Interview with Robert Eckford, CEO of Rua Gold
Recording date: 16th September 2026
Rua Gold (TSX:RUA, NZX:RGI) is a New Zealand-focused gold explorer attempting one of the fastest explorer-to-developer transitions in the junior sector. Its strategy is built around New Zealand's Fast-Track Approvals regime, which sets a six-month decision window for listed projects. OceanaGold's Wharekirauponga project has already been approved through this process in under four months.
The company controls more than 120,000 hectares in the Reefton Goldfield, around 95% of a district that historically produced over 2 million ounces of gold at 9-50 g/t. Its focus is Auld Creek, a gold-antimony deposit that early miners avoided because of its antimony content. Mineralisation begins at surface. The February 2026 MRE outlined about 200,000 AuEq ounces, split between 54,000 ounces Indicated at 5.7 g/t AuEq and 148,000 ounces Inferred at 3.7 g/t AuEq.
Rather than drill for years to build scale, management has taken this starter resource straight into permitting. Auld Creek was accepted as a Fast-Track listed project in July 2026. The substantive application is due in October 2026. CEO Robert Eckford expects the six-month clock to start in November, with a decision targeted for Q2 2027.
The April 2026 PEA supports a compact underground operation. It models 5.5 years of production at about 26,665 AuEq ounces a year, with initial capital of $132.6 million and AISC of $1,850/oz. At $3,300/oz gold, the after-tax NPV5% is $42.4 million, with a 17% IRR and 3.3-year payback. At $4,700/oz, the NPV rises to US$113.0 million and the IRR to 36%. Eckford is clear that this starter case exists to secure a permit. The plant is being designed to expand from 250,000 to 500,000 tonnes a year under a hub-and-spoke model, with a second Reefton deposit expected to emerge by Q1 2027.
Drilling continues to strengthen the resource. Rua Gold has completed 19,600 metres at Auld Creek. Recent results include 0.6 metres at 82.9 g/t gold and 24.8% antimony, and the company has reported its first visible gold at the project. The deposit extends over 1,000 metres along strike and more than 500 metres down dip, and remains open in all directions. An updated MRE and PFS are due in Q4 2026.
Antimony is central to the financing plan rather than the valuation. Eckford said metal traders are drawn to the by-product in a way they would not be to a gold-only project. The company is in offtake discussions with around four groups and expects traders to take part in project financing from mid-2027.
The balance sheet is in good shape. A C$33 million raise in January 2026 was heavily oversubscribed. Cash stood at about C$25 million at the time of the interview. That funds the PFS, permitting and a 9,000-metre maiden drill programme at the Glamorgan epithermal project on the North Island, which begins in Q4 2026. Key risks are permitting timing, modest starter-case economics at long-term prices, project financing terms and antimony price volatility.
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