferred). An Exploration Target below and north of the resource estimates 800,000 to 950,000 tonnes at 1.75 to 2.00 g/t for 45,000 to 60,000 ounces. The company notes the target is conceptual, with insufficient drilling to estimate a resource.

Project location and tenure

The Bellchambers project sits on mining lease M57/671, held 90% by Venus, about 23 kilometres south-west of the town of Sandstone and 70 kilometres by road north-east of the Youanmi Gold Mine being developed by Rox Resources. Venus also holds 90% of exploration licence E57/984, which abuts Brightstar Resources tenure at the Two Mile Hill and Shillington deposit.

The announcement positions the project within a region of active gold development, although proximity to other projects does not indicate similar outcomes at Bellchambers.

How the Exploration Target is framed

The Exploration Target was prepared by Widenbar and Associates and sits below the existing Bellchambers resource and to the north of the Indicated and Inferred resource at depth. It was reported in early January 2026, and the resource figures were reported on 15 August and 31 December 2025.

Venus states that the potential quantity and grade of the Exploration Target are conceptual in nature, that there has been insufficient exploration drilling to estimate a Mineral Resource, and that it is uncertain whether further drilling will result in one. The target has been prepared in accordance with the JORC Code (2012).

Sector backdrop

Sandstone-area gold exploration benefits from nearby development projects, but small deposits depend on grade and access to processing.

Sandstone sits in the Murchison region, where many small deposits have been mined historically and where several companies are reassessing deeper extensions with modern drilling. Stage-based RC programs, such as the one described here, are a common way to test whether intercepts in a first phase continue along strike and at depth.

Small gold resources can be sensitive to grade, mining method and access to processing. For that reason, exploration programs usually combine drilling with metallurgical and geotechnical work before any development decision, none of which is described in this announcement.

Risks shareholders should weigh

The Exploration Target is conceptual and may not become a resource. Stage 1 intercepts may not be repeated.

Venus holds 90% of the lease, and the program is small at seven holes.

Funding and approvals affect further work.

The announcement does not give the cost of the program, a drilling timetable or a date for assay results, so the pace of news flow is uncertain.

Venus holds a significant shareholding in another listed company, as the announcement notes, and its own results will depend on its exploration outcomes rather than that holding.

What’s next

Venus will report results from the seven-hole program. Shareholders may wish to watch for assays and any resource update.

Assay results from the seven holes are the next milestone, and any resource update would follow evaluation of those results.