Kincora Copper Launches First Systematic Condobolin Drilling in a Decade

BY WILLIAM HADRIAN ON APRIL 28, 2026

Kincora Copper Chess Depositary Interests 1:1

  • ASX Code: KCC
  • Market Cap: $18,162,846
  • Shares On Issue (SOI): 284,551,569
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    Kincora Fires Up the Drill at Condobolin — The First Systematic Program in Over a Decade

    Kincora Copper Limited (ASX & TSXV: KCC) has commenced the Kincora Copper Condobolin drilling program at Meritilga gold project, marking the first systematic drill program at the historic Condobolin Mineral Field in more than ten years. The capital-efficient program targets up to eight diamond core holes in its first phase, focused on the high-grade Meritilga discovery — a blind gold find that produced standout results including 4m @ 20g/t Au, 30.2g/t Ag (including 1m @ 62g/t Au and 60g/t Ag) from just 75 metres depth.

    This program is sole-funded by Kincora, running concurrently with a separately funded drilling campaign at the Nevertire South porphyry project, where partner AngloGold Ashanti is funding exploration while Kincora earns a management fee. The dual-front drilling approach underscores Kincora's hybrid project generator model — advancing its own high-grade assets while leveraging partner capital across its broader portfolio.

    "We are very excited to be drilling at two highly prospective projects, including the first systematic drilling program in over a decade at our wholly owned Condobolin project."
    — John Holliday, Technical Committee Chair, and Peter Leaman, VP of Exploration, Kincora Copper


    What Is Kincora Actually Drilling — and Why Does It Matter?

    The Condobolin project sits at the southern end of the Cobar Basin, a prolific mining district with a 150-year history of high-grade, long-life operations. The project covers a historic mineral field that was the focus of up to 25 informal open-pit operations during its peak in the late 1800s and early 1900s. Back then, the shallow water table and weathered rock profile impeded both mining and exploration — constraints that modern diamond drilling neatly sidesteps.

    Key facts about the project and the current program:

    • The Condobolin Mineral Field has not been effectively explored below the weathered zone (approximately 30 metres depth)
    • Approximately 20% of the wider project area has outcropping or sub-outcropping geology, making surface sampling fast and cost-effective
    • A ~150km² airborne electromagnetic (AEM) geophysical survey was completed in Q4 2025, generating fresh drill targets
    • Permits and land access are in place for the first phase of up to eight diamond core holes
    • A permitted program of up to 15 holes and 4,100 metres has been designed for Meritilga, with the first phase now underway

    The current drilling is designed to test Meritilga at depth (down to 350 metres), along strike, and across new coincident geochemical and geophysical targets — none of which have been drill-tested in a systematic way before.


    The Meritilga Discovery: High-Grade and Wide Open

    Meritilga was first identified in 2012 by Clancy Exploration (now RareX Limited) as a blind shallow discovery following up a coincident 2km x 2km arsenic-lead-zinc (+gold) geochemical anomaly and a K-channel radiometric anomaly. The target sits over NE-striking structures identified in detailed 3D induced polarisation (IP) surveys.

    Kincora's most recent diamond hole at Meritilga (2023) confirmed the discovery's depth extension potential. The mineralised lode is described as a consistent body — open both up and down dip — with a high-grade core lens and a broader lower-grade halo.

    The table below summarises the most significant historical intercepts at Meritilga:

    Interval Gold (g/t) Silver (g/t) Notes
    4m from 75m 20.0 30.2 Incl. 1m @ 62 g/t Au, 60 g/t Ag
    10m 5.78 26.79 Incl. 4m @ 14.2 g/t Au, 61.7 g/t Ag
    15m 2.76 8.78 Incl. 5m @ 7.89 g/t Au, 22.3 g/t Ag

    Beyond Meritilga, the prior drilling phase returned meaningful results across multiple targets, demonstrating the project-wide exploration upside:

    • Phoenix mine: Confirmed depth extension to gold mineralisation — 9m @ 4 g/t Au from 72m, including 2m @ 14 g/t Au
    • Potters mine: Confirmed extensions to base metal mineralisation — 2m @ 7.1% Pb, 2.4% Zn, 83.5 g/t Ag from 51m; and 4m @ 4.1% Zn, 2.87% Pb, 29.6 g/t Ag from 136m
    • Eureka: Visible gold returned in an air-core hole northeast of Meritilga — yet to be followed up
    • Multiple other basement air-core intercepts remain undrilled

    Understanding Epithermal Deposits: Why "Cobar-Style" Matters

    What Is an Epithermal Deposit?

