Westgold Resources Limited provided an update on the resource drilling program to support Pre-Feasibility Study (PFS) expansion plans for its Big Bell mine at Cue, Western Australia. Highlights. 50.37m at 5.05g/t Au from 746.63m in 22BBDD0120A (approximately 15m true width) - interval is +200m to the south of, and 200m below the lowest stoping panel considered in the PFS.

PFS paste fill test-work underway. paste test-work is currently underway with an independent consultant to confirm the suitability of the historical Big Bell tails as a paste constituent. This confirmation will remove a key physical constraint from the internal project approval process.

PFS mine design and schedule optimisation continue. aiming to set a baseline Net Present Value (NPV) value for the project and to be completed next Quarter for Board review. Big Bell Overview.

The Big Bell mine has produced 3.0M oz of gold at greater than 4,000oz per vertical metre: Mining at Big Bell commenced in the early 1920's as an underground mine. The current open pit void was excavated between April 1989 and 1993 with a portal cut in late 1993 by previous operators to provide underground access. The modern underground mine commenced in 1994, was closed in June 2003 with the sub-level cave operations (SLC) re-started by Westgold in mid-2016.

Westgold achieved steady state productivity rates in the March 2022 quarter with Big Bell operations team continually delivering quarterly production records throughout fiscal year 2022 and fiscal year 2023. Big Bell Expansion Update: The 2023 Big Bell Expansion PFS contemplates options to access the deeper extensions of the Big Bell orebody without impeding productivity from the current sub-level cave operation. Development of the PFS area utilising the existing mining fleet and mine infrastructure provides an expansion path that will decrease the unit cost of mining and increase the overall grade through selective mining.

To establish this second production front, a change in methodology to Long Hole Open Stoping (LHOS) with fill is proposed for the Expansion Study area below the current SLC footprint. This will ensure greater grade selectivity is available to Westgold and that the stress regime is able to be adequately managed. The LHOS operation will utilise the same mining fleet, existing decline, escape way, ventilation, power reticulation and pumping infrastructure established for the SLC above it.

The LHOS mine design proposes simple extensions to these networks into the LHOS mining zone. If successful, this addition of LHOS production could enhance Big Bell output from 800-900ktpa design levels to circa 1.4Mtpa. Westgold is currently on track to deliver the PFS for Board review during fourth quarter, fiscal year 2023.

Mine design and schedule optimisation are progressing with this work to set a maximum Net Present Value (NPV) baseline for the project. Importantly, confirming the suitability of the historical Big Bell tails as a paste constituent is the next major decision tollgate for the study and this test work is underway with an independent consultant. Trade-off studies around the scalability of the Big Bell Expansion Plan considering a suite of options around production outputs, project timing and cost of capital scenarios will then be compared against this baseline to allow Westgold to select the optimum commercial pathway for the project.

Implications of drill hole 22BBDD0120A: As previously articulated, the PFS contemplates a LHOS operation to a depth of 1,150m with the southernmost stope commencing at 3,405m North in Big Bell local grid. Drill hole 22BBDD0120A has indicted that economic grades and widths are present 200m to the south of and below the base of the current Big Bell Expansion Study mine plan. This undrilled area now presents significant opportunity to extend mine life, expand the mine inventory and materially increase the value of the Big Bell Expansion Project.

Westgold is advancing the PFS to a fourth quarter, fiscal year 2023 Board review and aggressively drill testing the deeper opportunity in parallel, both in an effort to add significant life and value to a mine that has already produced 3Moz of gold since its discovery.