Aeris Resources has locked in the Constellation mining lease, allowing the copper and gold producer to start mining the western New South Wales deposit that will feed its Tritton Copper Operations.

The Mining Lease Application for the project was approved under the NSW Mining Act 1992, with the lease granted following development consent under the Environmental Planning and Assessment Act. With environment protection licences and other approvals already in place, Aeris can now begin mining at Constellation.

A modification approved in September 2025 folds Constellation into the Tritton operations, extending mine life, increasing tailings storage capacity and enabling Constellation ore to be processed at the Tritton plant. Tritton is one of two producing assets for the Brisbane-based miner, alongside the Cracow gold mine in Queensland.

“This is an important milestone for the Constellation Project, and together with our updated Mineral Resource and Ore Reserve update, it reinforces our confidence in the long-term future of Tritton,” Aeris Resources executive chairman Andre Labuschagne said.

That update came a day earlier, with Aeris reporting a big lift in mineral resources and ore reserves across Tritton.

Crews have been in the field since May after the Aeris board approved early works on the route linking Constellation to the Tritton processing plant. The work so far covers crushing and stockpiling of road base materials, trenching along the 29km corridor to lay water pipelines and optic fibre, road preparation and subgrade earthworks, and construction of a temporary site office, laydown pad and raw water dam.

“With construction of the haul road and services corridor already underway to start pit waste stripping in Q1 FY27, we are continuing to unlock the value of this strategic asset and strengthen our future production pipeline.”

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