What Star Minerals does

Star Minerals Limited (ASX: SMS) is an Australian micro-cap gold miner headquartered in Leederville, Western Australia, that is transitioning from explorer to producer. The company's sole producing asset is the Tumblegum South Gold Project, an open-pit operation located 40km south of Meekatharra in the Bryah Basin of WA's Mid West region. The project hosts a JORC-compliant Mineral Resource Estimate of 616,000 tonnes at 2.28g/t Au for 45,000 contained ounces, with a planned two-year mine life producing 11,800–15,900 ounces per annum. Star Minerals employs 1–10 people and its only listed product is Tumblegum South ore processed and sold as gold doré.

The business model is partnership-driven and capital-light by design, eschewing company-owned processing infrastructure in favour of a toll treatment arrangement with Catalyst Metals' Plutonic Mill (capacity for up to 250,000 tonnes over two years, signed February 2026). Mining services are delivered by MEGA Resources — a subsidiary of Indian contractor BGR Mining & Infra — under a Right to Mine Agreement that includes a 50/50 profit-share. Up to A$20 million of working capital is provided by Bain Global Resources (the finance arm of MEGA Resources), which holds an 8.18% strategic stake; Catalyst Metals holds a further 6.59% following a A$1M equity placement. Pre-mining capex is modest at A$0.7–1.5M, and management's scoping study projects an undiscounted accumulated cash surplus of A$9.4–19.6M at gold prices of A$3,000–3,800/oz.

Following receipt of full WA DMPE mining approval and a Native Vegetation Clearing Permit, Star Minerals completed first blast at Tumblegum South in May 2026 and is targeting first gold production in 2026. Revenue is generated through gold doré sales at prevailing market prices (no company-set pricing), with A$2.5M (Nov 2024 rights issue), A$1.6M (Jun 2025 placement), A$1.5M (Oct 2025 placement), and A$1M (Feb 2026 Catalyst placement) raised to bridge to cashflow. The company is concurrently building pipeline optionality through the new 219km² Merredin Gold Project (Exploration Licence E70/6810 granted June 2026) and divestiture of the non-core West Bryah copper-gold project.

Name

Star Minerals

Legal name

Star Minerals Limited

Website

https://starminerals.com.au

Company type

Public

Founded year

2023

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Star Minerals Limited (ASX: SMS) is an Australian micro-cap gold miner transitioning from explorer to producer at its single Tumblegum South open-pit project in Western Australia's Bryah Basin, using toll treatment and partner-funded mining to bring a 45,000-ounce resource into production in 2026.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Gold Mining

NAICS

Gold Ore and Silver Ore Mining (212220)

SIC

Gold And Silver Ores (1040)

akta.pro primary industry

Gold Mining (IMAKAEAA)

Keywords

• Gold mining
• Gold exploration
• Open-pit mining
• Toll treatment
• Gold production

Headquarters

HQ city

Perth

HQ country

Australia

HQ region

Oceania

Offices3 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Operations, Supply Chain, Personnel, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Gold Production and Sales: Star Minerals generates revenue through the extraction and sale of gold from its Tumblegum South Gold Project. The company uses a toll treatment model where ore is processed at Catalyst Metals' Plutonic mill, with processed gold sold at market prices. Revenue is dependent on gold production volumes, ore grade, and prevailing gold prices.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Star Minerals is a gold exploration and mining company that extracts and sells gold from its flagship Tumblegum South Gold Project in Western Australia. The company uses open-pit mining methods and processes ore via toll treatment arrangements at third-party mills (Catalyst Metals' Plutonic Mill), with first production targeted for Q1 2026. Its primary revenue driver is the sale of produced gold at prevailing market prices to refineries and traders.

