Ausgold Limited (ASX: AUC) (Ausgold or Company) is pleased to advise that it has entered into a binding Consultation and Cooperation Agreement with the Wagyl Kaip Southern Noongar Aboriginal Corporation (WKSNAC) in relation to its 100%-owned Katanning Gold Project in southwest Western Australia.

The agreement establishes a formal framework for ongoing consultation and cooperation between Ausgold and the WKSNAC to support the development, construction and operation of the Katanning Gold Project (KGP), delivering long-term benefits for both parties and providing a formal pathway for cultural heritage management and stakeholder engagement.

WKSNAC is the Indigenous Land Use Agreement (ILUA) holder for the Wagyl Kaip Southern Noongar region, representing the Wagyl Kaip Southern Noongar People as part of the Noongar Native Title Settlement.

The Wagyl Kaip Southern Noongar region includes indigenous people of the Menang, Goreng, Keneang, Wilman and Wudjari language groups across the Great Southern area of Western Australia, where the Katanning Gold Project is located. Further information relating to WKSNAC is available from their website at: https://wagylkaip.org.au/

Ausgold Executive Chairman, John Dorward, stated:

“This agreement represents an important and very positive milestone for the Katanning Gold Project and reflects our commitment to working collaboratively with the Wagyl Kaip Southern Noongar Aboriginal People. Establishing a clear and respectful framework for managing important matters such as cultural heritage and community engagement is critical as we progress the Katanning Gold Project towards development. It is through collaborative partnerships like this that we seek to ensure that the Katanning Gold Project will deliver tangible long-term benefits for all stakeholders.”

Consultation and Cooperation Agreement

The execution of this agreement represents an important milestone for the Katanning Gold Project, providing a clear and structured pathway for a collaborative approach to cultural heritage management, workforce participation and training opportunities and funding support to deliver long-term positive outcomes for the Noongar People of the Wagyl Kaip Southern Noongar region as the Project advances towards development.

Key terms of the Agreement are set out below:

Cultural Heritage: The agreement provides a framework under which Ausgold will engage on commercial terms the WKSNAC to undertake cultural heritage surveys, as required, over the lands of the Katanning Gold Project.

Cultural Heritage Management Plan: the Agreement provides for the WKSNAC to support and advise Ausgold on the development and implementation of a comprehensive Cultural Heritage Management Plan for the KGP to ensure the proper identification, management and, if possible, preservation and management of Aboriginal Sites and Aboriginal Objects.

Ongoing Cultural Engagement: Ausgold and the WKSNAC will establish a Cultural Liaison Committee for bi-annual formal consultation during the construction and operation of the Katanning Gold Project to develop and monitor opportunities to work collaboratively.

Employment and Contracting Opportunities: Ausgold has committed to undertake a range of activities intended to actively promote employment and contracting opportunities for Wagyl Kaip Southern Noongar People in the area of the KGP. These undertakings include Ausgold using reasonable endeavours to achieve a target rate of 5% Wagyl Kaip Southern Noongar People workforce participation by the end of the third year of operations.

Vocational training and education: From the date on which production of gold commences at the KGP, Ausgold will make quarterly financial contributions (indexed for CPI) to WKSNAC which will, among other things, provide support for vocational training and educational initiatives for Wagyl Kaip Southern Noongar People in the area of the KGP, creating pathways for employment at the Project.