Thank you everyone for joining the call today. With me is Wayne Bramwell, Managing Director and CEO of Westgold Resources. Over to you, Wayne.
Thank you and hello everyone. Welcome to Westgold's September 2026 quarterly results call. Joining me today are Aaron Rankine, our Chief Operating Officer, and Tommy Heng, our Chief Financial Officer. We will walk through today's numbers before opening up the floor for questions. Slide four. A strong start to FY 2027. Safe and profitable ounces is Westgold's mantra. Safety first. In Q1, we recorded no lost time injuries and our LTIFR reduced to 1.17. We also saw a strong improvement across our key leading safety indicators, supported by sustained frontline engagement, critical control verification, and leadership field presence, reflecting our ongoing focus on fatality prevention and critical risk management.
Now to our business performance. We have delivered a strong start to FY 2027, producing 98,400 ounces at an all-in sustaining cost of AUD 2,912 per ounce, and we remain firmly on track to deliver our FY 2027 guidance. With Q1 under our belt, that takes us to more than 400,000 ounces produced over the last four quarters. Importantly, ore produced from our own mines increased 7% this quarter. That lifted our ore stockpiles by 51% to 696,000 tons, roughly six weeks of mill feed. Those stockpiles kept our mills running through wet weather in the Murchison and provided ample ore feed when the mills emerged from their heavier maintenance schedule this quarter.
At Beta Hunt, we hit a record 2 million ton per annum annualized mining rate in September, with the new interim primary vent now commissioned. Aaron will take you through this in more detail later in the presentation. Our margins remain strong. An all-in sustaining cost margin of AUD 3,117 per ounce delivered AUD 292 million in mine operating cash flow and an AUD 251 million underlying treasury build. We closed September with over AUD 1 billion in cash, bullion, and liquid investments, remaining debt-free and fully unhedged. It was also a big quarter for our future. We grew group ore reserves by 41% to 4.1 million ounces and set out a fully funded pathway towards 500,000 ounces of production through our updated three-year outlook.
We continued to reward shareholders, declaring a AUD 0.10 fully franked FY 2026 dividend and also buying back AUD 22 million worth of shares in Q1 FY 2027. We also introduced a new shareholder capital returns policy. Our strategy is doing what it was designed to do. Stronger production driving stronger cash generation, which funds both our growth and ongoing returns to our shareholders. Slide five. Q1 results firmly in line with guidance. Q1 has put us firmly on track for FY 2027. We produced 98,400 ounces, broadly in line with the 98,900 ounces we delivered in Q4 and right on pace for our full-year guidance of 385,000- 425,000 ounces.
Our all-in sustaining cost of AUD 2,912 per ounce was below our guided range of AUD 2,980- AUD 3,380 per ounce. That is despite a quarter with more planned mill maintenance across all our processing hubs and higher waste stripping in our open pits. We are investing in line with plan. Non-sustaining capital was AUD 111 million against full-year guidance of AUD 450 million- AUD 480 million, going into development at Bluebird, Great Fingall, and the Beta Hunt mines, and into processing, power, ventilation, and camp infrastructure. Exploration was AUD 24 million against guidance of AUD 50 million- AUD 75 million for the full year. Spend picked up in the quarter as planned drilling programs received their approvals and access and will keep drilling.
Slide six. Westgold 456 fully funded growth. In September, we released our FY 2027 guidance and an updated three-year plan. The simplest way to describe it is Westgold 456. What does it mean? Four. Four operating hubs across the Murchison and Southern Goldfields with 5.7 million tons a year of installed processing capacity. That grows to more than 7 million tons a year by FY 2029 through the Cue expansion this year and the Meekatharra expansion planned in FY 2028.
Five. A fully funded pathway to around half a million ounces a year by FY 2029. FY 2027 sees Great Fingall reach commercial production and the Cue expansion come online. From there, production steps up to between 425,000 and 470,000 ounces in FY 2028, reaching 460,000- 510,000 ounces in FY 2029. With our all-in sustaining costs falling at that point to between AUD 2,640 and AUD 3,000 per ounce as higher grades and throughput come through. We are funding the 456 plan from our own cash flow while continuing to return capital to shareholders in parallel.
