A joint venture (JV) between Australian gold producers Tanami Gold and Northern Star Resources has approved a A$15m ($10m) exploration budget for the Central Tanami Project in the Tanami region in Northern Territory (NT), Australia.

The budget allocated by the Central Tanami Project Joint Venture (CTPJV) will be used for exploration and associated activities at the project for 2023/2024.

It has a provision for 36,000m of diamond core, reverse circulation and air core drilling directed at various targets throughout the project.

It also includes down plunge extension drilling at the Groundrush gold deposit and infill drilling at the Ripcord and Jims gold deposits.

Work on updating known mineral resources at the project will continue for the period, with the results reported in accordance with the Australasian Code for Reporting of Exploration Results, Mineral Resources and Ore Reserves.

Additionally, Northern Star secured two exploration grants for the project from the NT Government.

The government will coordinate a total of A$243,300 for the drilling campaign at the project.

CTPJV is a 50/50 joint venture, which was formed in September 2021.

It was established to advance exploration on a 2,211km² tenement area encompassing highly prospective, underexplored geological sequences that are endowed with gold mineralisation.

The JV aims to develop and mine the Groundrush gold deposit and any ore reserves and resources delineated in the tenements at the earliest, by employing existing mining infrastructure in place.

The place has historically been mined for gold, which was first discovered in the Tanami Desert in the late 19th century.

Small-scale mining began in the early 20th century. There were sporadic operations until the 1980s when Normandy Mining (now Newmont) developed the underground Tanami Gold Mine, with first production in 1983.