Saturn Metals (ASX:STN) contracted additional reverse circulation drill rigs to the Apollo Hill gold project in Western Australia to speed up the next phase of resource growth and step-out drilling, according to a Thursday Australian bourse filing.

The assays and geology intersected in first-pass drilling to the north of the Iris trend require follow-up drilling, Managing Director Ian Bamborough said.

It reported an intercept of three meters @ 3.87 grams per tonne grade of gold from 105 meters from the northern extension of the Iris trend. In-fill drilling within the Apollo Hill mineral resource hit an intercept of eight meters at 2.02 g/t gold from 168 meters.

The firm's shares rose nearly 1% in recent trading on Thursday.