    Epithermal deposits are formed when hot, metal-rich fluids rise from deep within the Earth and cool rapidly near the surface. These systems typically form at shallow depths (less than 2km below the surface) and are characterised by their high-grade gold and silver mineralisation. The term "epithermal" comes from the relatively low temperatures (150–300°C) at which these deposits form compared to other types of mineral deposits.

    What Makes Cobar-Style Deposits Distinctive?

    Cobar-style deposits are structurally controlled, high-grade, polymetallic (gold, silver, copper, lead, zinc) mineralised systems typically hosted in sedimentary or metasedimentary rocks. They are characterised by their vertical extent — individual mineralised lodes and systems can continue hundreds of metres at depth, and it is common for multiple stacked lenses or repeating mineralised zones to occur along the same structure.

    Why Does This Matter for Kincora's Drilling Program?

    The Cobar Basin's most productive mines demonstrate exactly this kind of vertical persistence. Kincora's working geological model at Condobolin proposes a deeper intrusive body (porphyry source) driving zoned hydrothermal activity at and near the surface — producing the epithermal gold-silver mineralisation seen at Meritilga and the base-metal-rich styles seen at Potters and other historical mines.

    If the current drilling confirms this model at depth, the project's scale potential increases substantially — from a collection of near-surface high-grade intercepts to a vertically extensive, multi-target mineralised system.

    Key Exploration Terms

    Term Meaning
    Epithermal A style of gold-silver deposit formed at shallow depths from low-temperature hydrothermal fluids
    Porphyry A large intrusive rock body that can be the source of metals in surrounding hydrothermal systems
    IP (Induced Polarisation) A geophysical survey method used to detect sulphide mineralisation underground
    AEM (Airborne EM) Electromagnetic survey flown by aircraft to detect conductive bodies (including sulphides) at depth
    Down-dip Drilling in the direction that a mineralised body slopes into the earth
    Pathfinder elements Trace elements (e.g., arsenic, antimony, bismuth) that help identify the proximity and style of mineralisation

    A District Heating Up: Recent M&A Validates the Cobar Opportunity

    Kincora is not operating in isolation — the broader Cobar Basin has seen a string of high-profile transactions and discoveries that have drawn renewed institutional attention to the district. Furthermore, the scale of recent deal-making underscores just how strategically valuable this region has become:

    Transaction / Event Detail
    Harmony Gold / MAC Copper A$1.6 billion takeover of MAC Copper (includes the CSA mine)
    Aeris Resources / Peel Mining A$214 million acquisition
    Kingston Resources (KSN.ASX) Received A$50 million cash as first tranche of Mineral Hill-adjacent PNG Misima divestment
    Australian Gold & Copper (AGC.ASX) New district-scale discovery at Achilles in the Cobar Basin's southwest extension
    Federation, Mallee Bull, Southern Nights, Wagga Tank Recent new discoveries using modern exploration techniques in historically underexplored areas

    The Condobolin project sits approximately 40km south of the Kingston Resources Mineral Hill mill — a potentially significant proximity given that the Cobar Basin's economics are often underpinned by access to existing processing infrastructure.

    As Kincora's technical team noted: "Recent M&A in the Cobar district highlights the strategic value of high-grade precious and critical mineral deposits, particularly where synergies can be unlocked from existing processing capacity."


    What's Next: Drilling Roadmap and Upcoming Catalysts

    Kincora has structured its Condobolin program with a clear staged approach, providing multiple near-term newsflow opportunities.

