Bellevue Gold (ASX: BGL) has bounced back with a vengeance. The company's latest operational results are strong showing it's on track to meet guidance. MD Darren Stralow tells us about the changes that were made at an operational level, why they've been so effective and what the next twelve months holds.

Darren Stralow is the CEO and Managing Director of Bellevue Gold, leading the company through its transition from development to production at the high-grade Bellevue Gold Project in Western Australia. A mining engineer and WA School of Mines graduate, Darren brings more than 20 years of underground mining experience, including senior leadership roles at Northern Star Resources. Known for his strong operational and commercial focus, he’s driving Bellevue’s vision to produce some of the world’s most sustainable gold.

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The Hole Truth: Mining Investment Podcast is a product of Read Corporate.

Please note that Read Corporate does not provide investment advice and investors should seek personalised advice before making any investment decisions. 

RESOURCES

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Company Website: https://bellevuegold.com.au

Key Insights:

Bellevue Gold produced around 29,000 ounces of gold in the September 2025 quarter, ahead of budget and on track to meet its FY25 guidance of ~140,000 ounces. Darren Stralow notes that the company is achieving or exceeding internal targets, with increasing grades expected to drive stronger production and cash flow in the second half of the year.

Following a strategic operational review, Bellevue Gold has dramatically improved its underground development rates, achieving over 320 metres per jumbo compared to a budget of 270 metres. This has allowed the team to get ahead of production fronts, install all primary infrastructure, and move the operation into a steady-state phase with improved resilience and reduced risk.

With plant upgrades and ventilation installations now complete, Bellevue Gold expects to generate higher grades from the Deacon mining area while maintaining a stable cost base. Stralow says the mine will see rising free cash flow as higher-grade ore and stable operating costs combine to lift margins and provide optionality for balance-sheet management.

Bellevue Gold has begun closing out hedge positions ahead of schedule and proactively managing its hedge book to take advantage of strong spot prices. The company holds A$150–160 million in cash — equivalent to roughly four months of operating costs — and aims to be completely debt-free and hedge-free by the end of 2026, positioning it among Australia’s lowest-risk mid-tier gold producers.

After several years focused on construction and ramp-up, Bellevue Gold is now ready to reignite exploration across its 1,900 km² landholding. With underground drill platforms established and cash flow funding new programs, Stralow says the company is excited to “hit exploration hard again” to grow the resource base and extend mine life — marking the next chapter in Bellevue’s growth story.

CZR is coming to life in a big way with around $74 million cash in the bank, some fantastic WA exploration assets and numerous drilling programmes being lined up between now and Christmas.

Managing Director Stefen Murphy led the development and commissioning of the Roper Bar iron ore mine in the Northern Territory. His experience in developing integrated mine-to-port logistics solutions and iron ore marketing has been invaluable to CZR in developing the Robe Mesa iron ore project in the Pilbara.

Mr Murphy commenced his career in the Pilbara as a mine geologist with BHP iron ore and has spent the past 20 years working on mining and exploration projects throughout Australia. In addition to his technical roles, he holds an MBA and has worked in corporate finance roles in Australia and the UK, focused primarily on capital markets and M&A transactions in the resources sector.

Produced by Resource Media

The Hole Truth: Mining Investment Podcast is a product of Read Corporate.

Please note that Read Corporate does not provide investment advice and investors should seek personalised advice before making any investment decisions. 

RESOURCES

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/showcase/the-hole-truth-podcast

YouTube: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLI4sZkSfEpPi_u7OrD7lQ-tZHbdy6EhCC&si=iOcGscff7kMSw8c7

Website: https://resourcesrisingstars.com.au/the-hole-truth-podcast/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/theholetruthpodcast/ 

Company Website: https://www.czrresources.com

Key Insights:

CZR Resources has completed the sale of its Robe Mesa Iron Ore Project to the Robe River Joint Venture (Rio Tinto, Mitsui and Nippon Steel), delivering around $75 million in cash. The transaction leaves CZR debt-free and holding a cash balance roughly equivalent to its market capitalisation, effectively making it a cash-backed exploration company. With a strong balance sheet and no debt, CZR is now well positioned to fund aggressive exploration across its portfolio.

Freshly funded, CZR has launched an aggressive drilling campaign at its Croydon Gold Project, located about 50 kilometres south-east of De Grey Mining’s Hemi discovery in the Pilbara. Early aircore results have confirmed the presence of diorite intrusions, epithermal quartz veining and gossanous zones — all key indicators of intrusive-related gold systems similar to Hemi. With RC drilling planned through late 2025, the company is aiming to define both shallow epithermal gold mineralisation and deeper intrusion-hosted systems across the Top Camp and Bottom Camp prospects.

