Aurum rigs roar as thick high-grade gold hits stack up in West Africa
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penny taylor
Aurum Resources has launched a new wave of strong gold bullion at its Boundiali project in Ivory Coast; Drilling at the BDT2 deposit continues to expand the scale of the system and strengthen its identity as a serious competitor in West Africa.
The latest diamond campaign delivered intense, tenor-rich cuts while paving the way for further growth beyond current resource limits.
The 40-hole program at BDT2 has covered more than 12,000 meters so far and aims to aggregate the resource and convert low-fidelity tones into the high-fidelity specified category.
Leading the charge was a remarkable 36m intercept at 1.99 grams gold per tonne (g/t) from 280m, including a 1.85m splash of high-grade material grading 27.97g/t.
‘Deeper holes confirm that the gold system remains open at depth.’
Dr Caigen Wang, managing director of Aurum Resources
A second hole was drilled 22m from 97m at 1.40g/t gold, while a third intercept reached 18.5m from 245m at 1.18g/t gold and had a 3.5m tranche working 4.6g/t gold. Additional zones of over two meters between 115m and 150m depth yield above 20g/t gold, offering an impressive combination of scale and grade.
The numerous mineralized zones in each hole became a defining feature indicating a layered, laterally extensive gold system. The company says infill, step-by-step and deeper drilling now strengthens geological certainty and expands the mineralized envelope at CIS2, supporting near-term mine plans and opening the door to longer-term growth.
BDT2 is located within a wide structural corridor of 13 kilometers. The gold is hosted in a north-south trending sandstone unit framed by volcanic-sedimentary rocks. The mineralization occurs largely by unconfined milling and is associated with disseminated sulphides and an alteration group of silica, hematite, and chlorite, a geological signature often associated with low-cost mining.
Actual widths follow 60 to 85 percent of downhole intersections and underscore the true weight of mineralized zones. Remarkably, recent drilling has intersected gold well beyond the existing resource shell, marking a material extension of the known system and reinforcing its open-ended nature both across the strike and at depth.
Dr Caigen Wang, managing director of Aurum Resources, said: “Deeper holes confirm that the gold system remains open at depth and many of the new holes intersect mineralization outside existing resource boundaries, underlining the strong potential for continued growth at Boundiali.”
The company continues to keep its foot on the gas pedal, with 14 diamond drilling rigs buzzing at Boundiali as part of a 130,000-metre enhanced drilling offensive planned for 2026.
Most exploration to date has focused on defined targets at surface, leaving significant room for new discoveries along the broader corridor as deeper, more aggressive drilling continues to test new positions.
Across its portfolio, Aurum currently manages a total resource of 4.2 million ounces, comprising the company’s 3.03 million ounce Boundiali project and the 1.16 million ounce Napié project.
Attention is now focused on the development of the flagship project; A pre-feasibility study in May is expected to outline the open-pit mining scenario, and will be followed by a definitive feasibility study later in the year.
Beyond CIS2, Aurum is also developing a pipeline of regional prospects across the wider Boundiali territory. Multiple targets at the project’s BD, BM and BST potentials are being tested as part of a growing multi-deposit system. Drilling rigs are also probing new anomalies along the 13km corridor, searching for recurring structures that could deposit additional low-cost ounces and extend the mine life of the project.
Located in the south-east, 100 km from Boundiali, the company is also accelerating work on the Napié project, where a group of potential clients are producing their own high-grade gold targets and emerging as a complementary second growth front.
Supporting an intensive drilling program, Aurum had $61 million in cash and a self-sustaining drilling fleet as of the end of December, leaving the company well equipped to continue its aggressive growth strategy as it approaches production decisions.
High-grade success continues to grow at both Boundiali and Napié, helping to position the company as a multi-asset gold player in a region of growing global interest. Boundiali is quickly shaping up as a regional-scale gold camp, and while there is still plenty of room to test, the company appears to have significant momentum and potentially many more ounces yet to be uncovered.
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