Waihi, New Zealand
Martha / WKP Mines
~7 Moz Au; a low-sulphidation system where narrow high-grade shoots developed along deep feeders.
A 367 km² Gold Exploration Opportunity
Vatu Aurum Project
Overview
Kalo Gold’s 100%-owned Vatu Aurum Project covers 367 km² on Fiji’s north-central island of Vanua Levu, within two contiguous Special Prospecting Licences — SPL 1464 (Cirianiu) and SPL 1511 (Coqeloa). Located in the prolific Pacific “Ring of Fire,” this under-explored, gold-rich region preserves a vertically intact volcanic–hydrothermal complex hosting epithermal and diatreme-related gold systems along a 40 km northeast-trending corridor. In 2026, drilling and certified laboratory fire assays confirmed a gold-bearing, structurally controlled epithermal system at Wainikoro — with surface and bedrock fire assays up to 8.78 g/t Au — alongside high-grade diatreme-hosted gold at the Qiriyaga Complex, underscoring the project’s potential.
Ring of Fire
The Pacific Ring of Fire has produced more than 249 Moz of gold and 33 billion lb of copper from major deposits such as Lihir, Porgera, Vatukoula, Martha and Kelian. Vatu Aurum sits within this same productive volcanic arc, in a preserved back-arc setting prospective for well-preserved, near-surface epithermal gold systems.
Kalo Gold Advantage
- Property-Scale Control: 367 km² covering the heart of the Nubu Graben, a 40 km structural corridor hosting multiple upflow zones.
- Prolific Region: 249 Moz Au discovered to date within the same Pacific arc.
- Vertically Preserved System: LiDAR, airborne magnetics and drilling indicate a vertically intact volcanic–hydrothermal complex — favourable for the preservation of near-surface epithermal gold.
- Certified Gold at Surface and in Bedrock: 2026 fire assays up to 8.78 g/t Au confirm gold-bearing bedrock at Wainikoro; high-grade diatreme gold at Qiriyaga (VA25-DH11: 22.12 m @ 12.80 g/t Au).
- 100% Owned and Drill-Ready: more than CAD $40 million invested; a completed 6,212 line-km airborne magnetic and radiometric survey and property-wide LiDAR underpin target prioritisation.
Drill-Ready Target Zones
More than CAD $40 million has been invested in historical and modern exploration. Data integration and intensive fieldwork (2023–2026) have defined three co-equal exploration targets along the 40 km corridor:
Target 01
Aurum Prime
The core diatreme–epithermal system and primary discovery area, host to the high-grade Qiriyaga Complex (VA25-DH11: 22.12 m @ 12.80 g/t Au).
Explore Aurum PrimeTarget 02Wainikoro
A confirmed gold-bearing epithermal system ~5 km southwest of Aurum Prime, where 2026 drilling intersected gold-bearing quartz veins over a 1.8 km strike length and certified fire assays returned up to 8.78 g/t Au in surface outcrop and bedrock.
Explore WainikoroTarget 03Coqeloa
A hybrid epithermal–porphyry target defined by Cu–Mo–Au geochemistry and magnetite-bearing veins, interpreted as the upper epithermal level of a porphyry-related hydrothermal system.
Explore CoqeloaVatu Aurum Project: An Integrated Diatreme–Epithermal Gold System
The 367 km² licence area is interpreted as a single, multi-phase, structurally reactivated volcanic complex that preserves a vertically intact volcanic–hydrothermal system. Gold mineralisation is controlled by a regional West–East Transfer Zone (the “WETZ”) — a continuous magnetic low interpreted as a first-order control on fluid migration — together with the Nubu Graben, now interpreted as segmented and en-echelon, and a network of NW–SE oblique faults interpreted as the dominant gold-hosting structural grain. Three target areas are developed along this framework:
01
Aurum Prime
The most advanced target area, comprising the Namalau–Loma–Buca upflow trends and the Qiriyaga Complex — a maar-diatreme gold system with an epithermal overprint. Drilling has confirmed high-grade gold along diatreme margins (VA25-DH11: 22.12 m @ 12.80 g/t Au) and a vertically continuous mineralised profile (VA26-DH17: 16.90 m @ 3.25 g/t Au).
Explore Aurum Prime02
Wainikoro
A confirmed gold-bearing epithermal system along the Nubu Graben corridor. In 2026, reconnaissance drilling (VA26-DH18 and VA26-DH19) intersected gold-bearing, fault-controlled quartz veins over a 1.8 km strike length, and certified fire assays returned gold in both surface outcrop and bedrock (up to 8.78 g/t Au). Multi-stage quartz veining, hydrothermal breccias, silicification, mercury and arsenic–antimony pathfinders, and QEMSCAN evidence of arsenopyrite replaced by pyrite pseudomorphs all point to a fertile, preserved upper-level system.
Explore Wainikoro03
Coqeloa
A hybrid epithermal–porphyry system defined by Cu–Mo–Au geochemistry, magnetite-bearing veins and sericite–chlorite alteration, suggesting proximity to a deeper magmatic source. Coqeloa is interpreted as the upper epithermal level of a porphyry-related hydrothermal system.
Explore CoqeloaA Disciplined Growth Plan (2026–2027)
Kalo is following a disciplined, sequential exploration strategy designed to demonstrate the full potential of one of the few intact volcanic–hydrothermal complexes preserved in the Pacific arc.
