ASX-listed Critical Resources has secured a strategically significant position in New Zealand’s Otago gold province through the acquisition of drill-ready and early-stage exploration assets in one of the southern hemisphere’s most underexplored Tier-1 jurisdictions.

The company announced two binding agreements that will see it acquire the Cap Burn exploration permit (EP60300), located about 11 km north-west along strike from OceanaGold’s ten-million-ounce Macraes mine, and 90% of four additional prospecting permit applications: Silver Peaks, Lammerlaw, Tokomairiro, and Croesus.

“The company is excited to execute the New Zealand acquisitions, which deliver immediate geological upside, complementing our existing gold and antimony portfolio with advanced drill-ready targets in a highly supportive jurisdiction,” said CEO Tim Wither.

“With gold and antimony forming the core of our current commodity focus, we see the creation of the strategic gold/antimony portfolio in New Zealand as a low-cost, high-impact growth lever for shareholders.”

The Otago gold region, historically known for its long mining legacy, has seen a renewed exploration interest, especially following Santana Minerals’ 2.3-million-ounce Rise and Shine (RAS) discovery at the Bendigo-Ophir project. Critical’s Cap Burn project lies along the same structural corridor as Macraes and RAS, with geological features interpreted to be analogous to both.

Cap Burn is drill-ready and backed by a land access agreement, allowing for immediate exploration upon deal completion. Earlier drilling in 2021 confirmed gold mineralisation associated with a broad arsenic-in-soil anomaly and foliation-parallel shears, further reinforcing its prospectivity.

“Our strategy, once all transactions have been completed, will be to systematically drill test the Cap Burn target while simultaneously undertaking early low-cost exploration programmes across the Silver Peaks, Lammerlaw, Tokomairiro, and Croesus permits to grow our pipeline of gold and antimony projects,” said Wither.

The company has partnered with a New Zealand-based geological team connected to the early-stage discovery and resource growth at Santana’s RAS project.

The broader landholding across Otago and Reefton covers 1 463 km² and is positioned in prospective schist belt terrain. The portfolio builds on Critical’s thematic focus on gold and antimony, both of which are seeing strong demand fundamentals.

The New Zealand government’s recently passed Fast-Track Approvals Bill is expected to improve permitting timelines, reinforcing the country’s attractiveness. New Zealand ranked twelfth on the Fraser Institute’s 2025 Investment Attractiveness Index and has committed to doubling mineral exports over the next decade.

“For shareholders, the low-cost acquisitions provide near-term workflow and long-term growth potential,” the company said in a statement. “It provides a significant underexplored land position with low-holding costs, while reinforcing CRR’s technically driven approach to discovery and value creation.”