Gateway unleashes five-rig drilling blitz at WA Yandal gold play

Brought to you by BULLS N’ BEARS

Murray Ward

November 2, 2026 — 4:07pm

After a frustrating period of delays that saw just five holes drilled in six weeks, Gateway Mining has put its foot on the accelerator, unleashing a five-rig exploration blitz at its flagship Yandal gold project in Western Australia.

The aggressive ramp-up comes as gold remains near historically elevated levels, with the Australian Government forecasting prices to stay high through 2026 and 2027. The broader WA exploration sector is also running hot, with spending in the State hitting a record $843.6 million in the June quarter, creating intense competition for drilling contractors and equipment.

That backdrop may help explain the operational headwinds the company faced following its major Cowza discovery in September; however, Gateway says its exploration program is now fully back on track.

With two reverse-circulation (RC) rigs, one diamond rig and one aircore rig now humming on site and a second diamond rig expected to arrive later this week, the company appears to be making up for lost time. Management says it’s on to its third RC drilling contractor, with the new outfit hitting its stride and the two rigs punching out a combined average of 300 metres per day. The RC rigs are focused on following up mineralisation along the highly prospective Cowza-Celia South trend.

‘We are confident we now have the exploration program fully back on track.’

Gateway Mining chief executive officer Richard Pugh

Meanwhile, the first of two diamond rigs has kicked off drilling at Cowza, tasked with twinning the original discovery hole. That hole returned a spectacular intercept of 41 metres grading two grams per tonne (g/t) gold, featuring a richer nine-metre core assaying a hefty 7.5g/t gold.

Twinning the hole with a diamond core will provide crucial geological data on the orientation of the gold-bearing vein structures, helping guide the ongoing RC drill-out.

Once the second diamond rig arrives on site, it will be put to work, testing for extensions to the current mineral resources at the nearby Horse Well deposit. Rounding out Gateway’s comprehensive program, an aircore rig has been brought back to drill a suite of pipeline targets, mostly focused on splay structures branching off the major regional Celia Shear zone.

Notably, the company remains well-funded to undertake the extensive campaign, reporting a healthy $52.8 million in its war chest at the end of the September quarter.

Gateway Mining chief executive officer Richard Pugh said: “It has been a frustrating period for Gateway trying to source appropriate drilling contractors who can handle the ground conditions and maintain appropriate daily metreage rates. Only five holes were successfully completed in the six weeks following the discovery announcement at Cowza. We are now onto our third RC contractor, and very pleasingly we are achieving normal drilling rates -over 300 metres per day between the two rigs, on average.”

Gateway’s Yandal project sits in the seriously well-endowed gold and regional-scale Yandal greenstone belt. The area hosts a treasure trove of multi-million-ounce gold deposits, including the nearby Jundee, Bronzewing and Darlot mines. Yandal already holds a global gold inventory of 400,400 ounces.

Running through Gateway’s patch is the gold-bearing Celia shear, a major geological structure linking a string of the company’s prospects and deposits. Among them are the Dusk ’til Dawn gold camp, boasting 108,900 ounces and the Horse Well gold camp with 291,500 ounces.

The shift to a multi-rig program follows a recent board reshuffle that saw chief executive officer Richard Pugh elevated to managing director, sharpening Gateway’s focus on exploration-led growth. Under Pugh’s leadership, the company has delivered multiple discoveries including Haflinger, Hummer, Rubicon and the recent high-grade find at Cowza. Further drilling success could add serious ounces to its golden tally, potentially setting the stage for a resource upgrade next year.

With a recently restructured board, a formidable cash war chest and a fleet of five rigs now set to spin the rods around the clock, Gateway appears to have put its operational frustrations firmly in the rear-view mirror. After a quiet spell on the news front, Gateway appears poised to unleash a torrent of assay results as it looks to build on its existing 400,400-ounce gold inventory and pursue its ambition of creating Australia’s next multi-million-ounce gold camp.

Is your ASX-listed company doing something interesting? Contact: mattbirney@bullsnbears.com.au

From our partners