Zenith Minerals has officially secured the “missing link” at its flagship Consolidated Dulcie gold project in Western Australia, completing the acquisition of a crucial mining lease that unites its gold-rich tenure into one continuous six-kilometre mineralised corridor.

The formal registration of the mining lease marks the first time the company has held total control over the primary trend, effectively plugging a 600-metre gap between its two main gold deposits.

The strategically vital piece of real estate sits directly between Zenith’s Dulcie North and Dulcie deposits. While the fresh ground remains largely untested by the drill bit, the gold signature on either side is remarkably consistent.

To the north, Dulcie North hosts 75,000 ounces of gold over a 500-metre strike, while to the south, the main Dulcie deposit clocks 300,000 ounces of gold across a three-kilometre strike, both in the inferred category. The company says this central corridor position represents one of the most compelling near-resource growth opportunities within the broader project area.

According to management, there is clear potential to link mineralisation between the existing deposits and materially expand the current global resource at Consolidated Dulcie, which stands at 21.3 million tonnes grading 1.0 gram per tonne (g/t) gold for 675,000 ounces of gold. Crucially, the broader system remains open both along strike and at depth.

With the fresh ground secured, the company will now charge ahead with preparations for a planned 35-hole reverse circulation drilling program. The company says technical and permitting work is well advanced, with flora and fauna surveys, aerial digital terrain model acquisition and drill planning already substantially progressed.

We believe this tenure has the potential to materially enhance the scale and continuity of the Consolidated Dulcie Gold project and provides a highly compelling near-term drilling opportunity.

The 5000-metre campaign is specifically designed to test the continuity of the stacked, shallow-dipping lode system across the company’s freshly acquired ground between deposits.

The Consolidated Dulcie project sits within the Southern Cross–Forrestania gold belt and benefits from granted mining leases, shallow open-pit style mineralisation and proximity to regional processing infrastructure at Marvel Loch and Edna May.

Elsewhere, Zenith’s exploration plays include its promising Red Mountain gold project in Queensland. Recent diamond drilling has now plumbed the depths of gold mineralisation beyond 700 metres vertical depth at the prospect, reinforcing the continuity of a broad breccia-hosted intrusion-related gold system (IRGS) at depth.

Among its standout results, one hole ending at 731m downhole depth returned a best intercept of 333m grading 0.27g/t gold from 388m downhole. The intersection also encountered narrow high-grade veins of 2m at 6.55g/t gold and 2.2m at 4.16g/t gold.

The company also holds a 25 per cent free-carried interest in the Earaheedy zinc project in one of Western Australia’s premier undeveloped zinc districts. The portfolio is rounded out by an active stake in the Cowarra gold project in New South Wales and its Split Rocks lithium project near Southern Cross in WA, host to an inferred resource of 11.9 million tonnes at 0.72 per cent lithium oxide.

As the company kicks off its fresh drilling program, it is also navigating a formal strategic review aimed at closing the gap between its share price and its underlying asset value.

Financial advisers are now on deck, with inbound interest already noted. Zenith says the next few months will be about proving up the full scale of the Dulcie trend and determining the best corporate pathway to unlock its maximum value.

With the full six kilometres of the Dulcie trend finally under one roof and the drill rigs ready to roll, Zenith now appears well-positioned to prove exactly what its WA gold hub is worth. It is a classic “connect the dots” play that could turn a series of deposits into a serious production powerhouse.

Is your ASX-listed company doing something interesting? Contact: matt.birney@wanews.com.au