Nova Minerals Achieves 95% Gold Recovery at Estelle as Stock Hits Year Low

Nova Minerals achieves >95% gold recovery from Korbel ore, but shares slump 11% to €0.32. US DoD commits $43.4M for antimony; new drilling underway.

Nova Minerals has reported a major technical milestone at its Estelle gold project in Alaska, with recent metallurgical tests on Korbel ore achieving gold recovery rates in excess of 95%. The results come as the company’s shares slumped to a new 12-month trough of €0.32, a decline of 11.16% on the day.

The laboratory work produced a high-grade gold concentrate grading between 14.7 and 26.7 grams per tonne, with only 2% to 3% of the mass requiring further chemical processing. That represents a near 98% reduction in downstream volume, which the miner says will allow it to build a significantly smaller processing plant. The findings are being fed into an ongoing pre-feasibility study, with additional optimisation tests already underway.

The improved recovery outlook is underpinned by a resource base of 4.05 million ounces of gold at Estelle. Yet the market has taken a dim view of the stock, which now sits 26% below its 50-day moving average of €0.43. Over the past 30 days the equity has shed roughly a third of its value, despite a string of operational advances.

Alongside gold, Nova is pursuing a parallel strategy in antimony, a critical mineral for defence applications. The US Department of Defense has committed $43.4 million to help establish a domestic antimony supply chain, with first shipments targeted for the end of 2026. Drilling at the Stibium antimony deposit began in early June, targeting surface-exposed vein structures. Workers have already constructed approximately ten kilometres of access roads to the site.

The company has also completed a cleanup of its share register, selling off small parcels and foreign investor stakes as part of a post-restructuring tidy-up. Proceeds are being distributed in Australian dollars to affected shareholders.

Gold drilling at the RPM ridge prospect kicked off on 17 June, testing new zones along a three-kilometre trend. An airborne geophysical survey covering a wide area has already been completed, with data indicating multiple potential gold structures across the region. Nova continues to integrate all findings into its broader development plan for Estelle.