Gateway Mining Extends Cowza Gold Discovery to 4.5km at Yandal

Gateway Mining's Cowza Gold Discovery Expands to 4.5km at Yandal Gold Project

Gateway Mining (ASX: GML) has reported new drill results from its Yandal Gold Project in Western Australia, extending continuous gold mineralisation at the Cowza discovery to approximately 4.5 kilometres of strike, up from 3.5km only weeks earlier. The Gateway Mining Cowza gold discovery expands to 4.5km at Yandal Gold Project represents a significant milestone, with the update released on 26 August 2026 also confirming high-grade gold at the adjacent Celia South prospect.

With mineralisation reported as open in multiple directions, an ongoing reverse circulation (RC) drilling program, and $15.1 million in cash and liquid securities as at the end of the June 2026 quarter, Gateway appears well positioned to continue testing what the company describes as an emerging new gold system.

Cowza Extends Further as Aircore Drilling Continues

According to the announcement, the latest aircore drilling has added approximately 1 kilometre of additional strike to the Cowza discovery, bringing confirmed continuous gold mineralisation to around 4.5km. The original discovery was announced in June 2026, meaning the extension to a 4.5km continuous system has occurred within a matter of months.

Standout intercepts from the latest step-out drilling at Cowza include:

Gateway reported that the strongest gold results remain associated with the same mafic-intermediate contact and structurally complex corridor identified in earlier drilling phases. A mafic-intermediate contact is the boundary between two rock types of differing chemical composition, and is often noted by geologists as a favourable site for gold deposition.

The company said the consistency of geology, alteration and gold mineralisation across the full 4.5km trend supports its interpretation of a continuous, structurally controlled mineralised system rather than a series of isolated anomalies. Furthermore, mineralisation at Cowza was reported as open along strike to the north and south, and open at depth, which means the current 4.5km figure may not represent the full extent of the system.

CEO Richard Pugh commented in the announcement:
"This level of continuity is rare and highlights the scale of the mineralised system we are uncovering. Importantly, the strongest results continue to be associated with the same favourable mafic-intermediate contact and structurally complex corridor that has consistently delivered high-grade gold intersections across the trend."

Celia South Defined as a Separate High-Grade Target

Alongside the Cowza update, Gateway reported progress at Celia South, where drilling has now mapped gold mineralisation over more than 1.5 kilometres of strike. The standout result from this phase of drilling was:

According to the announcement, the 4m at 9.7 g/t gold intercept within CSAC0101 confirms the presence of higher-grade gold shoots within the broader Celia South system. A high-grade shoot refers to a localised zone where gold concentrates at levels well above the surrounding mineralisation, and the company noted this discovery provides a further target for follow-up drilling.

Gateway stated that Celia South's proximity to the northern end of the Cowza trend, with both systems appearing to sit within the same Celia Shear Corridor, supports its view that the broader corridor could host multiple mineralised centres.

Understanding Shear Corridors and Why They Matter for Exploration

The Celia Shear Corridor is central to Gateway's exploration narrative, and understanding what a shear corridor is helps explain why the company considers these results geologically significant.

A shear corridor is a zone where rocks have been subjected to intense tectonic stress over geological time, causing fracturing, folding and deformation. In gold exploration, these corridors are considered important for several reasons:

1. Fluid pathways – the fractures and faults created by shearing can provide channels through which hot, gold-bearing hydrothermal fluids move through the crust.
2. Deposition sites – where those fluids encounter chemically reactive rocks, such as the mafic-intermediate contacts identified at Cowza, gold can be deposited and concentrated.
3. Multiple deposits – shear corridors can extend for many kilometres and, in some cases, host several separate gold deposits along their length, sometimes referred to as a gold camp.

The Yandal Belt, where Gateway's project is located, is an established gold-producing terrain within the broader Yilgarn Craton of Western Australia, a region that hosts numerous significant gold mines. Consequently, the Celia Shear Corridor now hosts two separately defined mineralised systems — Cowza and Celia South — over a combined strike approaching 6 kilometres.

Key Terms Explained

• Aircore (AC) drilling: A drilling method using a hollow bit to extract shallow chip samples, commonly used for rapid, lower-cost exploration across broad areas.
• RC (Reverse Circulation) drilling: A drilling technique that recovers rock chips from greater depths in fresh, unweathered rock, generally providing higher-quality samples for resource assessment.
• Strike length: The horizontal distance along which mineralisation has been identified, used as a measure of a deposit's lateral extent.
• g/t Au: Grams of gold per tonne of rock, the standard unit for reporting gold grade.

RC Drilling Underway With Initial Results Anticipated

The aircore program has, according to the company, established the scale and continuity of mineralisation across a broad footprint at relatively shallow depths. Gateway confirmed that RC drilling is now ongoing at Cowza, with the program designed to:

1. Test the continuity of mineralisation in fresh rock beneath the aircore footprint
2. Assess the geometry of the mineralised system at depth
3. Determine grade distribution beyond the near-surface weathered zone

Initial RC assay results are expected next month, which the company said will provide the first meaningful indication of how the Cowza system behaves in fresh rock.

Pugh noted in the announcement that management is "eagerly anticipating" the initial RC results and their implications for the broader Cowza-Celia system.

Financial Position and Exploration Outlook

Gateway reported $15.1 million in cash and liquid securities at the end of the June 2026 quarter, which the company said supports its planned 2026 exploration activities across the Yandal Gold Project.

The announcement highlighted several factors that, taken together, characterise the current stage of the discovery:

• System scale and growth – the extension of continuous mineralisation from an initial discovery in June 2026 to approximately 4.5km within months represents a notable pace of expansion for an early-stage exploration result.
• Multiple targets along one trend – Cowza and Celia South sit within the same regional structure, and the company's geological interpretation points to potential connectivity between the two systems.
• Geological consistency – the repeated association of gold with the same mafic-intermediate contact across the Cowza trend is presented by the company as supporting evidence for a continuous, structurally controlled system.
• High-grade intercepts – results such as 4m at 9.7 g/t gold at Celia South and 8m at 2.1 g/t gold at Cowza indicate the presence of higher-grade zones within the broader mineralised envelopes.

What Comes Next for the Yandal Gold Project?

The aircore program has defined a broad footprint, with mineralisation at Cowza extending across 4.5km and Celia South across more than 1.5km, both reported as open for further expansion. The RC program now underway is intended to test how the system behaves at depth, with initial results due within weeks.

Company outlook, as stated in the announcement:
"Gateway believes the rapid strike growth achieved through aircore drilling, combined with the ongoing RC program, positions the Company strongly to continue advancing what is rapidly developing into a significant new gold discovery in the Yandal district."

The forthcoming RC results are expected to help determine whether the mineralised system extends to sufficient depth to support further resource evaluation. In addition, these results will likely inform the scope of subsequent drilling programs at both Cowza and Celia South. Gateway indicated that further updates would be provided as results become available, underscoring the active pace at which this emerging system continues to take shape.

Want to Learn More About Gateway Mining's Yandal Gold Project?

Gateway Mining (ASX: GML) is actively expanding one of Western Australia's most rapidly developing new gold discoveries, with RC drilling results imminent and mineralisation remaining open in multiple directions. Investors looking to explore the company's project pipeline, financial position, and upcoming milestones in more detail can visit the Gateway Mining website for the latest information.