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(Sharecast News) - First Development Resources said on Tuesday that its wholly-owned subsidiary URE Metals had been awarded a AUD 100,000 grant from the Northern Territory Government to support drilling at the Lander West gold target in Australia.
The AIM-traded Australia-focused mineral explorer said the non-dilutive funding was awarded under round 19 of the Northern Territory Government's Geophysics and Drilling Collaborations programme.
The grant would support the company's maiden phase one reverse circulation drilling programme at Lander West, part of its flagship Selta project in the Northern Territory.
The programme is fully funded and drilling is scheduled to begin in July.
First Development said the award provided independent validation of the technical quality and prospectivity of the Lander West target, where the upcoming drilling will represent the first meaningful test of the broader gold system at depth.
The company said target generation had been guided by historical geological and geochemical data, alongside several phases of modern geophysical surveying completed since late 2025.
Those datasets had identified multiple gold targets concealed beneath shallow cover.
Previous drilling in the area was largely focused on commodities other than gold and was generally shallow, leaving much of the prospective geology effectively untested below 50 metres.
The initial programme is expected to comprise about 2,000 metres of reverse circulation drilling, with flexibility to expand to about 3,000 metres depending on results.
First Development said all regulatory approvals needed to start drilling had been secured and preparations were progressing ahead of contractor mobilisation in July.
Chief executive officer Tristan Pottas said the award highlighted the prospectivity of Lander West and endorsed the technical work completed to date.
"Over the past seven months, the company has adopted a systematic and methodical approach to advancing Lander West from an initial concept to a drill-ready opportunity," he said.
"With all regulatory approvals secured and preparations progressing well, we look forward to commencing our maiden drilling programme in July.
"This programme will provide the first meaningful test of the Lander West Gold Target at depth and marks an important milestone in the development of what we believe could become a significant gold discovery for the Company and its shareholders."
At 1100 BST, shares in First Development Resources were up 11.48% at 3.4p.
Reporting by Josh White for Sharecast.com.
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