Golden Horse Rides Deeper at Hopes Hill — High Grades and New Zones Stir the Pot

Golden Horse Minerals (ASX: GHM) isn’t horsing around at its Hopes Hill gold project in WA’s Southern Cross Greenstone Belt. The company has delivered yet another batch of high-grade drill hits, stretching both depth and strike of the mineralised zone, and all but confirming that this historic pit is hiding a lot more gold than first thought.

The 11 July announcement outlines results from 15 reverse circulation (RC) drill holes targeting the Central Zone and a potential northern extension. Importantly, the latest assays not only reinforce the existing geological model but point to new, unexplored zones of mineralisation.

Big Hits Beneath Low-Grade Zones

Drill hole GHHHRC0055R emerged as the standout. It intersected 15 metres at 3.4 grams per tonne (g/t) gold from 165 metres depth, within a broader 23 metres at 2.3 g/t. This intercept sits directly beneath an area previously regarded as lower-grade, where an earlier hole (GHHHRC0025) returned a more tepid 54m at 0.4 g/t. The implication? The mineralisation isn’t just persisting—it’s improving with depth.

Managing Director Nicholas Anderson put it bluntly:

“This exciting discovery is complemented with further strong grades found in the northern zone which hint at the potential for further extensions. Diamond drilling and EM surveying are planned in this northern zone to increase our understanding of this emerging area.”

Additional intercepts from the Central Zone include 3m at 8.4 g/t from 222m in GHHHRC0056, and 11m at 2.4 g/t from 152m in GHHHRC0058. These deeper intercepts continue a pattern of uncovering high-grade shoots beneath less impressive earlier results, a recurring theme that is starting to redefine expectations for the project.

Northern Extension Heats Up

To the north of the main pit, GHHHRC0052 returned 11m at 1.4 g/t from 210m, capped off by a 1m interval at 4.8 g/t right at end-of-hole—often a tantalising indicator that the best is yet to come. Similarly, GHHHRC0051 yielded 9m at 1.2 g/t from 146m and a further 14m at 1.0 g/t from 202m.

These holes were drilled in what was previously an under-explored section of the pit. The widths and consistency of the intercepts suggest a new mineralised zone is in play—one that extends the footprint of the Hopes Hill system both northward and deeper.

Down the Hole and Into the Conductors

In true belt-and-braces fashion, Golden Horse isn’t relying solely on RC drilling. A series of diamond core tails is now underway, aimed at probing deeper down-dip and chasing what the team believes is a south-plunging orebody. Downhole electromagnetic (DHEM) surveys are also slated to begin mid-July, targeting conductive sulphide-rich zones that are often fellow travellers with gold mineralisation in this type of terrain.

The DHEM work will be managed by Newexco, a Perth-based geophysical outfit with a strong pedigree. A case study just 3km north of Hopes Hill showed that EM surveys can identify subtle conductors linked to gold mineralisation—potentially a game-changer in refining drill targeting.

Irene Betty: The Sidekick Holds Her Ground

Meanwhile, at the Irene Betty prospect—just south of Hopes Hill—the company conducted a screen fire assay check on earlier fire assay results. The outcome? The grades match closely, even with the coarse gold nature of the deposit. This is welcome news: it means the simpler and cheaper conventional fire assay method is reliable enough for this quartz reef-style target.

Building a Bigger Picture

Since January, Golden Horse has drilled over 12,000 metres across 59 holes at Hopes Hill. What’s emerging is the picture of a broad, vertically continuous gold system beneath the old 1.3-kilometre pit—far from mined out and possibly just warming up. The company has also completed a new structural model supporting a south-plunging orientation, a theory now finding ample support from the latest assays.

Anderson summed up the momentum with a bushman’s flair:

“With diamond and RC drill rigs on site and concurrent EM surveying planned, Hopes Hill is buzzing like a saddling yard before a muster.”

What’s Next?

The company plans more drilling in the north and at depth, followed by resource modelling and metallurgical test work. If the current trend continues, a maiden resource for Hopes Hill could be on the cards sooner rather than later.

Golden Horse has tapped into something deeper—literally and figuratively—at Hopes Hill. The market will be watching to see just how far this horse can run.