CZR’s Edamurta Project, located in the Midwest near Yalgoo, is showing strong signs of volcanogenic massive sulphide (VMS) potential similar to the Golden Grove and Deflector deposits. Recent geophysical surveys have identified strong electromagnetic conductors, consistent with copper-zinc-gold-silver mineralisation. A 3,000-metre RC drilling program is planned to test these high-priority conductor plates, offering multi-commodity upside and the potential to establish CZR as a serious copper-zinc explorer in Western Australia.

CZR continues to benefit from the long-term support and geological expertise of the Creasy Group, led by renowned prospector Mark Creasy, who holds a 51% stake in CZR and a 30% joint venture interest at Croydon. The Croydon tenements were originally pegged by Creasy for their intrusive geological potential, and his ongoing involvement provides both strategic stability and proven exploration pedigree across CZR’s project portfolio.

Following the Robe Mesa sale, CZR is fully funded to accelerate exploration across its gold and base-metal projects while maintaining exposure to iron ore through the Peters Creek and Darnell’s prospects and its 50% interest in the Ashburton Link infrastructure joint venture. With a strong cash position, multiple high-potential assets, and upcoming drilling at both Croydon and Edamurta, CZR offers a rare combination of financial strength, discovery upside, and portfolio diversity — all while trading around its cash backing.

This week on The Hole Truth, David Southam, Executive Chairman of Cygnus Metals (ASX:CY5), joins us to unpack a 78% increase in measured & indicated resources at the company’s Chibougamau Copper–Gold Project in Québec, Canada. With a new total of 2.2 million ounces gold-equivalent at 4.5 g/t, more than 3Moz of silver and nearly $20M in cash, Cygnus believes the market hasn’t yet caught up to the scale and quality of what they’ve built.

Produced by Resource Media

The Hole Truth: Mining Investment Podcast is a product of Read Corporate.

Please note that Read Corporate does not provide investment advice and investors should seek personalised advice before making any investment decisions. 

RESOURCES

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/showcase/the-hole-truth-podcast

YouTube: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLI4sZkSfEpPi_u7OrD7lQ-tZHbdy6EhCC&si=iOcGscff7kMSw8c7

Website: https://resourcesrisingstars.com.au/the-hole-truth-podcast/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/theholetruthpodcast/ 

Company Website: https://www.cygnusmetals.com

Key insights from the episode:

In this special episode of The Hole Truth, mining gurus Chris Cairns, Simon Lawson and Hedley Widdup explain the technical terms we see in ASX releases every day yet so often don't understand. This informative - and fun - episode was recorded before a live studio audience on the eve of last week's Resources Rising Stars investor conference on the Gold Coast. Listen, learn and laugh with these legends.

Produced by Resource Media

The Hole Truth: Mining Investment Podcast is a product of Read Corporate.

Please note that Read Corporate does not provide investment advice and investors should seek personalised advice before making any investment decisions. 

RESOURCES

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/showcase/the-hole-truth-podcast

YouTube: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLI4sZkSfEpPi_u7OrD7lQ-tZHbdy6EhCC&si=iOcGscff7kMSw8c7

Website: https://resourcesrisingstars.com.au/the-hole-truth-podcast/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/theholetruthpodcast/ 

PolarX (ASX: PXX) has just struck a far-out deal with Northern Star Resources that will see the gold giant spend up to 60-million Australian dollars for a stake in up to 70% in PolarX’s Alaska Range Project.

Mark Bojanjac is a Chartered Accountant with almost 30 years’ direct experience in developing resource companies. He was a founding director of a public company which discovered one of Australia’s highest grade gold mines at East-Kundana near Kalgoorlie in WA and managing director of an unlisted public company which successfully developed a 2.4Moz gold resource in Mongolia. He was previously CEO of Adamus Resources Limited, where he oversaw its advancement from an early stage exploration project through definitive feasibility studies and managed the debt and equity financing to build its successful Ghanaian gold mine. He was also formerly a Non-Executive Director of QLD silica sand developer, Metallica Minerals Limited and is currently a director of WA resources explorer, Kula Gold Limited.

Produced by Resource Media

The Hole Truth: Mining Investment Podcast is a product of Read Corporate.

Please note that Read Corporate does not provide investment advice and investors should seek personalised advice before making any investment decisions. 

RESOURCES

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/showcase/the-hole-truth-podcast

YouTube: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLI4sZkSfEpPi_u7OrD7lQ-tZHbdy6EhCC&si=iOcGscff7kMSw8c7

Website: https://resourcesrisingstars.com.au/the-hole-truth-podcast/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/theholetruthpodcast/ 

Company Website: https://www.polarx.com.au/

INSIGHTS FROM THE EPISODE

PolarX has secured a landmark farm-in agreement with Northern Star Resources (ASX: NST), giving Northern Star the right to earn up to 70% of the Alaska Range Project by spending $60 million. This partnership validates the project’s scale and potential. 

