Edison increases Barton Gold valuation as Tunkillia and Tarcoola progress continues

Barton Gold’s (ASX: BGD) (OTCQB: BGDFF) aggressive South Australian gold development plans have received a tick of approval in a technical update note from UK-based Edison Investment Research.

Analysts at Edison have revised their Barton price target from $0.77 to $1.11 per share, helping the company’s share price move higher in Wednesday morning trade on the Australian Securities Exchange.

Edison highlighted the significant growth opportunities available within Barton’s portfolio at the Tunkillia and Tarcoola gold projects and the company’s unique gold mill.

Tunkillia production

In the updated note, Edison analyst Lord Ashbourne highlighted Barton’s aggressive pursuit to produce between 125,000 and 150,000 ounces of gold per annum at Tunkillia via open-pit production.

Those plans were boosted by the success of its recent reverse circulation drilling campaign targeting block model extensions, an update of the JORC mineral resource to 1.6Moz of gold and 3.1Moz of silver and the identification of material available energy savings.

Mr Ashbourne also pointed to the company’s drilling success at Tarcoola, where it discovered the new Tolmer gold system last year and added further pit floor gold mineralisation at the Perseverance mine.

Additionally, Barton created further value with its surprise high-grade silver discovery alongside the Tolmer gold find.

High-value gold mill

The update also reinforced the importance of Barton’s gold mill, which Edison valued at $0.46/share on an ‘as new’ replacement cost basis and at A$0.23/share on an ‘as is’ indemnity value basis.

The valuation of this asset alone effectively covers the company’s current share price.

The facility continues to add to Barton’s strong bank balance, with the company completing $5 million in gold sales from its mill clean-out in June 2024 including an augmented final payment of $775,000, after confirmation assays showed a higher gold content than was provisionally estimated.

Edison also noted there is upcoming news that could impact Barton’s share price, with an optimised scoping study at Tunkillia due in Q2 CY25 and the company’s ongoing exploration programs at both Tunkillia and Tarcoola.