Forgent (AIM:FORG) shares rose 7.1%, to 0.015p, after the Department of Mines approved Programmes of Work for its maiden drilling campaign at the Peak Hills gold-copper project in Western Australia.
The approvals mark the company's move from project evaluation to active field exploration and clear the way to test high‑priority targets at the Karalundi, Junction and Curleys prospects, the company said.
Phase 1 is designed as a low‑cost aircore programme of roughly 35 holes totalling about 2,300 metres at an estimated cost of A$200,000, with no hole expected to exceed 100 metres.
The approved PoW permits up to 750 aircore holes across the project area, giving Forgent flexibility to expand drilling should early results be encouraging.
"The receipt of these approvals allows us to move from planning into execution, with drilling expected to commence this Summer," said James Parsons, CEO.
The initial campaign will focus on validating historic exploration results, extending known mineralisation and identifying additional mineralised zones, with drilling expected to begin this Summer.
