Sunshine Metals Targets High-Grade Gold at Francis Creek East with Sybil Drilling

Drills Turn at Sybil as Sunshine Metals Targets High-Grade Epithermal Gold Across Three Prospects

Sunshine Metals Limited (ASX: SHN) has commenced a 72-hole, 4,528-metre reverse circulation drilling program at its Sybil Epithermal Gold Project in North Queensland, with drilling already underway at Francis Creek East, a previously undrilled target. According to the ASX announcement, the program will test three areas — Francis Creek, Francis Creek East and Blue Range — and is expected to be completed in September 2026.

For investors following Sunshine Metals, the update matters because it builds directly on a 2025 diamond drilling campaign at Francis Creek that returned shallow, high-grade gold intersections including 4.4m at 57.51g/t Au from 23.6m. The current campaign is designed to extend that known mineralisation and test new vein systems across a broader part of the Sybil project.

Drilling Resumes After a Strong 2025 Campaign

In the announcement, Sunshine said the RC program aims to follow up the successful 14-hole, 1,177.4-metre diamond drilling program completed at Francis Creek between August and October 2025. That earlier work was the first drilling at Francis Creek in around 20 years and was intended to improve the geological understanding of the vein system.

The 2025 results went beyond structural information. Sunshine reported significant gold in 12 of 14 holes, supporting the presence of shallow epithermal gold mineralisation at Francis Creek.

Key reported intersections from the 2025 program included:

According to the company, these results were incorporated into an updated interpretation of the A Vein, which is now understood to dip steeply to the north. That matters because Sunshine believes three older drill holes in the north-west extension may not have intersected the true vein position, reopening that area as a follow-up target.

Surface sampling supports that view. The company reported rock chip samples up to 22.4g/t Au in the repositioned north-west target area, while the south-east extension of the A Vein remains untested by drilling despite rock chip values of up to 11.2g/t Au about 150 metres along strike from current drilling.

Managing Director Dr Damien Keys offered further context on the renewed activity: "It's great to see the drill rig running again at Sybil. We have kicked off drilling on the Francis Creek East target, located 1.7km east of our successful 2025 campaign at Francis Creek. Francis Creek East has never been drilled before and is a significant step off into the unknown."

Three Targets Are Being Tested in One RC Program

The RC drilling campaign is spread across three target areas, each representing a different part of the Sybil epithermal system. In the report, Sunshine outlined a phased program starting at Francis Creek East before moving to Francis Creek and Blue Range.

Francis Creek East: First-Pass Drilling on a Greenfields Target

Francis Creek East is the first target being drilled. It sits 1.7km east of Francis Creek and, according to the announcement, has never been drilled before.

Sunshine has planned 20 holes for around 1,070 metres at this prospect. The company said outcropping epithermal quartz veins are exposed at surface, with rock chip assays up to 28.1g/t Au.

This first-pass drilling is intended to assess three key points:

• Vein dip, or the direction the vein angles underground
• Vein thickness
• Grade continuity from surface

For investors, this is one of the clearest greenfields-style components of the program. The target already has visible surface veins and high-grade point sampling, but no drilling data yet.

Francis Creek: Expanding on Proven High-Grade Results

Francis Creek is the largest component of the campaign, with 44 planned holes for around 3,080 metres. This work is designed to expand on the 2025 diamond drilling results.

According to the company, drilling at Francis Creek will:

• Test the north-west and south-east extensions of the A Vein
• Follow up previous high-grade intersections
• Carry out first detailed drilling on the Main Vein and B, C, D, E and F Veins
• Test a south-east striking splay off the Main Vein about 400m east of the A Vein mineralisation

Furthermore, Sunshine noted that the C and D Veins contain rock chip samples up to 7.3g/t Au, providing additional targets outside the main A Vein trend.

Blue Range: A Separate Mineralised Centre

Blue Range is the smallest drill component, with 8 planned holes for around 375 metres, but it remains relevant because it is a separate target located 6km north of Francis Creek. Sunshine reported historical rock chip samples of up to 20.4g/t Au from this area.

That geographic separation gives Blue Range potential value as an additional mineralised centre, rather than a direct extension of Francis Creek.

What Is a Low-Sulphidation Epithermal Gold System?

Sybil is described in the announcement as a low-sulphidation epithermal gold project. For non-specialist investors, this deposit type is important to understand because it helps explain why shallow drilling, outcropping veins and surface rock chip results are relevant.

A low-sulphidation epithermal deposit forms when hot, mineral-rich fluids move upward through cracks in volcanic rocks at relatively shallow crustal depths. As those fluids cool, they can deposit gold and associated minerals in veins.

Several features often attract attention in these systems:

• They can host high-grade gold
• Mineralisation may occur at shallow depths
• Vein textures at surface can help geologists assess the type of system present

At Sybil, Sunshine said epithermal gold was first identified at Francis Creek in 1986 through vein textures such as colloform, crustiform and cockade textures. In simple terms, these are banded or layered vein textures that geologists associate with shallow hydrothermal systems.

