Geopacific Resources Ltd. has appointed Argonaut Corporate Finance and Taylor Collison as joint financial advisers to lead project finance and strategic equity processes for its wholly owned Woodlark Gold Project in Papua New Guinea, the company said.
The appointment marks the start of a formal funding process to support development of the 1.67-million-ounce Woodlark project, Geopacific’s flagship asset. The financing process will run in parallel with the finalisation of a definitive feasibility study, which is expected to be completed in March 2026.
Geopacific said the advisers will assess a range of funding and strategic options, including project finance structures and strategic equity participation, as the company advances the project toward a final investment decision. The aim is to balance funding certainty, risk allocation and shareholder outcomes.
Argonaut and Taylor Collison bring experience in gold project finance, development equity and strategic transactions across Australasia, including Papua New Guinea, the company said. Their appointment gives Geopacific access to a broad network of potential financiers and strategic partners.
Chief Executive Officer James Fox said the Woodlark project has been substantially de-risked and is nearing completion of optimisation work under the DFS.
“Woodlark is a high-quality, long-life gold project that has been substantially advanced over recent years,” Fox said. “With DFS optimisation work nearing completion and the project materially de-risked, the board believes it is timely to formally assess project financing and strategic investment options that can unlock the underlying value of the project for all stakeholders.”
The DFS is being optimised to take advantage of record gold prices and to build on a 2024 study that confirmed the project’s technical and financial viability. That study considered average production of about 95,000 ounces of gold per year over a 12-year mine life, with estimated total production of 1.14 million ounces from predominantly open-pit mining.
Geopacific said recent work has identified opportunities to optimise and further de-risk key aspects of the project, including mining, processing, tailings and infrastructure. With current spot gold prices more than double the assumptions used in the earlier study, the updated DFS is expected to consider higher throughput scenarios and revised mining and infrastructure configurations.
The Woodlark project hosts a mineral resource of 1.67 million ounces of gold and offers additional exploration upside, the company said.
