Forrestania Resources has agreed to purchase up to 400,000 tonnes of gold-bearing ore from ASX-listed High-Tech Metals, securing supply for a maximum term of 24 months as it builds out its processing hubs in Western Australia.
Under the binding ore purchase agreement the price Forrestania pays will be set on commercial terms that reflect ore grade, metallurgical recovery and prevailing gold prices, less agreed treatment and processing charges, with delivery schedules and processing campaigns to be settled between the parties during the contract term.
The Mt Fisher supply is intended to complement Forrestania’s hub-and-spoke model centred on the Edna May and Lake Johnston processing plants, and to add flexibility to the company’s expanding ore pipeline as it readies for production.
Forrestania has previously outlined capacity plans of 2.9 million tonnes per annum for the Edna May plant and 3.2 million tonnes per annum for Lake Johnston, and management says Mt Fisher is more likely to feed the nearer Edna May facility.
The company is targeting first ore processing at Edna May in December 2026, with Lake Johnston scheduled for commissioning in early 2027. Forrestania is already trucking ore from its Taipan deposit and, under a recent purchase agreement with Star Minerals, bringing Tumblegum ore to Edna May ahead of the restart.
Other potential feed sources include the recently acquired Tampia project, which carries a 223,300-ounce resource, and deposits at Lady Ada and Lady Magdalene with a combined 285,700-ounce resource. Ore from the 212,400-ounce British Hill deposit has already been stockpiled at Lake Johnston.
“The Ore Purchase Agreement with High-Tech Metals continues Forrestania’s strategy of establishing a portfolio of third-party ore opportunities around our processing hubs. As we progress towards the restart of the Edna May gold project, Forrestania is already executing on that strategy through the haulage of ore from our Taipan and Tumblegum deposits to Edna May ahead of first ore processing planned for December 2026.”
The agreement comes as Australian spot gold trades around A$6,000 an ounce, a price environment that has encouraged WA producers to secure additional nearby feed and pursue toll-treatment and third-party ore strategies to lift plant utilisation and production volumes.
On the corporate front Forrestania has declared its takeover offer for Zenith Minerals unconditional, and said the offer will close at 5pm AWST on November 12. The company already holds 62.04 per cent of Zenith and is seeking the 90 per cent threshold required to proceed to compulsory acquisition, which would add Zenith’s 675,000-ounce resource to Forrestania’s inventory.
By locking in third-party sources such as Mt Fisher while assembling its own deposits, Forrestania is increasing the number of options available to feed its two hubs and expand the company’s combined resource base, which already exceeds two million ounces of gold.
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