Star Minerals Ltd
Star Minerals Ltd (ASX: SMS) is developing the Tumblegum South Gold Project about 40 km south-south-east of Meekatharra, Western Australia, which has a JORC (2012) Mineral Resource at 30 June 2026 of 616,000 t at 2.28 g/t Au for 45,000 oz, including 337,000 t at 2.52 g/t for 27,000 oz Indicated (Entech). Under a Right to Mine agreement signed in November 2025, contractor MEGA Resources mines the deposit, its finance arm Bain Global Resources provides up to A$20 million of working capital, and Star and Bain share profits 50:50 after costs are recovered; ore is to be toll-treated at Catalyst Metals' Plutonic mill. Open-pit mining began in 2026, but processing of the stockpiled ore at Plutonic has been delayed, and in September 2026 mining paused at the base of the Stage 1 pit for grade-control and depth-extension drilling ahead of a cut-back; Star expects its first gold revenue in the December 2026 quarter. In March 2026 it sold its West Bryah Basin copper-gold tenements to Catalyst Metals for A$2.75 million (A$1 million in cash and 230,536 Catalyst shares), and Catalyst also subscribed A$1 million for Star shares. At 30 June 2026 Star held A$2,102,662 of cash and A$1,159,596 of Catalyst shares, and the auditor's report on its 2026 accounts includes a material uncertainty related to going concern.
Notable vs. Peers
- Financials score of 10/10 is stronger than the peer average of 6.5/10.
Lifecycle Milestones
Construction Milestones
3 of 5 reached- Mar 2026 · Source
- Reached — date not disclosed · Source
- Reached — date not disclosed · Source
- Not yet reached
- Not yet reached
Milestones are recorded only from a company's own dated disclosure. A milestone with no date shown is one we can confirm was reached but for which no date was disclosed — we don't estimate one. "Not yet reached" means exactly that, not that a date is missing. An "Expected" line likewise only ever reflects the company's own guidance (e.g. a study or permit decision targeted for a stated quarter) — most not-yet-reached milestones have none, and that absence means no such guidance has been disclosed, not that one is overdue.
Not yet determined: grid power.
Jurisdiction (40%)9/10
Western Australia: Fraser PPI 2025 is 88.53 of 100 (rank 13 of 68), which maps to 9 on this site's scale. Western Australia is a Tier-1 mining jurisdiction with stable, established mining law.
Infrastructure (40%)8.6/10
A confirmed mill, confirmed road access, and a confirmed tailings facility at Tumblegum South Gold Project; grid power not yet researched, counted at a neutral 5/10 until established.
Nearby producing mine (20%)9.2/10
Meekatharra (Bluebird plant) (Westgold Resources Limited) is 32 km away -- within regional-platform range.
Acquisition Susceptibility
A relative ranking of how closely this company matches the profile of juniors that have actually been acquired — not a probability, and not a reason to buy. Acquisitions are rare: only a few dozen significant deals happen a year across a universe of thousands of juniors, so even a high score here describes a long shot. The strongest signal in the research, a producer that already owns part of the company, is scored from its disclosed strategic shareholders. A producer that is a joint-venture or earn-in partner on the project, rather than a shareholder, isn't captured yet.
How this score is built
- Disclosed pending dealSub-score: Not scored
No pending acquisition or merger disclosed (checked)
Not scored: having no deal in flight isn't held against a company.
Weight 26.25% - Producer's strategic stakeSub-score:8.2/10
Catalyst Metals Limited holds 6.19% (reported 1 Sep 2026) See holders
An operating producer's stake scores 8 at 5%, rising to 10 at 20% (the take-over-bid threshold) and holding there up to 50%.
Weight 25% · 34% here - Distance to a producing mineSub-score:6.8/10
Nearest producing mine: Meekatharra (Bluebird plant) (Westgold Resources Limited), 32 km
10 next to a producing mine, 8 at 20 km, 5 at 50 km, 0 beyond 200 km.
Weight 22.5% · 31% here - Lifecycle stageSub-score:7/10
Stage: Construction
Feasibility and permitting score 10, where deals cluster, and production 5.5; earlier stages score less, down to 1 at grassroots.
Weight 15% · 20% here - JurisdictionSub-score:9/10
Australia: jurisdiction score 9/10
Our jurisdiction score, used as is: higher means lower political and permitting risk.
Weight 6.75% · 9% here - CommoditySub-score:10/10
Primary commodity: Gold
Gold 10, copper 8, silver 5, nickel and uranium 4, others 2: most majors' deals are for gold.
Weight 4.5% · 6% here
Weight is each input's share of the full score. “Here” is its share of this company's score: inputs that aren't scored are left out and the rest re-weighted, never counted as zero.
Your Rankings
Management Team
Managing Director and Company Secretary of Star Minerals Ltd. Geologist with 20+ years' exploration/mine-geology experience in Australia and Africa.
Insiders, Investors & Smart Money
Notable shareholders and insiders whose involvement is worth knowing about, plus what we're seeing from institutional/large-investor activity.
Star Minerals' own site names Catalyst Metals (an established ASX gold producer), Bain Global Resources and MEGA Resources (the company's contract miner) as 'cornerstone investors.' That is a named lead -- Catalyst Metals in particular is exactly the kind of producer relationship worth tracking -- and Star's FY2026 annual report confirms real equity: as at 1 September 2026 Catalyst Metals holds 16,129,032 shares (6.19%, from its A$1M placement at A$0.062/share) and Bain Global Resources 21,539,676 shares (8.26%), both substantial holders. Bain is also Star's 50:50 profit-share partner on Tumblegum South, so neither is a pure outside vote. No insider trading records exist in our data.
No notable insiders tracked for this miner yet.
Reports, Presentations & Documents
Star Minerals is developing the Tumblegum South Gold Project about 40 km south-south-east of Meekatharra, Western Australia, which has a resource of 27,000 oz of gold indicated, with no measured category, plus 18,000 oz inferred. Under a Right to Mine agreement, contractor MEGA Resources mines the deposit, its finance arm Bain Global Resources provides working capital, and Star and Bain share profits 50:50 after costs are recovered, with ore to be toll-treated at Catalyst Metals' Plutonic mill. Processing of the stockpiled ore has been delayed, and in September 2026 mining paused for grade-control drilling ahead of a cut-back. Star expects its first gold revenue in the December 2026 quarter.