The Caribou Dome deposit within the Alaska Range has delivered scoping study results showing an Internal Rate of Return (IRR) of ~70% (based on metals prices two years ago), underlining its strong economics and global significance as one of the highest-grade undeveloped copper projects in the USA. 

PolarX controls an under-explored 35km mineralised corridor, including soil anomalies up to 11km by 8km in size. Northern Star’s backing allows for big-company exploration programs—geophysics, helicopter surveys, and systematic drilling—that were previously unaffordable for PolarX. 

With copper recently added to the US Critical Minerals List, PolarX’s Alaskan copper-gold assets are strategically aligned with America’s push for secure, domestic supply. The jurisdictional advantage of being in the USA enhances the project’s attractiveness to global investors. 

Outside the Alaska JV, PolarX retains full ownership of the Humboldt Range Project in Nevada, located next to major heap-leach gold and silver operations such as Florida Canyon and Rochester. Drill-ready and surrounded by multimillion-ounce deposits, Humboldt represents a second growth pillar for the company.

This week on The Hole Truth, we sit down with Sky Metals (ASX: SKY) to dig into the latest results from the Tallebung Tin Project in NSW. With standout silver and tin intercepts, breakthrough ore sorting results, and a pathway to becoming a globally significant tin producer, Sky is pushing hard to prove up scale and economics in one of Australia’s most exciting tin plays.

Managing Director Oliver Davies joined SKY as a geologist in 2019. He was appointed to Exploration Manager in 2021, then to CEO in early 2022 and subsequently to Managing Director in September 2024. Prior to SKY, Mr Davies was in exploration and operational roles with Evolution Mining and Alkane Resources in NSW and Qld. Mr Davies has worked closely on several successful NSW discoveries including Evolution Mining’s significant expansion of the Lake Cowal gold resource and with Alkane’s regional exploration success at Tomingley and Boda.

Produced by Resource Media

The Hole Truth: Mining Investment Podcast is a product of Read Corporate.

Please note that Read Corporate does not provide investment advice and investors should seek personalised advice before making any investment decisions. 

RESOURCES

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/showcase/the-hole-truth-podcast

YouTube: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLI4sZkSfEpPi_u7OrD7lQ-tZHbdy6EhCC&si=iOcGscff7kMSw8c7

Website: https://resourcesrisingstars.com.au/the-hole-truth-podcast/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/theholetruthpodcast/ 

Company Website: https://www.skymetals.com.au

INSIGHTS FROM THE EPISODE

Leeuwin Metals (ASX: LM1) are out to join those who believe that one man's trash can be another man's treasure in the WA gold exploration game.

Managing Director Chris Piggot is a Geologist with extensive background in gold and nickel exploration with a track record of discovery and corporate development.

​

Recent roles included Senior Geologist at Bellevue Gold Ltd (ASX.BGL) where he was involved in the discoveries of Tribune, Viago & Deacon, that have defined +3Moz.

He was also a part of the team that defined the Nova-Bollinger high grade Nickel deposit which is now owned and operated by IGO Ltd (ASX.IGO).

Produced by Resource Media

The Hole Truth: Mining Investment Podcast is a product of Read Corporate.

Please note that Read Corporate does not provide investment advice and investors should seek personalised advice before making any investment decisions. 

RESOURCES

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/showcase/the-hole-truth-podcast

YouTube: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLI4sZkSfEpPi_u7OrD7lQ-tZHbdy6EhCC&si=iOcGscff7kMSw8c7

Website: https://resourcesrisingstars.com.au/the-hole-truth-podcast/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/theholetruthpodcast/ 

Company Website: https://www.leeuwinmetals.com

INSIGHTS FROM THE EPISODE

Arika Resource (ASX: ARI) has just put out some cracking results from its Yundamindra project in WA’s easter goldfields. The company plans to keep the drill rig turning for many months as it tests any number of compelling targets across the project.

Managing Director Justin Barton is a Chartered Accountant with over 20 years experience in accounting, international finance, M&A and the mining industry. He worked for over 13 years in the Big 4 Accounting firms in Australia and Europe and advised many of the worlds largest mining, oil & gas companies and financial institutions, including Rio Tinto, Chevron, Macquarie, Merrill Lynch, Morgan Stanley and Deutche Bank. Justin also worked for 4 years at Paladin Energy Limited as Group Tax and Finance Manager and advised on their plant construction and mining operations in Africa and their expansion into Canada. More recently, he has worked as the CFO and been a Board Member of a number of junior exploration companies. Mr Barton is currently a Board member of Eneabba Gas Limited and Interposed Holdings Limited.