Six, Fletcher. It is not included in the three-year outlook, but with a 1.1 million ounce maiden reserve announced last year, it could add around 140,000 ounces a year on top of our production and gives us a very tangible pathway beyond 600,000 ounces a year for the group. Our Q1 result is the first step in delivering that plan. With that, I will hand over to Aaron to take you through our operational results.
Thank you, Wayne, and good morning to everyone on the call. Our operations continued to build momentum in Q1. We mined 1.42 million tonnes of ore at 2.2 g per tonne, up 7% on Q4, which was our strongest mining quarter of last year. That increase came from Great Fingall, Starlight, our Murchison open pit program, and Beta Hunt, with overall mine grade lifting slightly quarter-on-quarter. Processing throughput was steady with mills fully utilized, processing 1.46 million tonnes of ore at 2.3 g per tonne. Quarter-on-quarter upside at Lakewood was offset by usual Q1 heavy planned maintenance regimes across all of our processing hubs.
The result was 98,400 ounces, in line with Q4, with production sourced from our own mines up 5%. That takes us to over 400,000 ounces over the last 12 months. The capability of this business is starting to show and there is plenty more to come. Slide nine. Our stockpiles are building by design, creating resilience in our operations and de-risking our planned incremental mill expansions that will support higher production at lower cost. Total ore stockpiles grew 51% to 696,000 tonnes, about six weeks of mill feed at our installed capacity. The build happened in both regions, the Murchison up 60% to 485,000 tonnes, and the Southern Goldfields up 34% to 211,000 tonnes on the back of record mining at Beta Hunt.
The resilience this creates was on show this quarter. When wet weather closed haul roads in the Murchison over the period, our mills kept running at full speed. Slide 10. Regionally, the Murchison produced 71,900 ounces, slightly below Q4. That reflects lower OPA production and increased plant maintenance at all three Murchison mills. Notably, production from our own ore sources in the Murchison was up around 4%. Across the Murchison hubs, Meekatharra delivered 35,900 ounces with a consistent feed grade of 2.5 g per tonne. The mill ran at an annualized 1.9 million tonne run rate, still above its 1.8 million tonne annualized base capacity.
Cue lifted to 19,000 ounces with grade slightly improving to 2 g per tonne as more Great Fingall is introduced into the blend. Fortnum continues to deliver to plan with around 17,000 ounces. In the Southern Goldfields, Higginsville produced 26,500 o unces, up on Q4. That includes the scheduled toll treatment parcel at Lakewood, partly offset by the major planned shutdown at the Higginsville mill. Slide 11. At Bluebird, mining ran at an annualized 870,000 tonnes. Slightly below our 1 million tonne per annum target with the mining schedule focused on smaller, higher grade stopes, evident in the increased mine grade at 3.1 g per tonne for the quarter.
We continued to open additional mining areas, giving us multiple mining fronts, underpinning the improved mining rates and delivery of + 1 million tonnes for the full FY 2027. Bluebird is well positioned as the key feed for larger Meekatharra mill that will be delivered in FY 2028. Slide 12. Earlier today, we released an update on Beta Hunt, and it is a milestone we are proud of. When we acquired Beta Hunt in August 2024, we saw a high-quality ore body held back by legacy infrastructure and a lack of drilling. Under prior ownership, it had not sustained mining rates above around 1.4 million tonnes per annum.
Over the last two years, we've invested around AUD 33 million to remove infrastructure constraints in ventilation, dewatering, water supply, and power. We've also substantially improved mine design and significantly increased diamond drilling to bolster reserve and resource confidence. That work is paying off. In September, Beta Hunt delivered a record month at an annualized circa 2 million tonnes per annum. Our interim primary vent was commissioned during the quarter, ahead of the target we provided in Q4, and we are now targeting a sustained 2 million tonne a year mining rate from Q2 this year.
Beta Hunt also delivered its second consecutive quarterly record, mining 423,000 tonnes in Q1. With those foundations in place, our focus shifts to optimizing cost and looking forward to firm up what is possible. Integrated Southern Goldfields expansion studies are underway and due next half, while we continue with seven drill rigs growing the ore body. With that, I'll hand over to Tommy to take you through our financial results. Thank you.
