Montage Gold Expands Côte d’Ivoire Drilling, Adds 404,000 oz to High-Grade Resources in Under a Year
Montage Gold has ramped up exploration efforts at its flagship Koné gold project in Côte d’Ivoire, achieving significant milestones just halfway through 2025.
The Canadian-listed company has already surpassed its total drilling output from 2024, signaling robust progress toward its near-term production and resource expansion goals.
As of mid-year, Montage has completed 83,280 metres of drilling—exceeding last year’s total of 81,815 metres.
In response, the company has raised its exploration budget from $14 million to $18 million, with plans to reach 120,000 metres of drilling by year-end.
This aggressive campaign supports Montage’s strategy to define more than one million ounces of measured and indicated resources at grades at least 50% higher than the main Koné deposit. The company is targeting initial gold production in Q2 2027.
“We are very pleased with the progress being made to unlock value at our Koné project through aggressive exploration, while construction continues to advance on schedule and within budget,” said CEO Martino De Ciccio.
“Today’s exploration results reinforce the large-scale potential of the Koné project. All 23 of the 52 identified targets drilled to date have returned positive mineralised intercepts,” he added.
Since the beginning of 2025, Montage has drill-tested 23 separate targets across the Koné project, achieving a 100% success rate in confirming mineralisation—an impressive feat in a region still considered underexplored.
The company’s phased approach emphasizes delineating high-grade “starter” resources before expanding to broader step-out drilling.
This follows a productive 2024 program in which 18 targets were tested and seven higher-grade deposits delineated.
Priority targets for 2025 include the Gbongogo South and Koban North deposits, both located near a planned haulage road.
These two have been the focus of in-fill and extension drilling, resulting in a combined 273,000 ounces of indicated resources at 1.16 g/t gold—an increase of 207,000 ounces from last year.
They also host 74,000 ounces of inferred resources at 1.10 g/t gold. Both deposits are expected to grow further with additional drilling.
Step-out drilling is also advancing at the ANV deposit, with an updated indicated resource estimate due in Q3.
Other deposits scheduled for year-end updates include Yere North, Lokolo Main, Sena, and Diouma North.
“We’re actively conducting step-out and in-fill drilling at several deposits delineated in 2024, starting with those closest to infrastructure,” said De Ciccio.
“This positions us well to achieve our goal of sustained production exceeding 300,000 ounces annually over the next decade.”
Montage’s high-grade satellite deposits have seen rapid growth in under a year. Indicated resources have increased by 404,000 ounces to 924,000 ounces at an average grade of 1.32 g/t gold. An additional 140,000 ounces of inferred resources at 1.09 g/t gold further enhances the company’s inventory.
This high-grade material complements the lower-grade main Koné deposit, providing flexibility and potential to increase production grades early in the mine life.
Executive Vice President of Exploration Silvia Bottero credited the growth to a disciplined and systematic exploration strategy.
“Our 2025 program is progressing on three fronts: in-fill and extension drilling of known deposits, advancing pre-resource targets to maiden resource status, and testing entirely new targets,” she said.
“We’re particularly encouraged by the high conversion rates from inferred to indicated resources at Gbongogo South and Koban North, which validates our focused approach.”
She noted that similar resource development efforts will resume across other targets identified in 2024.
The Koné project spans a 1,318 km² land package in northern Côte d’Ivoire and includes 52 identified targets spread across seven mineralised trends.
Half of these lie within the permitted mining area and near existing infrastructure, positioning them for fast-tracked exploration and development.
Montage has also applied for an additional 458 km² of adjacent land, potentially expanding its total footprint to nearly 1,800 km².
With exploration and construction proceeding on schedule and within budget, Montage is positioning itself to become a leading gold producer in West Africa.
“The progress achieved thus far strengthens our vision of building a premier African gold company and delivering long-term value for shareholders,” concluded De Ciccio.