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Produced by Resource Media

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The Hole Truth: Mining Investment Podcast is a product of Read Corporate.

Please note that Read Corporate does not provide investment advice and investors should seek personalised advice before making any investment decisions. 

-------

RESOURCES

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/showcase/the-hole-truth-podcast

YouTube: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLI4sZkSfEpPi_u7OrD7lQ-tZHbdy6EhCC&si=iOcGscff7kMSw8c7

Website: https://resourcesrisingstars.com.au/the-hole-truth-podcast/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/theholetruthpodcast/ 

Company Website: https://www.arika.com.au

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INSIGHTS FROM THE EPISODE

Cracking Early Results at F1 Prospect in Yundamindra

'Yellow Brick Road' Corridor Hosts Multiple High-Grade Targets

Follow-Up at Landed at Last and Pennyweight Point

Over 50 High-Priority Targets Identified

Bonaparte and Syncline Prospects Next in Line

Thunderbird Resources (ASX: THB) offers huge leverage to gold and antimony in Australia, with a market cap of just $4 million and drilling programmes being planned.

Executive Chairman George Ventouras, has over 15 years’ experience in the resources sector and over 30 years’ experience in business development, corporate restructuring and marketing. He has managed multiple businesses in various industries and has served as a Non-Executive and Executive Director on various ASX listed Companies and has led IPO teams.

Previously, he was joint-founder, non-executive director and General Manager of Apollo Consolidated Ltd, an ASX listed exploration company which was the subject of a successful $180 million takeover.

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Produced by Resource Media

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The Hole Truth: Mining Investment Podcast is a product of Read Corporate.

Please note that Read Corporate does not provide investment advice and investors should seek personalised advice before making any investment decisions. 

RESOURCES

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/showcase/the-hole-truth-podcast

YouTube: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLI4sZkSfEpPi_u7OrD7lQ-tZHbdy6EhCC&si=iOcGscff7kMSw8c7

Website: https://resourcesrisingstars.com.au/the-hole-truth-podcast/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/theholetruthpodcast/ 

Sipa Resources (ASX: SRI) has started drilling at its new South Australian gold projects. The projects already host known mineralisation and are located close to other well established big deposits. The company is poised for strong news flow as it moves the rigs from one area to the next.

Managing Director Andrew Muir, is a highly regarded mining executive with approximately 30 years’ experience in the mining and finance industries, originally graduating as a geologist in 1993. Andrew has a strong background in gold exploration and geology, coupled with deep project evaluation and corporate experience. Previously, he held the role of Managing Director at NTM Gold Ltd (ASX: NTM) where he was responsible for significant exploration success prior to the takeover of NTM by Dacian Gold Limited, and most recently at Caprice Resources Limited.

Mr Muir is an experienced geologist with time spent across both exploration and mining operations. He was instrumental in the discovery of the multi-million-ounce Wallaby deposit while at the Granny Smith operations, and has previously worked with Great Central Gold Mines, Placer Dome and Goldfields Limited.

Along with his successful career in mining and exploration, Mr Muir also has extensive experience in equity capital markets including at Argonaut, where he was an Associate Director with Argonaut’s Corporate team. He was also a resource analyst for JP Morgan, Hartleys and PCF Capital. As an analyst at Hartleys, Mr Muir won the 2009 Starmine/AFR Stockpicker of the year award.

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Produced by Resource Media

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The Hole Truth: Mining Investment Podcast is a product of Read Corporate.

Please note that Read Corporate does not provide investment advice and investors should seek personalised advice before making any investment decisions. 

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RESOURCES

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/showcase/the-hole-truth-podcast

YouTube: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLI4sZkSfEpPi_u7OrD7lQ-tZHbdy6EhCC&si=iOcGscff7kMSw8c7

Website: https://resourcesrisingstars.com.au/the-hole-truth-podcast/

INSIGHTS FROM THE EPISODE

Sipa Resources has kicked off drilling at Nuckulla Hill, targeting historic gold prospects with significant past intercepts and no exploration in nearly 30 years.

The projects sit on the same shear zone as Barton Gold’s 1.5Moz Tunkillia deposit, offering strong geological continuity and exploration upside.

Located just 40km from the Lakewood Mill, the Crown Project in WA allows for potential toll treatment or gold sales without needing a major standalone discovery.

With a board including Stephen Biggins (Core Lithium founder) and MD Andrew Muir, Sipa blends geology, corporate finance, and commercial strategy.

With a sub-$10 million market cap and active drilling underway, Sipa offers significant leverage to exploration success in Tier-1 jurisdictions.