In addition, it is worth noting that RC drilling is a faster drilling method that returns rock chips rather than continuous core. It is commonly used for first-pass and follow-up exploration because it can test multiple targets quickly and at lower cost than diamond drilling.

Another important term used in the update is rock chip sample. These are point samples taken from exposed rock at surface. They can indicate the presence of high-grade mineralisation, but they do not represent the average grade of a larger body of rock. That is why drill testing is required.

Sybil's Geology Is Being Compared With Pajingo

One of the main geological reference points in the announcement is the nearby Pajingo low-sulphidation epithermal deposit, which Sunshine said has produced approximately 4 million ounces of gold since 1986.

The company outlined a number of similarities between Sybil and Pajingo, including:

The company also said Sybil sits on a greater than 40km extensional structure filled with Permian-Carboniferous volcanics, with Sunshine's tenure covering the northern part of that structure.

For investors, the comparison does not confirm that Sybil will match Pajingo in scale. However, what it does indicate is that Sunshine sees the geological setting as supportive of further exploration across a project area it describes as underexplored.

That underexploration is a recurring point in the release. Sunshine stated that historic drilling has largely focused on Francis Creek and Quartz Ridge, while much of the Sybil area remains lightly tested by modern work.

Historical Work Adds Context, but Current Drilling Is the Key Catalyst

The ASX release includes several historical reference points that help frame the project's background. At Francis Creek, Sunshine reported historical rock chip grades of 907g/t Au and 262g/t Au from the A and Main Veins.

The company also cited a 1991 bulk sample from the A Vein that was processed through the Ravenswood Gold Mine, producing 961 tonnes at 7.6g/t Au for 235 ounces. According to the announcement, no further mining or bulk sampling has occurred since then.

These historical data points provide useful context, but the investment focus is likely to remain on current drill results. Modern drilling can test continuity, geometry and extension potential in a way that surface samples and old small-scale work simply cannot.

A second management comment in the release underlines that point. Dr Keys said Francis Creek drilling will test A Vein extensions as well as deliver first detailed drilling on multiple additional veins, and that the company anticipates following up any success with further drilling.

Broader Activity Across Ravenswood Adds to News Flow

The Sybil program is part of a wider period of activity for Sunshine Metals across the Ravenswood Consolidated Project. In the company's project summary, Sunshine referenced:

• A VMS resource of 8.36Mt at 3.47g/t AuEq or 11.8% ZnEq
• Multiple deposits including Liontown, Waterloo, Orient and Plateau
• The Liontown gold-rich footwall, where past intersections include 22.0m at 20.2g/t Au and 20.0m at 18.2g/t Au
• Additional Au-Cu VMS targets at Coronation and Highway East
• The Investigator copper project north of Mt Isa

That broader portfolio matters because it provides multiple potential news catalysts beyond Sybil alone. Still, the current ASX announcement is clearly centred on epithermal gold exploration at Sybil.

What Investors May Watch Next

In the announcement, Sunshine listed several near-term milestones that place the Sybil drill program into a broader 2026 schedule.

At Sybil itself, investors are likely to focus on several key questions as results flow through.

Will Francis Creek East Convert Strong Surface Sampling Into Drill Intersections?

This is the most immediate unknown. The target has visible veins and reported rock chip values up to 28.1g/t Au, but no prior drilling data to draw upon.

Can Francis Creek Extend the A Vein Beyond the Current Drill Footprint?

The revised interpretation of the A Vein is central to this campaign. If RC drilling confirms north-west and south-east continuity, the scale of mineralisation at Francis Creek may become considerably clearer.

Do the Additional Veins Add Breadth to the System?

The Main Vein and B to F Veins have had limited detailed drilling. Positive results there could demonstrate that Francis Creek is not reliant on a single vein for its prospectivity.

Could Blue Range Emerge as Another Standalone Prospect?

With reported surface values up to 20.4g/t Au, Blue Range offers separate target potential within the broader project area. Cultural heritage surveys are also planned at the Burdekin Veins target to support initial drill testing in 2026, while geological mapping has been completed at Cisco and Pancho, suggesting the current three-target program may be followed by further exploration across the district.

Why Sybil Is Attracting Investor Attention

According to the ASX announcement, Sunshine Metals has moved into an active exploration phase at Sybil with a program that combines follow-up work at a known high-grade prospect and first-pass drilling at undrilled targets.

The current investment case at Sybil rests on several reported features:

1. Shallow high-grade results from the 2025 diamond program at Francis Creek
2. A revised geological model that reopens target areas along the A Vein
3. A previously undrilled target at Francis Creek East with high-grade surface samples
4. Additional vein systems at Francis Creek that have had limited detailed testing
5. A broader underexplored district setting with geological similarities to Pajingo

For now, the market's attention is likely to stay on assay results from Francis Creek East, Francis Creek and Blue Range through August to October 2026. Those results should provide a clearer indication of whether Sybil's high-grade surface and shallow drill signatures can be extended across a larger mineralised footprint.

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