    Phase 1 (Underway)

    1. Up to eight diamond core holes at Meritilga
    2. Testing down-dip extensions (to approximately 350m depth)
    3. Along-strike targets at Meritilga
    4. New adjacent coincident geochemical and geophysical targets

    Phase 2 (Fully Funded and Proposed)

    1. Follow-up drilling at Meritilga based on Phase 1 results
    2. Drilling at other open prior discoveries across the project (Phoenix, Potters, Eureka, and others)
    3. Testing larger causative porphyry centres at depth — the deeper intrusive source proposed in Kincora's geological model

    Concurrent Activity

    • AngloGold Ashanti-funded drilling ongoing at the Nevertire South porphyry project (part of the Northern Junee-Narromine Belt), with Kincora receiving a management fee
    Milestone Status
    AEM geophysical survey (~150km²) Completed Q4 2025
    Phase 1 diamond drilling (up to 8 holes) Underway — commenced April 2026
    Phase 2 follow-up at Meritilga Fully funded, pending Phase 1 results
    Additional target drilling (porphyry centres, open discoveries) Under consideration
    Nevertire South drilling (AngloGold Ashanti funded) Ongoing

    The Investment Thesis: Three Reasons Kincora Deserves Attention

    1. High-Grade Discovery with Systematic Upside Yet to Be Tested

    Despite delivering bonanza-grade intercepts — 1m @ 62g/t Au — Meritilga has never been properly drilled at depth. The lode is open in multiple directions, and the Kincora Copper Condobolin drilling program at Meritilga gold project represents the first real attempt to understand its vertical and lateral extent. In a gold price environment where high-grade ounces carry a premium, an open high-grade system at shallow-to-moderate depth is a compelling exploration target.

    2. Capital-Efficient Model Maximises Shareholder Leverage

    Kincora's hybrid project generator approach means that the Condobolin program is being sole-funded by the company while AngloGold Ashanti funds drilling at Nevertire South — with Kincora earning a management fee in return. Consequently, the company reports it has accessed over $100 million of potential partner funding for multiple earlier-stage projects, supported over 18,000 metres of drilling and over A$9 million of partner-funded exploration since late 2024.

    This structure allows Kincora to maintain focused exploration at its high-conviction assets without proportionally diluting shareholders.

    3. District Positioning in a Proven, Re-Emerging Basin

    The Cobar Basin is not a frontier. It has a 150-year track record of producing high-grade, long-life mines. What is new, however, is the application of modern exploration techniques — AEM, detailed IP, systematic geochemical sampling — to districts that were historically limited by shallow water tables and weathered profiles.

    Kincora has consolidated 100% ownership of the Condobolin Mineral Field, sits approximately 40km from an operating mill, and is surrounded by a district that has attracted over A$1.8 billion in M&A activity in recent years.


    Why Investors Should Keep Watching Kincora

    Kincora offers a relatively rare combination in the junior explorer space: a sole-funded, capital-efficient program at a high-grade project with genuine discovery upside, running simultaneously with partner-funded drilling at a separate project. The company is not burning cash chasing a single target — it is advancing multiple fronts with a disciplined allocation of capital.

    The Kincora Copper Condobolin drilling program at Meritilga gold project will generate assay results from systematic diamond drilling that the market has not seen before at this project. Each hole has the potential to either confirm a vertically extensive, multi-lens high-grade system — or to redirect exploration toward adjacent coincident targets that remain untested.

    With the Cobar Basin actively attracting institutional capital and M&A interest, a meaningful discovery at Condobolin would land in a district where buyers and development partners are already looking.

    Key Takeaway:

    Kincora Copper has commenced the most systematic drilling program the Condobolin Mineral Field has seen in over a decade, targeting a proven high-grade gold-silver system that remains open at depth and along strike. With a capital-efficient sole-funded model, partner-backed concurrent drilling at Nevertire South, and a Cobar Basin district being reshaped by billion-dollar M&A, Kincora is positioned as an explorer with multiple near-term catalysts and genuine discovery potential. Assay results from the current phase will be a defining moment for the project's scale ambitions.

    Want to Know More About Kincora's High-Grade Condobolin Drilling Program?

    With systematic diamond drilling now underway at Meritilga for the first time in over a decade — targeting a proven high-grade gold-silver system open at depth and along strike — Kincora Copper is generating near-term catalysts that investors in the junior exploration space will want to follow closely. To learn more about Kincora Copper's projects, capital-efficient exploration model, and upcoming drill results, visit kincoracopper.com.

    Stock Codes: ASX: KCC

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