Key Highlights

  • A second stage of diamond drilling has begun at the Goodrich porphyry prospect in New South Wales.
  • The four-hole programme totals about 1,000 metres and is funded by Great Plains Metals under an earn-in agreement.
  • Stage-one drilling returned 136.55 metres at 0.32% copper from 81.45 metres in hole GGDD004.
  • Great Plains can raise its stake to 70% by spending a further $1 million, including at least 500 metres of drilling.

Orbit Resources (ASX:OBT) announced on 11 November 2026 that a second stage of diamond drilling has begun at the Goodrich porphyry prospect in New South Wales, about 70 kilometres north-west of Orange. The four-hole programme totals about 1,000 metres, and hole GRMDD001 is under way.

The drilling is being funded by Great Plains Metals (TSX-V:GPS) under an earn-in agreement. Orbit expects first assays in the March quarter of 2027.

The target

The holes are designed to test the lateral and down-dip extent of an interpreted monzonite porphyry, and its continuity with historical copper-gold intercepts around the Goodrich open pit.

Stage-one drilling at what the company calls the Pencil Porphyry discovery returned 136.55 metres at 0.32% copper, 0.16 grams per tonne gold and 43g/t molybdenum from 81.45 metres in hole GGDD004. That interval included a higher-grade section of 3.55 metres at 2.8% copper, 0.18g/t gold and 48g/t molybdenum.

Broad, moderate-grade intervals of this kind are typical of porphyry systems, where size can matter as much as grade. The stage-two holes will test whether the mineralisation extends far enough to suggest a system of meaningful scale.

How the earn-in works

Great Plains currently holds a 51% interest in the Yeoval and Goodrich projects and has elected to increase its stake to 70%. To do so, it must spend a further $1 million on exploration, including at least 500 metres of drilling, within 12 months.

Orbit retains a 49% interest and remains the operator. It does not contribute to exploration spending during the earn-in period, and its interest will fall to 30% when Great Plains completes the earn-in.

Managing Director Jeneta Owens said the structure gave Orbit continued exposure to potentially high-grade drilling results without the company contributing to exploration expenditure.

The trade-off

Earn-in agreements allow small companies to advance projects without raising Capital and diluting shareholders. The cost is a smaller share of any discovery. If Goodrich proves to be a large porphyry deposit, Orbit's eventual 30% interest would still give it exposure, but it would share development decisions and future funding obligations with its partner.

Once the earn-in is complete, joint venture partners are usually required to fund their share of further work or accept dilution, so Orbit's costs would resume at that stage.

The rest of Orbit's portfolio

Orbit describes its main asset as the Lewis Ponds Gold-Silver Project, which sits within a portfolio of precious and base metals projects across the Lachlan Fold Belt. On 4 November the company reported additional visible semi-massive sulphide in drilling elsewhere in its portfolio. Having a partner fund Goodrich allows Orbit to direct its own cash towards Lewis Ponds.

Qualifications

The stage-one result came from a single reported hole, and the intervals are downhole lengths. Molybdenum grades are modest, and the economic significance of the system cannot be judged until more drilling has defined its extent and continuity.

Porphyry exploration in the Lachlan Fold Belt has attracted renewed attention because the region hosts major copper-gold mines, including Cadia and Northparkes, and because copper Demand forecasts have strengthened. Junior explorers often struggle to fund the deep diamond drilling that porphyry targets require, which is one reason earn-in partnerships with better-funded groups are common in the district. Goodrich is an example of that model in practice. Great Plains' election to reach 70% suggests it sees promise in Goodrich.

What comes next

Drill core will be logged, cut and sent to ALS in Orange for assay. Orbit says it will use the results to assess the geometry of the system and plan further drilling. With assays not expected until the March quarter, news flow from Goodrich is likely to be limited in the near term, while Great Plains continues working towards its 70% stake.