Southern Cross Gold Announces First Cut Fired at Sunday Creek Exploration Decline Portal
Southern Cross Gold Consolidated Ltd (SXGC) has fired the first cut in the exploration decline at its Sunday Creek Gold-Antimony Project in Victoria, Australia, marking the start of underground development. This milestone represents the first new underground decline developed in the State of Victoria in approximately 20 years, following approval from Resources Victoria in November 2025. The decline is designed to accelerate exploration by enabling a scale-up from 11 surface rigs to 24 concurrent surface and underground rigs, positioning Sunday Creek as one of the largest pre-development drill-outs globally.
PYBAR Mining Services, a Thiess company, fired the first development blast in the exploration decline portal. Surface preparation, including a box cut of approximately 15 meters depth and ground support installation (fibrecrete), is complete. The primary exploration decline is 5.5 meters wide by 6 meters high. It will extend approximately 680 meters laterally to reach a vertical depth of approximately 115 meters, involving approximately 1,200 meters of total development to establish underground drilling platforms. The decline is targeted for completion by the end of 2026, with first underground rigs expected to be mobilized in October 2026.
The underground infrastructure will allow the expansion of drilling capacity from the current 11 surface rigs to 24 rigs (surface and underground) working concurrently. Underground drilling is expected to provide shorter, more accurate holes into mineralization, improving productivity per meter and reducing surface impacts. PYBAR was awarded the decline contract in May 2026 following a competitive tender process assessing technical capability, safety record, delivery schedule, and price.
Sunday Creek is an epizonal gold-antimony deposit. Antimony represents approximately 21% to 24% of the in situ recoverable value at an AuEq of 2.39 ratio. The project is located 60 km north of Melbourne, Victoria. The project received Resources Victoria Work Plan approval in November 2025 and has been publicly endorsed by Premier Jacinta Allan as a critical minerals jobs opportunity.
Michael Hudson, President & CEO, stated: "The firing of the first cut went as planned and was executed safely. Beyond this being a significant milestone for Sunday Creek, it is a significant milestone for the broader Victorian mining industry... The decline is fundamentally about accelerating drilling. From here, the team will drive the primary decline to establish underground drill platforms approximately 115 metres beneath surface, scaling us from the 11 surface rigs operating today towards 24 rigs working concurrently, and positioning Sunday Creek as one of the largest pre-development drill-outs globally."
James Glover, General Manager of PYBAR Mining Services, added: "The firing of the first cut is a significant milestone for the project, but also more broadly for the mining industry, with this being the first new underground decline developed in Victoria in the last 20 or so years... The PYBAR team are very excited and proud to be a part of it."