Thank you, Aaron, and good morning, everyone. Slide 14. This slide shows the strength of our cash generation while we fund our growth. We sold just under 100,000 ounces in the quarter at a realized gold price of AUD 6,029 an ounce, generating AUD 602 million in gold sales revenue. We remain fully unhedged. The all-in sustaining cost increased to AUD 2,912 an ounce, reflecting higher waste movement in our open pits, planned maintenance at our mills, annual labor increases, and additional toll milling at Lakewood. Even so, our all-in sustaining cost margin of AUD 3,117 an ounce generated AUD 292 million in mine operating cash flows and AUD 157 million in net mine cash flows.
After investing AUD 111 million in non-sustaining capital and AUD 24 million in exploration and resource development, we added AUD 101 million to cash bullion and investments during the quarter. We remain debt-free with around AUD 1.6 billion of available liquidity, including our undrawn AUD 600 million credit facility. Slide 15. Q1 delivered an underlying treasury build of AUD 251 million before share buybacks of AUD 20 million, growth and exploration spend of AUD 135 million, and proceeds from asset sales of AUD 5 million. That's after we invested in building our ore stockpiles during the quarter and after AUD 41 million of tax installment payments.
In Q2, alongside our regular FY 2027 tax installments, we'll pay the balance of our FY 2026 income tax of approximately AUD 180 million, with the tax return being finalized. Our closing treasury was AUD 1.04 billion, up AUD 101 million on June. This level of cash generation allows us to fund our growth internally while continuing to return capital to shareholders. Slide 16, which brings me to the shareholder returns. In FY 2026, we returned AUD 122 million to shareholders, comprising AUD 27 million in buybacks and our AUD 0.10 fully franked dividend totaling AUD 95 million. The dividend was paid out to shareholders in early October.
For FY 2027, the Board has approved a AUD 50 million on-market buyback, and we have already completed AUD 22.3 million of this at an average of AUD 5.46 a share. Under our revised shareholder capital returns policy, we have committed to a minimum return of AUD 0.03 per share each year, including a minimum AUD 0.02 dividend. An important point for shareholders, under the policy, dividends are paid annually. The Board will determine the FY 2027 dividend in August after the finalization of our FY 2027 financial year. We will not be paying an interim dividend in February 2027. I will hand back to Wayne to cover off on exploration and our closing remarks.
Thank you, Tommy. We continue to invest in the drill bit. AUD 24 million in quarter one, with 25 rigs operating at quarter end. In the Murchison, drilling at Bluebird is defining the extent of the system, while Cue and Paddy's Flat are testing new open pit sources that sit outside our current three-year outlook. At Beta Hunt, seven underground rigs are supporting near-term mining and continuing to define Fletcher. Greenfields programs are also underway. Some of our Lake targets at Higginsville were delayed by rain, and those programs will start as soon as practical. Long story short, in FY 2027, we are investing between AUD 50 million and AUD 75 million in exploration and resource definition, focusing on reserve conversion.
Last year, we converted reserves at AUD 27 an ounce, and we will not be slowing down. That number speaks to the quality of the portfolio. In closing, Westgold is off to a strong start in FY 2027. We are building a leading Australian gold producer. We delivered 387,000 ounces in FY 2026 and 98,400 ounces this quarter, firmly on track for guidance. All of our assets are in Western Australia, a Tier 1 jurisdiction. We operate four processing hubs with capacity growing from 5.7 million tons per annum to more than 7 million tons a year by FY 2029. We have a clear, fully funded pathway to 500,000 ounces of production by FY 2029, and with Fletcher, a tangible pathway beyond 600,000 ounces.
Our assets are long life, with ore reserves up 41% to 4.1 million ounces. Our balance sheet is strong, with over AUD 1 billion in cash bullion investments, and we remain debt-free and unhedged. Most importantly, we are increasing returns to our shareholders. AUD 122 million returned in FY 2026 and a minimum AUD 0.03 per share every year under our new policy. Last year, we effectively delivered six times our minimum on that policy of that year. Slide 21. This slide compares Westgold with other ASX gold producers on a simple measure: enterprise value against consensus FY 2027 earnings. On that measure, we traded around 3.3 times towards the bottom of the group and at roughly half the peer median.
