en.Wedoany.com Reported - Vertex Minerals sold 53 ounces of gold in April, while its Reward Gold Mine in New South Wales continued to advance underground development during the period. The company completed 78 meters of development and rehabilitated 42 meters of drives during the month, with an additional 32 ounces of gold on hand available for sale.

Monthly production declined compared to March, but the company stated this change was in line with the mine plan, primarily because all ore processed in April came from development headings, with no production contribution yet from airleg or jumbo level stopes.

Processing of ore from Decline No. 3 is expected to commence in early May, which is likely to accelerate the pace of mine production. Meanwhile, Vertex has initiated two new airleg stopes on the 671 and 677 levels, targeting the high-grade Paxtons lode.

Equipment upgrades are also progressively arriving. A second Aramine loader has been equipped with a remote control system and is now operating underground; the company has also ordered a Resemin MUKI LHBP narrow-vein longhole drill rig to improve blast hole drilling accuracy in small cross-section conditions; another Bird Machine underground truck is being urgently fitted out, and once operational, it will eliminate a key bottleneck in current material haulage.

Vertex anticipates that expanding production layouts across multiple mining areas and different levels will support underground production capacity. The scheduling plan is continuously optimized to increase production working faces throughout the mine's life. The company reiterated it remains on schedule to commence mining of the first longhole stope in October 2026.

Currently, restrictions on working hours and blasting times have been identified as the primary factors constraining available underground working hours. The Bathurst Regional Council is evaluating a development application amendment regarding working and blasting times for the Reward Gold Mine.

The Reward Gold Mine is part of Vertex's Hill End and Hargraves gold project, which covers multiple deposits with a total estimated Mineral Resource of 482,000 ounces at an average grade of 8.70 g/t.

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