The 2026–2027 programme integrates a completed 6,212 line-km airborne magnetic and radiometric survey, ground geophysics (CSAMT, induced polarisation and gravity), systematic soil geochemistry, trenching and drilling — advancing all three targets, with the potential to yield both high-grade veins and breccia-hosted gold. No drilling is undertaken until new datasets are integrated into the exploration model, ensuring each phase is targeted with progressively greater confidence.
Exploration Implications — Potential Discoveries
High-Grade Epithermal Vein Systems
Structurally controlled, boiling-zone gold (e.g. Wainikoro and the Namalau–Loma–Buca trends).
Diatreme & Breccia-Hosted Gold
Breccia-hosted gold potential at the Qiriyaga Complex.
Geological Setting
Kalo Gold’s discoveries in the Aurum Epithermal Field — including the Namalau, Loma and Buca Trends, the Qiriyaga Complex, and the confirmed gold-bearing epithermal system at Wainikoro — sit within the broader 40 km Nubu Graben corridor. Fieldwork (2023–2026) has delineated multiple targets within the Aurum Epithermal Field, making Vanua Levu one of the Pacific Rim’s most compelling under-explored gold frontiers.
Key Targets
Target 01
Aurum Prime
The core diatreme–epithermal system and primary discovery area, host to the high-grade Qiriyaga Complex (VA25-DH11: 22.12 m @ 12.80 g/t Au).
View targetTarget 02Wainikoro
A confirmed gold-bearing epithermal system ~5 km southwest of Aurum Prime, where 2026 drilling intersected gold-bearing quartz veins over a 1.8 km strike length and certified fire assays returned up to 8.78 g/t Au in surface outcrop and bedrock.
View targetTarget 03Coqeloa
A hybrid epithermal–porphyry target defined by Cu–Mo–Au geochemistry and magnetite-bearing veins, interpreted as the upper epithermal level of a porphyry-related hydrothermal system.
View targetExploration Strategy & Drill Program
Phase 1 drilling (2,552.7 m in 11 holes) was completed in Q3 2025. In 2026, reconnaissance drilling at Wainikoro (VA26-DH18, 245.7 m; VA26-DH19, 270.6 m) confirmed gold-bearing quartz veins over a 1.8 km strike length. A 6,212 line-km high-resolution airborne magnetic and radiometric survey (100 m line spacing, 50 m infill) has been completed property-wide.
- 2,552.7 m
- Phase 1 drilling
- 11
- Holes completed
- 1.8 km
- Wainikoro strike length
- 6,212 line-km
- Airborne survey
Near-Term Catalysts
- 01
Certified fire assays confirming gold in surface outcrop and bedrock at Wainikoro (up to 8.78 g/t Au) released 21 July 2026.
- 02
CSAMT, IP and gravity ground geophysical survey at Wainikoro (Fender Geophysics) scheduled to late July 2026.
- 03
Certified fire assays for the 8 July 2026 samples pending; results to be reported on receipt.
- 04
Integration of geophysical, geochemical and drilling datasets to prioritise the next phase of drilling across all three targets.
Exploration Model & Approach
| Activity | Highlight |
|---|---|
| Drilling | Phase 1: 2,552.7 m in 11 holes across the Qiriyaga Complex and Namalau Trend; 2026 reconnaissance at Wainikoro (VA26-DH18, VA26-DH19). Assays confirmed high-grade gold. |
| Trenching & Soils | Systematic trenching and an expanding soil-geochemistry programme; surface and trench fire assays up to 8.78 g/t Au confirm gold in bedrock at Wainikoro. |
| Spectral & Geochemical Analysis | Portable PPB detectORE™ and TerraSpec® Halo integrated with XRF and SWIR data. |
| Geophysics | A completed 6,212 line-km airborne magnetic and radiometric survey (100 m line spacing, 50 m infill), with 3-D CSAMT and UAV magnetics, has refined the QC1 geometry to ~395 m depth and identified multiple high-resistivity diatreme anomalies; ground CSAMT, IP and gravity underway at Wainikoro. |
| Alteration Mapping | Multi-element vectoring (Se–As–Sb–Hg–Tl–Te–Bi) and illite-crystallinity modelling. |
| Database | All geological, geochemical and geophysical datasets integrated in MX Deposit and Leapfrog Geo. |
Geological Comparisons
East Kalimantan, Indonesia
Kelian Mine
~5.7 Moz Au; a preserved maar-diatreme system where hydrothermal fluids deposited gold within breccia matrices and structural conduits.
Lepanto District, Philippines
Balatoc Deposit
>6 Moz Au; comparable diatreme–epithermal characteristics.
These analogues are geological references only and do not imply any resource, reserve or economic comparison.
Operating Environment – Fiji
Fiji hosts a mining culture dating back to 1935, with over 7 Moz of gold produced at Vatukoula. The country offers stable governance, clear mining law, 20% corporate tax and a 5% gold royalty (20% to landowners). All mineral rights are held by the State under the Mining Act (1966), and land access is managed transparently through the iTaukei Land Trust Board (TLTB). Grid power, road access and supportive communities on Vanua Levu provide a strong operating base for year-round exploration.
detectORE™ note. Gold values reported in detectORE™ Units (“dU”) are semi-quantitative field-screening estimates for exploration purposes only and are not equivalent to certified fire assay results; they are not used to estimate Mineral Resources or Mineral Reserves. Certified fire assays referenced above were determined by ALS Limited (Australia), method Au-AA25 (30 g fire assay, AAS finish). See the Company’s news release dated 24 February 2026 for detectORE™ validation details.