Historically, the market has discounted Westgold for inconsistent delivery, operational risk, and a business that was still being rebuilt. Some of that was fair at the time, but that is no longer the case. We have produced 402,000 ounces over the last four consecutive quarters. We have built 696,000 tons of ore stockpiles, which kept our mills running through wet weather this quarter. We generated AUD 251 million underlying treasury build. We hold AUD 1 billion in treasury with no debt and no hedging, and we have a fully funded brownfield expansion path towards 500,000 ounces of production a year, backed by our 4.1 million ounces of ore reserves. There is a lot to like within Westgold.
The reasons for that discount are being removed, but our valuation has not caught up. That gap is the opportunity in front of investors today. Slide 22. In closing, the time is now. FY 2027 is another year where Westgold focuses on delivery, operational and financial delivery. We have de-risked the delivery over several years and now have a sustainable business that can do two things: it can fund its own growth, and it can consistently return capital to its shareholders. That is a powerful combination and one that is not yet fully appreciated by the market. How have we de-risked the business? We drilled.
We added 1.5 million ounces before depletion to our reserve last year at AUD 27 an ounce. We closed FY 2026 with 4.1 million ounces of reserve. We invested capital ahead of production in our mines. At Great Fingall, Bluebird and Beta, mine outputs are lifting at each of these core underground operations.
We are building stockpiles in front of each of our processing hubs. These buffer stocks ensure our mills can keep generating revenue even when it rains. We are focused on our largest assets now, and a point not well known is Westgold has five mines that have each produced greater than one million ounces. Five one-million-ounce producers in one company? That is a rare combination. Anyway, I would like to close today with thanking our team for their efforts in Q1. We are focused on delivery, and so from Westgold, I will open the floor now to questions.
Thank you for all joining us today. Wayne here. I will dive straight into the questions. First question from Khan Peka from Petra. Bluebird September production improved through higher grades rather than mining volumes. What specifically needs to change to lift mining above 1 million tonne per annum in December? Is the previously indicated 1.2 million tonne per annum run rate during FY 2027 still achievable? I will hand that to Aaron.
Thank you, Wayne, and thank you, Khan, for the question. I will draw your attention to slide 11 of the deck, in terms of what needs to happen to get us to the 1-million-tonne run rate. Essentially, we are there. It has been about opening up mining areas, and deconstraining the paste fill sequence. So we are there now and fully expect the mine to continue to lift and deliver the 1 million tonnes for the full financial year as expected.
Thanks, Aaron. Next question, again from Khan, specific to Beta Hunt. With sustained 2 million tonne per annum mining targeted from this quarter, how much can be processed through Higginsville and tolling arrangements in FY 2027?
Yeah. Thank you again, Khan. The existing processing capacity inclusive of our Lakewood contract is about 1.7 million tonnes for the year. With Beta Hunt delivering and Two Boys, we expect a stockpile build of approximately 500,000 tonnes for the year. And gold production will be as expected at around the 115,000 ounces as put in our guidance.
Thanks again, Aaron. Next question from Peter Bryant. Peter asks the question, "Future takeover opportunities?" Thanks for that, Peter. I will take that one. We are very much focused on organic growth. Takeovers, really with growth in these businesses, you only have two options. You either buy growth or you build it. In FY 2027, FY 2028, and FY 2029, under the 456 strategy, we are very much focused on organic growth from the things we already own. Next question from Paul Rosenko. Paul asks, "What are our drill rigs up to lately? Any results coming? Are you looking for more open pits on the Higginsville property?" And he asks a question about, "Is diesel fuel a concern?"
I will answer the question about the drill rigs. Any results coming soon? 100%. Are you looking for more open pits on the Higginsville property? We are. The greenfields exploration at Higginsville is really focused on open pit material. A lot of that drilling got paused during Q1 because of rain. The one rig that you see running at Higginsville at the moment is drilling underground extensions at our operating Two Boys mine. I will hand the question over about diesel to Aaron.
