The privately-owned company raised $700,000 in a private placement in mid-2006 and had since considered an initial public offer to raise up to $2 million.
It had opted for a compliance listing without seeking to raise capital, Ophir director Alister Ward, of investment bank Campbell McPherson, said when contacted in Auckland yesterday.
He said listing on the NZAX, possibly by next month, would offer some liquidity to the present shareholders, being able to buy and sell shares, and funds were available for the third drilling programme.
Ophir Gold holds a five-year exploration permit covering a 650ha tenement near Omakau, northeast of Alexandra.
It has had already completed test drilling programmes which boosted earlier estimates of the gold resource.
"In the short term, we want to test drill and increase the [estimated] size of the resource at Ophir," Mr Ward said Ophir Gold first drilled an 18-hole programme in early 2006, costing about $400,000 and then a 17-hole programme in May 2006, costing $700,000, which boosted the initial estimated resources.
In November 2006, the company increased its estimated gold resource more than eightfold and signed up a contractor for drilling programmes covering three years of exploration.
At the time, geologists for Ophir Gold said the upgrade of the Wai-iti gold resource was significant in terms of the higher grade and tonnage, compared with the previous estimate.
The earlier total inferred resource was 111,910 tonnes of ore containing 3.48g of gold per tonne, equating to an estimated 12,562oz of gold.
The second upgrade was based on 849,619 tonnes of ore at 3.99g per tonne, with an estimated 109,000oz of gold.
Mr Ward said yesterday a test drill rig was available at present to drill six to 10 test holes at Ophir for $500,000-$750,000, but work was weather dependent and might have to wait until spring.
"The last thing the [rig] operator wants is to become snowed in," Mr Ward said.
The Ophir Gold tenement is situated along the line of strike of, and about 100km from, Oceana Gold Corp's 18-year-old Macraes open pits and Fraser underground development in East Otago.
Macraes has produced more than two million oz of gold and retains an estimated resource of 8 million oz.
