Dateline says starting mining beneath the North Pit could materially enhance production in the early years, with the area pencilled in as the first mining focus under the development plan. The pit is already partially developed, effectively stripping away years of pre-strip and access work and allowing faster, lower-cost access to ore.

Recent drilling has also confirmed thick, continuous mineralisation sitting directly below the pit floor. By bringing these wide, near-surface zones into the schedule early, the operation could deliver strong tonnages at consistent grades, supporting a smooth ramp-up and helping the plant reach nameplate throughput sooner.

The company’s drilling program is part of an ongoing campaign to support Dateline’s bankable feasibility study and progressively upgrade the resource into higher-confidence categories. The project already hosts 27.1 million tonnes grading 1.26g/t gold for 1.1 million ounces, with more than 67 per cent classified as measured and indicated.

The project sits within the prolific Walker Lane Trend in eastern San Bernardino County, less than 10 kilometres from the Mountain Pass rare earths mine. The district has a rich mining pedigree dating back to the Californian gold rush of 1848 and hosts multiple multi-million-ounce gold deposits, along with scattered fluorite, antimony and tungsten prospects.

Historically, exploration focused almost exclusively on two known breccia pipes, with 1.4 million ounces of gold defined in the upper 250 metres, including 344,000 ounces already mined and the existing 1.1-million-ounce resource.

Notably, gold occurs predominantly as free gold with minor silver and is closely associated with sulphide mineralisation, chiefly pyrite. It typically resides in fractures within pyrite or along grain boundaries, a deportment style that is easy for efficient downstream processing.

Economically, the project carries a post-tax net present value of US$550 million (A$850 million) and an internal rate of return above 60 per cent, based on a conservative gold price of US$2900 per ounce. With gold now trading well above US$4000 per ounce, those metrics could climb sharply as feasibility work progresses.

Dateline has forecast total production of 635,000 ounces of gold over an initial 8.3-year mine life, with average annual output of 71,000 ounces grading 1.3g/t gold and a recovery rate of 92 per cent.

With assays continuing to flow and deeper drilling ahead, the latest results reinforce the open-at-depth potential beneath the pits and point toward a larger, higher-quality resource base as the California gold story continues to unfold.

Is your ASX-listed company doing something interesting? Contact: mattbirney@bullsnbears.com.au