Alice Queen Limited (ASX:AQX) (‘Alice Queen’ or ‘the Company’) is pleased to advise that drilling has commenced at its flagship Horn Island Gold Project in Queensland, Australia, as part of a multi-phase drill program targeting up to ~5,000m.
Highlights
- Drilling commenced last week at the Horn Island Gold Project in the Torres Strait region of Far North Queensland
- The 2026 drilling program follows a series of key achievements at Horn Island, including delivery of the Project Definition Study, an updated Mineral Resource Estimate, the announcement of an Exploration Target and the progression of feasibility study work
- A multi-phase program targeting up to ~5,000m is underway, using a dual-purpose, trackmounted rig capable of both reverse circulation (RC) and diamond core drilling
- The program is designed to target high-grade gold mineralisation and test the recently announced Exploration Target areas, which outline the conceptual potential for a large-scale gold mineralised system
- The Horn Island Project has a (JORC 2012) Mineral Resource Estimate (MRE) of 21.1Mt @ 0.84 g/t Au for 569,000 ounces Au
Alice Queen’s Managing Director, Andrew Buxton said
“Horn Island is a gold system with significant growth potential and this program will focus on demonstrating its scale. The drilling is designed to build on our existing resource and test the broader Exploration Target areas, where we see strong potential to add high-grade ounces across multiple styles of mineralisation. Importantly, the program will be undertaken alongside our development work, with the results feeding directly into ongoing feasibility study work and helping shape the future of the Horn Island Project. The more we can grow the resource base, the stronger the foundation we will establish for project development. “
Figure 1. Drilling advances at the Horn Island Gold Project
Horn Island Drill Program
In June 2026, Alice Queen appointed an exploration drilling contractor and secured a dual-purpose, track-mounted rig capable of both reverse circulation (RC) and diamond core drilling. The multi-phase campaign is being led by the Company’s technical team under Mr Adrian Hell, with funding supported by the Company’s recent partially underwritten Entitlement Offer.
In May 2026, the Company reported an Exploration Target for the Horn Island Project, confirming the potential for a large-scale gold system. Multiple styles of mineralisation were identified across the project, comprising hard rock vein-hosted gold, legacy mine-related stockpiles and tailings and potential alluvial systems.
The hard rock areas carry a conceptual Exploration Target2 of 34.6 to 52.0Mt at 0.88 to 1.32 g/t Au for 1.22 to 1.83Moz gold. The stockpiles, tailings and alluvial domains carry a conceptual Exploration Target of 25.1 to 37.6Mt at 0.31 to 0.46 g/t Au for 0.31 to 0.46Moz gold. These domains sit outside the Company’s existing Mineral Resource.
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