Pantoro (ASX:PNR) used its December 2025 quarterly webinar update to emphasize cash flow generation at the Norseman Gold Project, alongside ongoing mine development and exploration aimed at lifting production over the next several years.
Managing Director Paul Cmrlec said the “key takeaway” from the December quarter was “the strong cash flow that Pantoro is generating,” citing AUD 84 million of EBITDA and a AUD 35 million increase in cash and gold quarter-on-quarter. While production came in “slightly below the expected 25,000 ounce run rate” for the quarter, Cmrlec said the company’s priority remains maximizing cash flow “during these very buoyant times in the gold market.”
Quarterly operating overview and guidance
Operationally, Pantoro is balancing underground mining with open pit sources and stockpiles. The company highlighted improved cost performance during the quarter, with Cmrlec pointing to improved C1 cash costs and all-in sustaining costs (AISC), which he described as “very competitive” relative to peers operating in similar underground environments. He added that as production rises, management expects those unit costs to continue to trend lower.
On safety, Cmrlec said Pantoro recorded “fairly minor restricted work injuries” during the period but had no lost-time injuries, which he said reflected improving safety performance.
Mine development: Scotia and OK
Cmrlec described ongoing efforts to increase operational flexibility, with particular focus on Scotia, where he said “additional areas” are continuing to come online and should support “a substantial lift” as they reach full production. During the quarter, underground tonnage was “down slightly,” but management prioritized higher-grade feed at Scotia. He said that approach supported higher produced ounces and better cash generation, noting that “the ounces that we produce and therefore the cash that we produce is much more important than the tons.”
At Scotia, Pantoro has completed surface drilling in the southern area and plans to continue drilling from underground. Cmrlec said drilling in the southern and central parts of the mine indicated gold mineralization “well below our current production plans,” and he highlighted areas adjacent to historical mining where drilling has identified ore outside the original mine plan. Development into those zones over four levels has begun, which he said should bring a new block of ore online “in the near term.”
He also said the decline in the “northern deeps” has progressed, with ore development and first production from that area expected to begin in the current quarter. Looking ahead, he did not expect a “dramatic” uplift in Scotia in the March quarter, but forecast continued improvement in both grade and tonnage as higher-grade northern areas contribute.
At the OK underground mine, the company is continuing development of the O2 and Star of Erin lodes and has begun development on the Main Lode, which was mined historically from the 1930s through the early 1980s. Cmrlec said the Main Lode is being developed at the 580 RL, around 350 meters below the deepest historical level (230 RL), and described it as an area with “virtually no data” at those depths. He said targeted drilling programs are planned over the next year to define the Main Lode, which he suggested could become a major production area alongside O2 and Star of Erin.
During Q&A, Cmrlec addressed questions about OK’s recent performance, saying the mine is transitioning to “the extremities of the ore body” and that changes in development methods and added flexibility should support a recovery. He said Pantoro expects OK to deliver 7,000 to 9,000 ounces in the current quarter, with the goal of returning to 9,000 to 11,000 ounces per quarter as access is fully established and changes take effect.
Open pit mining: Princess Royal and Gladstone
At Princess Royal, Cmrlec said open pit mining “has gone reasonably well,” though the operation experienced “minor geotechnical issues” during the quarter. He said the Slippers pit remains on track to be completed at the end of January.
Pantoro mined roughly 100,000 tonnes from Slippers and Desirables during the quarter and expects to mine an additional ~50,000 tonnes of higher-grade material at the bottom of Slippers during January and possibly into early February. He said that remaining Slippers material is expected to produce about 4,000 ounces, representing roughly one-third of the open pit ounces from that source. Pantoro also has about 50,000 tonnes stockpiled from Desirables, which will contribute to mill feed while Gladstone ramps up.
At Gladstone, Pantoro has started open pit mining. Cmrlec said stages one and two are currently approved and should provide about 15 months of feed at grades “just under three grams a tonne.” He noted ongoing drilling to the north and said the company is grade control drilling to support a potential stage three that “would effectively double the life” of the Gladstone open pit, with an additional stage four also identified.
Processing performance, exploration, and capital returns
During Q&A, management also addressed mill throughput, after processing of 269,000 tonnes in the quarter. Cmrlec said the constraint related to a higher proportion of oxide material from Desirables and Slippers stockpiles, which he said is “more difficult for us to get through the process plant.” He said optimization work, including “viscosity work” to handle oxide feed, progressed over the quarter and management expects throughput to return toward 300,000 tonnes per quarter.
On exploration, Pantoro reported extensive drilling activity across the site, with seven drill rigs operating and an eighth underground diamond rig expected to arrive and be working by the end of the current quarter. Cmrlec highlighted activity at Daisy South, where Pantoro has completed infill drilling over an existing resource of 20,000 ounces and is also following up early extensional results to the west that he described as encouraging, though he cautioned there is “no resource on that at this stage” given limited drilling.
He also outlined progress in the Mainfield area, focusing on Crown South and the O’Briens lode. O’Briens has an existing 40,000-ounce resource, and drilling through O’Briens en route to Crown South has returned additional intercepts around 200 meters north of the existing resource footprint, which he said points to “big expansion potential.” Cmrlec said Pantoro is advancing mine planning for a new underground production center in this area and expects to provide further mine planning information and results in the coming months.
In response to a question on salt lake exploration, Cmrlec said geophysical surveys are largely complete, with results pending, while drilling has not started due to access work. He said a first phase of drilling is expected to begin “before winter.”
On capital allocation, Cmrlec said a shareholder distribution is more likely to start with a share buyback rather than a dividend, citing Pantoro’s existing tax credits. He said those credits are expected to be exhausted at the end of the financial year, after which Pantoro would begin generating franking credits and could consider franked dividends. He also repeated management’s stated goal of building cash toward AUD 250 million-plus before initiating distributions, saying the company wants to fully fund multiple underground mine developments and maintain flexibility for exploration without returning to markets for capital.
Looking longer term, Cmrlec reiterated Pantoro’s stated aspiration to lift plant feed grade to five to seven grams per tonne and to reach a 200,000-ounce annual run rate. He said the company continues to target a step-up in FY27 and reaching that run rate in FY28, noting that timeline “hasn’t changed.”
About Pantoro (ASX:PNR)
Pantoro Limited, together with its subsidiaries, engages in the gold mining, processing, and exploration activities in Western Australia. The company explores for gold and silver deposits. It holds interest in the Halls Creek Project that includes the Nicolsons Mine located in Kimberley Region of Western Australia. The company was formerly known as Pacific Niugini Limited and changed its name to Pantoro Limited in December 2015. Pantoro Limited was incorporated in 1986 and is based in West Perth, Australia.
