Peako targets Saudi gold with six-project acquisition

Peako (ASX: PKO) plans to buy six advanced gold projects in Saudi Arabia's Central Arabian Gold Region. The portfolio covers 862 square kilometres. Several targets sit roughly 65 kilometres from operating mines.

Saudi Arabia is drawing global miners such as Barrick, Zijin, Ivanhoe Electric and Perseus under its economic diversification plan. The country offers low royalties and exploration incentives, alongside extensive geological datasets.

Peako said the flagship Sukhaybarat South project borders the 2 million ounce Sukhaybarat mine. Historical drilling at Western Prospect returned 4 metres at 11.32 grams per tonne gold and 5 metres at 5.6 g/t. At Jabal Jumaymah, a historical intersection showed 7 metres at 10.12 g/t from 18 metres. Other projects in the deal include Ad Dirabi, a historically mined gold system.

PKO opened at 0.5 Australian cents a share after dropping 17% on the announcement. The company said it plans an aggressive 2026 exploration campaign focused on drilling known mineralised zones and testing new targets, with expanded geochemical and geophysical programs across the portfolio.