Tempest Minerals (ASX:TEM) announced a definitive agreement to acquire Australian-based explorer Zealandia Resources.
The $2 million scrip deal provides Tempest with 100% ownership of four advanced epithermal gold projects—Puriri, Hossack, Ohakuri West, and Matahana—spanning 145km2 across New Zealand's North Island.
Situated within the prolific Taupo Volcanic Zone and the Hauraki Goldfields, the targets sit in a region boasting a historical production pedigree of more than 15 million ounces of gold.
The acquisition is backed by an extensive geophysical dataset, including gravity and magnetics surveys, alongside historical drilling and surface geochemistry.
Tempest Managing Director Don Smith highlighted the geological synergy between the new assets and the company’s existing Australian operations.
"This acquisition allows us to leverage high-value, drill-ready targets in a proven gold-bearing region," Smith noted, adding that recent fieldwork has confirmed strong analogies to other world-class deposits in the area.
Under the terms of the agreement, Tempest will issue $2 million in shares to Zealandia shareholders, with an additional $2 million in performance shares contingent on hitting specific drilling and maiden resource milestones within five years.
As part of the transition, Zealandia will also nominate a representative to the Tempest board.
The deal remains subject to final due diligence and regulatory approvals as fieldwork continues across the North Island sites.
At the time of reporting, Tempest Minerals' share price was $0.0080.