In short, no. We have invested in increasing storage capacity in diesel, as well as our investment in gas solar hybrid power for our operating mines over the last few years. We feel the business is in a really resilient sort of position in terms of diesel.
Thanks, Aaron. Next question is from Al Harvey of UBS, and Al asks, "Ability to access Fletcher and Mason from overlying Gold Fields ground at St Ives." Let me talk about that. Fletcher and Mason. Fletcher is obviously we are continuing to drill, and we are now starting to drill the Mason target in Beta Hunt. Studies are running now in terms of a haulage. What are the best haulage scenarios to get not 2 million tonnes of Beta Hunt to the surface, which we are currently doing, but 4 million tonnes. Yes, and we will focus on multiple options, including basically truck haulage back out through a new portal, which we would build within our existing access. Second part of that question from Al is Southern Goldfields stockpile build. Will you keep these on-site at Beta Hunt or truck to Higginsville? I will hand this to Aaron.
In short, Al, that will be staying at Beta. We have the space and are doing the work at the moment, and we will be able to store well over 1 million tonnes at Beta Hunt. Leaving the dirt there gives us the most optionality, considering where we are looking at building the bigger mill.
Thanks, Aaron. Next question from Ganesh. Ganesh states, "Wayne and team, excellent execution of plan. Safety record and focus is commendable. When are decisions regarding Southern Mill expected?" Hand that one to Aaron.
Yeah, I will take that one. So we have got integrated studies for a circa 4 million tonne mine and mill at Beta Hunt, with a mill going closer to Beta Hunt at the moment. We are expecting completion of those studies later in H2. We need that information to be able to get towards decision dates. The market will hear more about that as those studies progress.
Another question from Ganesh: are additional buybacks above AUD 50 million planned due to market price disconnect? Certainly. Ganesh, we have got current Board approval to buy up to AUD 50 million, and if we still see value, we will continue to buy above AUD 50 million. Next question from Hugo at Goldman Sachs, "Y ou have outlined a DFS study exploring expanding the Higginsville mill to 4 million tonnes per annum, or a scenario with greater optionality, building a new 4 million tonne per annum mill closer to Beta Hunt." Beyond the study in March 2027, can you talk us through the potential timeline on engineering and permitting through to first production? And could this be upside to the FY 2029 500,000 ounce target? I will hand this over to Aaron.
Yeah, thank you for that, Hugo. Look, there is a number of open questions which we will be answering through this study phase. So we have not yet guided to any timelines here, and reluctant to do so until we get more clarity on exactly where the mill is going, how big it needs to be, how we are going to hoist the dirt. So a number of open questions and once we get answers to those questions, we will start putting permitting timelines out.
Hugo, I will just jump in here. There are multiple options in the Southern Goldfields for us. Obviously, expanding the thing we own, which is Higginsville, is something we could do, and the Spargos opportunity is real, being much closer to Beta Hunt. Anyway, more on that to come. Next question from Ray. Reports show global diesel supply problems. What is the risk to Westgold operations of potential diesel supply interruptions? I might take this one, Ray. We have been well prepared for this for some time, long before the current outbreak of war in the Middle East. We really addressed a lot of these things post-COVID, and our on-site storage of diesel is sufficient to cover long periods of disruption.
For us, five years ago, we moved away from high diesel consumption by converting three of our process plants to hybrid energy, which was gas and solar. Our exposure to diesel is much different than others who are still running processing plants on diesel. In the current business, four processing hubs. The only processing plant we run now on diesel is Higginsville, and that consumes about 800,000 L of diesel a month. Long term, Higginsville, whether we expand it or not, will be converted to hybrid energy to reduce our exposure to this energy source.
Another question from Wade Christensen. What needs to happen for a new Spargos mill to be approved? Really good question, Wade. We need to complete the study work on what that looks like, and that study work is happening now. We will be in a position to talk more about what the opportunity is at Spargos early in the new year. Another question from Ganesh. What are the likely contributions from spin-offs and ore processing agreements in the coming quarter?
