Noronex closed out 2025 with drilling rigs turning across its flagship Kalahari Copper Belt ground and a strengthened balance sheet, as the company pushed multiple exploration fronts forward while preparing to re-enter uranium drilling in Namibia early in 2026.
The December quarter marked a particularly active period for the ASX-listed explorer, with major reverse-circulation drilling programs underway in both Namibia and Botswana under earn-in and strategic alliance agreements with South32.
At the same time, Noronex moved to monetise a non-core asset at Witvlei and completed a targeted capital raising to fund its next phase of growth.
At the centre of the quarter’s activity was the Powerline Copper Project in Namibia, where a 7,000-metre RC drilling program commenced across large domal and antiformal structures along the northern margin of the Kalahari Copper Belt.
The program is being funded under the Humpback–Damara earn-in agreement with South32 and is designed to test priority targets interpreted from regional geophysics and structural modelling.
Early results from Powerline delivered tangible encouragement.
At the Steenbok Dome, drilling intersected a significant zone of copper-silver mineralisation in hole 25SBRC001, which returned 9 metres grading 0.45% copper and 43 grams per tonne silver from a depth of 294 metres.
The intercept was achieved at the interpreted contact between the D’Kar Formation and the underlying Ngwako Pan Formation.
This horizon hosts many of the known copper deposits within the Kalahari Copper Belt.
Geological interpretation of downhole data indicates the intersection was achieved near the crest of an anticlinal fold plunging to the north-east, validating Noronex’s targeting model.
Follow-up holes drilled on the northern limb of the structure remained within the hanging wall and did not intersect the prospective contact, outcomes that have refined the company’s structural understanding and sharpened plans for subsequent drilling.
Drilling is continuing along the northern limb of the adjacent Qembo Dome, with further results expected as the program advances into early 2026.
Parallel work is progressing in Botswana, where Noronex commenced a separate 3,000-metre RC drilling program under the newly executed Cgae Cgae earn-in agreement with South32.
The Botswana campaign forms part of an expanded strategic alliance announced in the previous quarter.
It mirrors the broader regional strategy of testing large-scale structural targets along the same mineralised belt.
Collectively, Noronex now controls an extensive exploration package spanning nearly 9,800 square kilometres across Namibia and Botswana, including more than 8,300 square kilometres in Namibia alone.
The tenements cover roughly 300 kilometres of strike length along the key D’Kar–Ngwako Pan Formation contact, positioning the company among the largest landholders in this under-explored but increasingly active copper province.
While drilling dominated the operational agenda, the quarter also delivered a strategic reshaping of the asset portfolio.
Noronex agreed to divest its non-core Witvlei Project in Namibia for total consideration of A$4.5 million, payable in stages, through the sale of its interest in a joint venture vehicle to a privately owned mining group.
The transaction, which is subject to due diligence during a three-month exclusivity period, is expected to be completed in early 2026 if conditions are satisfied.
Witvlei forms part of the original Witvlei–Dordabis asset group acquired in 2020 and represents a relatively small portion of Noronex’s overall landholding.
Its disposal allows the company to focus capital and management attention on its priority copper projects, including Powerline, Humpback and Damara, all of which are now active under earn-in arrangements with South32.
Balance-sheet strength was further reinforced in October, when Noronex completed a strategic placement raising A$750,000 from professional and sophisticated investors.
The funds are earmarked for the first stage of drilling at the Etango North Uranium Project in Namibia, where a maiden drilling program is scheduled to commence in February 2026.
Managing director Victor Rajasooriar said the December quarter demonstrated the company’s ability to progress multiple workstreams simultaneously.
He said the Powerline drilling program was more than halfway complete and that the combination of drilling momentum, asset rationalisation and fresh capital had positioned Noronex well for an intensive exploration phase in 2026, spanning both copper and uranium.
With rigs active across the Kalahari Copper Belt and preparations underway for uranium drilling at Etango North, Noronex enters the new year with a broadened exploration pipeline and renewed financial flexibility, as it seeks to unlock value across some of southern Africa’s most prospective but least drilled mineral terrain.
