Nova Minerals engages Whittle Consulting for Estelle optimization

Nova Minerals announced the engagement of Whittle Consulting for optimization of its upcoming project wide economic studies and focused RPM starter mine Feasibility Study, within its over 500km2 flagship Estelle Gold Project, located in the Tintina Gold Belt in Alaska. In support of the project, Whittle have agreed to take ~18% of their consulting fees in Nova ordinary shares. 2024 RPM drill results and antimony surface sample assays expected back in the coming weeks. The advancement of the Estelle gold and critical minerals project provides significant leverage to gold and antimony at a time when both commodities are currently at record high prices. The Company has commenced its activities with Whittle for the purposes of advancing the project optimization with the primary objective being to establish the potential scope and scale of an early small-scale operation at Estelle to produce revenue from near-surface high-grade areas at minimum capital cost and time to permit. While the study will focus on the early small-scale operation, it will also dovetail with the plan for realizing the value of the complete resource across the project area in the longer term, and in particular will direct future activities for engineering, test work, and drilling whilst moving towards a Feasibility Study in 2025. With an already defined multi-million ounce gold resource across 4 deposits, the Estelle Project has development optionality in terms of initial project size and scale. The FS currently underway is considering a strategy to achieve production with a scalable operation, subject to market conditions and strategic partners, by; Establishing an initial lower capex smaller scale operation at the high-grade RPM deposit for potential near term cashflow at high margins to self-fund expansion plans. Develop the higher capex larger mining operation with increased gold production, cash flow, and mine life, which is of interest to potential future large gold company strategic partners. With China announcing export restrictions on antimony, the Stibium Antimony-Gold Prospect is being advanced and investigated as an additional small scale, stand-alone, quick start up cash flow opportunity, with potential US Dept. of Defense support.