In the coming quarter, meaning Q2 or Q3. In terms of financial spin-offs, there are still bullet payments due from some of the counterparties that we are working with. During last quarter, we achieved or received the first bullet payment from Sinclair, which was AUD 5 million in cash, post them hitting their first target. In terms of ore processing arrangements for this quarter, I will hand over to Aaron.
Yeah, thank you, Wayne. Look, at this stage, we are expecting more of the same from NMG, working towards that guidance number for the full year. We are also keeping a close eye on our friends at Valiant, as they continue to bring the Comet area online, b ut I am not expecting that this quarter, p otentially in Q3.
Yep. Thanks for that. A question from Paul Wiggers at Bank of America. Hi, Paul. The ramp-up at Great Fingall has been slow versus your targeted run rate, given the historic workings. Will this start to ease over the remainder of FY 2027? This one absolutely in Aaron's square.
Yeah, thank you again, and thank you for the question. Yeah, look, we'll see Great Fingall continue to ramp up throughout this year. We're expecting commercial production in Q4. So continue to ramp up, and short answer is yes.
Another question from Khan about Great Fingall. How are the first stopes reconciling against reserve assumptions, tonnes, grade, and dilution? How much of the current grade reflects historic workings and when should we see a more representative stope mix? Back to Aaron.
Thank you. So we are seeing lower grades in what's been on paper for Great Fingall at the moment, mainly due to taking opportune stopes in a mining area that wasn't in the plan. Overall, the actual stopes and development in both the Great Fingall and Golden Crown zones are reconciling as expected.
There is a question here, which I'll unpack from John Flutter. I think there's some confusion about what we processed and what we built. A fundamental change in our business, which has not been understood in the market is this. Last year, FY 2026, the business changed from a position where it had too much milling capacity and not enough mine output. That dynamic has changed, and mines now are producing more than we can mill, and that's a first-world problem. Why? Because it generates stockpiles between the mine and the mill. Having those stockpiles, that buffer in between those two units, gives us the ability to keep these processing plants running, during periods of disruption through weather, and other issues. We saw that in Q2.
And just to jump in on that, the numbers you will see on the slide reflecting mining and milling, do not include our OPA and do not include our low-grade oxide that we feed in to optimize our blends. So the key difference there of about 230,000 tonnes is inclusive of the oxide blending and the OPAs.
Another question from Paul Connor at Ord. Now you are mining more than you can process at Beta Hunt. Will you be grade streaming in FY 2027/FY 2028 ahead of any potential expansion? Back to Aaron.
Yeah. Thank you, Paul. We already are doing that, as much as is possible. We are doing more bulk mining at the moment. So the grade streaming optionality is limited, but it is absolutely focus of ours to make the ore head grade as high as possible and the stockpile grade as low as possible.
Yeah. Grade is king here. Another question from Paul. What has driven the uplift in mining costs in the Murchison on $1 per tonne basis quarter-on-quarter? Back to Aaron.
Thank you for that. This one's simple. It's open pit, so we're doing a lot of pre-strips at the moment throughout our open pit program, which is not contributing ore, and they're relatively short, so it all lives in OpEx.
Another one from Paul Connor at Ord. On the expansion of Beta Hunt, what are the determining factors of building you a standalone mill versus expanding Higginsville? Is it purely how you decide to mine Fletcher and a material handling solution there? It's a multitude of factors, Paul. In terms of simplistically, say, a Spargos versus Higginsville decision is really about haulage distance. Higginsville is 90 km away. Spargos is 30. With the scale of Beta Hunt growing so rapidly, we currently have a 2-million-tonne per annum mine, and we can see a 4-million-tonne per annum mine emerging. The concept of hauling 4 million tonnes 90Ks bakes in a high haulage cost for that life of mine versus a much lower haulage cost if Fletcher is chosen as a location.
So really, it's a multitude of factors. What is the optimum haulage solution to the surface of a much larger output from Beta Hunt? And ideally, how do we optimize the cost base? And key to that is having a big hub close to our biggest mine. Currently, Spargos gives us that opportunity. Listen, that is the end of the questions today. Thank you, everyone, for patching in to listen to our Q1 numbers. We look forward to repeating this at the end of Q2. Have a great day.