Initially fuelled by the spectre of rising inflation and more recently by Russia's invasion of neighbouring Ukraine, gold has soared from US$1,829 at the beginning of the year to US$1,929 today.

That 5.5% boost has helped propel the S&P/ASX All Ordinaries Gold Index (ASX: XGD) to a 4.4% year-to-date gain, even as the All Ordinaries Index (ASX: XAO) has fallen 5.7%.

While not all ASX gold shares have matched those gains, some have done much better.

Below we take a look at 3 little-known junior gold miners whose share prices are going gangbusters.

ASX gold share nears first gold pour

Our first outperforming junior gold miner is Calidus Resources Ltd (ASX: CAI).

The Calidus share price has leapt 23.9% since the opening bell on 4 January. That gives Calidus a market cap of $326 million.

Investors have rewarded the miner following a series of positive exploration and production announcements this year.

The most recent boost came on 28 February, when the ASX gold share reported it was on track for its first gold pour, approximately 10 weeks down the road.

Junior gold miner with a foothold in lithium

Our second booming ASX gold share is Castle Minerals Limited (ASX: CDT), which also has exposure to lithium.

The Castle Minerals share price has leapt 42.5% this year, giving the miner a market cap of $52 million.

Castle Minerals has released a number of positive announcements in 2022, including exploration license approvals and the identification of 4 high priority gold and lithium targets at its Beasley Creek project in Western Australia.

This ASX gold share leads the pack

Leading the pack of the 3 ASX gold shares under our spotlight today is West Wits Mining Limited (ASX: WWI).

The West Wits share price has surged 50% since the opening bell on 4 January. It now has a market cap of $81 million.

In February, West Wits reported that its Witwatersrand Basin Project in South Africa had successfully produced its first ore. The company said the project "is enroute to becoming a large gold mine in South Africa, ultimately targeting production of up to 95,000 ounces" of gold per year.

The post 3 ASX junior gold mining shares going gangbusters in 2022 appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

Just after midday, the gold miner's shares are down 17.95% to 3.2 cents apiece. This means that its shares have now lost more than a quarter of their value in the past month alone.

West Wits progresses equity raise

Investors are offloading West Wits shares after the company announced a rights issue that will dilute shareholdings.

According to its release, West Wits advised it has launched a non-renounceable rights issue to raise up to $7.86 million before costs. The 1-for-6 pro-rata rights issue is eligible to shareholders at 3 cents per share.

In addition, the company completed a share placement through sophisticated and professional investors to raise $1.6 million before costs. The offer price listed at 3.2 cents each, representing a 21% discount to the 15-day volume weighted average price (VWAP).

Every 2 shares under the placement are accompanied by 1 free-attaching option with an exercise price of 12 cents. These are the same terms as the existing quoted options, and the expiry date is 10 August 2022.

The funds received will be allocated to support the company's growth plans at the Witwatersrand Basin Project. In particular, West Wits is aiming to continue ramping up underground mine development towards first ore production in Q1 2022.

West Wits managing director Jac van Heerden commented:

Following the granting of the mining right and completion of the Qala Shallows (Stage 1) DFS in Q3 2021, West Wits has rapidly advanced site establishment, mine development and the Early Mining Initiative at the Witwatersrand Basin Project in South Africa.

The additional funding will allow us to continue the momentum towards first ore production scheduled for Q1 2022, in addition to progressing our exploration at the Mt Cecelia Project in Western Australia.

About the West Wits share price

With Wednesday's fall, the West Wits share price has declined by 62% since this time last year. Although most of the losses came have come recently. Investors have seen the company's shares shed 55% year to date.

West Wits commands a market capitalisation of roughly $59.37 million, with more than 1.52 billion shares outstanding.

The post Here's why the West Wits (ASX:WWI) share price is tumbling 18% today appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

That's a 25% gain on the day, and well ahead of the benchmark S&P/ASX 200 index (ASX: XJO)'s 0.8% loss today.

Here we investigate what pushed West Wit's share price higher.

What's driving the West Wits Mining share price today?

The West Wits Mining share price is running hot today after the company announced a key update to its Witwatersrand Basin Project (WBP).

The WBP deposit forms part of the "Central Rand Goldfield" in Johannesburg, South Africa. It has been "host to one of the most extensive gold deposits in the world", according to the release.

Today, West Wits advised that the Department of Mineral Resources & Energy (DMRE) formally accepted the company's "application for a new prospecting right at WBP".

After ensuring all compliance measures check out, the company "would reinstate a substantial portion of Mineral Resources to WBP's current mineral resource estimate (MRE) of 3.55Moz at 4.26 g/t Au".

Following that, West Wits will submit an environmental management plan for the site, in addition to a "prospecting works plan" to the DMRE. These submissions are standard procedure, as per the release.

West Wits also anticipates that a significant portion of the "old resource", that was restated upon the mining right's grant, "would be reintroduced to the global MRE for the WBP".

Speaking on the announcement, West Wits' managing director, Jac van Heerden, said:

We are confident that we will be able to comply with the prospecting right compliance requirements, upon which we will reinstate substantial resources to our Qala Shallows and Deeps areas of the WBP which were reduced on the grant of our mining right in July.

West Wits Mining share price snapshot

The West Wits Mining share price has had a difficult year to date, posting a loss of 31% since January 1.

Despite this, Wes Wits Mining shares have climbed 72% over the last 12 months.

This outpaces the broad index's return of 26% over the past year.

The post West Wits Mining (ASX:WWI) share price surges 23% on project update appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

Below we take a look at the ASX gold explorer's latest market announcement.

What did the gold explorer report?

West Wits' share price is falling today despite the company reporting "strong results" from the Definitive Feasibility Study (DFS) at Qala Shallows, stage 1 of its Witwatersrand Basin Project in South Africa.

This covers the first of 5 planned stages of development the company has at the Witwatersrand Basin Project.

West Wits reported a "substantial" Maiden Ore Reserve of 3MT at 2.88 grams of gold per tonne for 278,000 ounces. This includes a Proved Ore Reserve of 830,000t at 3.13g/t for 84,000oz.

The Life-of-Mine (LOM) for Qala Shallows is estimated at 17 years, with All In Sustaining Cost (AISC) estimated at US$1,144/oz of gold. The company forecast a 5.5-year payback period for the US$50 million peak funding requirement.

West Wits said it plans to commence development of its Qala Shallows Project this month. The stage 1 project represents some 40% of the total planned production and potential of the Witwatersrand Basin Project.

What did management say?

Commenting on the results of the DFS, West Wits managing director, Jac van Heerden said:

The completion of the DFS is a key achievement in West Wit's journey of transforming from an exploration operation to a robust, mid-tier gold production company. Historically, the Witwatersrand Basin produced more than 35% of total global gold production and here we stand today, with positive DFS results, at the dawn of a gold revival in the same area.

West Wits share price snapshot

The West Wits share price is up 195% over the past 12 months, well outpacing the 24% gains posted by the All Ordinaries Index (ASX: XAO) over that same time.

2021 has seen the West Wits share price struggle, with shares down 26% year-to-date.

The post West Wits (ASX:WWI) share price tumbles 12% despite strong gold potential appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.