ASX-listed Bellevue Gold has approved the construction of a new 120 m³/h wet paste plant for its Bellevue gold project, in Western Australia, while also pre-delivering all remaining forward sales tied to the June 2026 quarter.

The company on Tuesday reported that it had completed an updated prefeasibility study and approved the A$35-million to A$40-million paste plant, including a 10% contingency. The capital cost will be spent during 2026 calendar year and funded from operational cash flows.

The plant will service the high-grade Deacon and Deacon North mining areas. Paste fill involves taking tailings from the processing plant thickener discharge, dewatering them via a filter, mixing them with cement binder and depositing the resulting paste into underground voids.

Bellevue said the introduction of paste fill was expected to deliver long-term value through improved production consistency and increased safety. It will also enable higher recovery from the Deacon and Deacon North orebodies, with overall recovery expected to increase by about 7%, translating into an additional 100 000 oz mined over the current reserve life. The additional material, previously left behind as pillars, is higher-grade ore within these zones.

The company noted that paste fill will provide continuous wall support, assisting in controlling dilution, protecting head grade and sustaining revenue margins. It will also reduce seismic risk by eliminating large underground voids and providing early confinement to stope walls, improving workforce safety and enabling more predictable mining conditions.

About 30% of tailings produced are expected to be deposited underground through paste filling, reducing volumes to the surface tailings storage facility and extending its life.

While paste fill will slightly extend stope turnover times in the higher-grade areas due to curing requirements, this is expected to be offset by the increased tonnes and ounces extracted from each level.

Long-lead items, including disc filters, a paste mixer and cement silo, have already been ordered. GR Engineering Services is expected to be appointed to construct the plant. Two previously drilled boreholes will be used to deliver paste underground.

Bellevue said construction of the paste plant will not affect the 2026 financial year production or all-in sustaining cost guidance. However, the growth capital expenditure has been revised to A$105-million to A$115-million, from previous guidance of A$80-million to A$90-million, to account for the portion of paste plant expenditure scheduled for the financial year. Formal 2027 financial year production, cost and growth capital guidance will be provided early in the year.

The company added that any additional ounces added to reserve life through resource conversion or new discoveries could benefit from the paste plant infrastructure. While the initial focus is on the Deacon and Deacon North areas, expansion to other mining areas may be assessed later.

HEDGE BOOK REDUCED

Meanwhile, Bellevue also reported further progress in reducing its hedge book.

The March 2026 and June 2026 quarters are now entirely free of hedge commitments after the remaining 1 875 oz of June 2026 forward sales were pre-delivered in early February.

Cash and gold balances increased by about A$5-million during January 2026 to A$170-million, after reducing forward sale commitments by 9 605 oz during the month and paying December 2025 quarterly royalties.

The remaining hedge book stands at 112 675 oz of future gold sales at an average hedge price of A$2 886/oz, representing a 26% year-to-date reduction of 39 325 oz.

Bellevue said it expects to continue using positive free cash flow to accelerate forward gold sale pre-deliveries through the remainder of the second half of the financial year.