Product overview

Star Minerals is an ASX-listed gold mining company (ASX: SMS) operating as a single-product focused entity. The company's sole flagship offering is the Tumblegum South Gold Project, an open-pit gold mining operation in Western Australia's Bryah Basin near Meekatharra. The company transitioned from explorer to producer in 2026, with mining operations underway and ore processed through toll treatment arrangements with partner mills rather than company-owned processing facilities.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Tumblegum South Gold Project Flagship open-pit gold mining project located 40km south of Meekatharra in Western Australia's Bryah Basin, hosting a JORC mineral resource of 616,000 tonnes at 2.28g/t gold for 45,000 contained ounces. Mining is conducted via a Right to Mine Agreement with MEGA Resources, with ore processed under a toll treatment arrangement at Catalyst Metals' Plutonic Mill. Gold doré is sold at prevailing market prices to refineries and traders. The project is intended for gold producers, investors, and commodity buyers.

Quantifiable outcome

• Expected cash surplus of A$9.4M to A$19.6M at gold prices of A$3000-3800/oz from production of 11,800-15,900oz gold
• +1 more outcomes

Segments1 record

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Two partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• Catalyst Metals (ASX: CYL)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 18 February 2026Catalyst Metals signed a toll treatment agreement for up to 250,000 tonnes of ore from Tumblegum South to be processed at their Plutonic Mill over two years. As part of the deal, Catalyst invested $1 million via equity placement in Star Minerals and acquired the West Bryah copper-gold project for $2.75 million. Catalyst holds a 6.59% strategic stake in Star Minerals.
• MEGA ResourcescoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 13 November 2025MEGA Resources, a subsidiary of Indian mining contractor BGR Mining & Infra, is Star Minerals' mining services partner for the Tumblegum South Gold Project. Under the Right to Mine Agreement, MEGA Resources provides and funds mining, extraction, and haulage services. The partnership includes a 50/50 profit-sharing arrangement and positions MEGA as a key operational partner in bringing the project into production.

Scale indicators12 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• Catalyst Metals: ASX-listed (CYL) Western Australian gold producer that is Star Minerals' toll treatment partner at the Plutonic Mill and holds a 6.59% strategic stake; directly comparable mid-tier WA gold miner with overlapping Bryah Basin footprint.
• Brightstar Resources: ASX-listed (BTR) small-cap Western Australian gold developer pursuing a path-to-production strategy, comparable in scale, stage, and operating geography to Star Minerals.
• Black Cat Syndicate: ASX-listed (BC8) small-cap gold developer in Western Australia, focused on multiple deposits in the Eastern Goldfields; comparable asset base and pre-production development profile.
• Aurumin: ASX-listed (AUN) Western Australian gold exploration and development company with a similar small-cap, project-advancement business model centered on the WA goldfields.
• Meeka Metals: ASX-listed (MEK) small-cap Western Australian gold developer advancing Murchison gold assets to production; comparable in size, jurisdiction, and development-stage focus.

Broad incumbents

• Ramelius Resources: ASX-listed (RMS) mid-tier Western Australian gold producer with multiple operating mines and own processing infrastructure; provides a benchmark for what a scaled-up, integrated version of Star Minerals could look like.
• Capricorn Metals: ASX-listed (CMM) mid-tier Western Australian gold producer (Karlawinda, Mt Gibson), comparable jurisdiction and commodity focus, though at a significantly larger production and market-cap scale.
• Westgold Resources: ASX-listed (WGX) major Western Australian gold producer with multiple operations including the Bryah/Meekatharra region; a dominant regional incumbent relevant to toll treatment and processing capacity dynamics.
• Genesis Minerals: ASX-listed (GMD) Western Australian gold producer with operations in the Leonora and Murchison regions, relevant as a comparable mid-tier operator against which Star Minerals' small-cap economics should be benchmarked.

Emerging players

• Kalamazoo Resources: ASX-listed (KZR) small-cap Western Australian gold exploration and development company; comparable in size, exploration focus, and project-advancement stage to Star Minerals.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks4 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/MineralsStar

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds2 records

Investors2 records

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Star Minerals