Drilling intersected 1.1m at 869gpt gold, including 0.3m at 3040gpt gold on the northern side of the Moore fault, an area previously thought to be barren.

The company said the result highlighted the potential of the largely untested Wilson Gap area, which is close to existing mine infrastructure.

Other uncut results from drilling at Jundee included 0.4m at 1760gpt gold; 0.3m at 1280gpt gold; 0.3m at 1080gpt gold; 0.8m at 433gpt gold; 0.4m at 418gpt gold; 0.5m at 335gpt gold; and 6.1m at 69gpt gold.

The results are from outside the existing Jundee resource of 851,000 ounces.

“To generate such strong results from the first drilling program at Jundee since we acquired the project is extremely encouraging,” Northern Star managing director Bill Beament said.

“We are confident that we can extend the mine life at Jundee significantly and these results support that view.”

Jundee’s life is currently only two to three years and it is a priority of Northern Star to extend it.

The management team at Jundee are working on an extended life of mine plan.

Deeper drilling at the Westside lode is planned to test for depth extensions, while the reinterpretation and evaluation of the east-west Midas and Moneyline lodes has also shown potential for further resource growth.

The company has also identified regional targets which could be potential oxide open pits in the future.

Beament has previously said the mine held “extensive unclassified mineralisation”

Jundee is set to produce 190,000-205,000oz at all-in sustaining cash costs of $A1000-1050 an ounce in the 2015 financial year and has produced more than 6 million ounces since production began in 1995.

Northern Star acquired the mine from Newmont Mining earlier this year for $A82.5 million.

The company is spending $A50 million on exploration across its five Western Australian underground gold mines in the current financial year to extend the mine lives.

Shares in Northern Star jumped 3.2% to $1.285.