Vertex Minerals Lifts Indicated Grade 36% as Reward Eyes October 2026 Output

Updated MRE delivers higher-confidence resource and three new drill targets at Reward Gold Mine

Vertex Minerals has released an updated Mineral Resource Estimate (MRE) for its Reward Gold Mine at Hill End, NSW, that is smaller in total ounces but materially better defined. The headline result is a 36% increase in the Indicated grade to 21.17 g/t Au, anchored in real mining data rather than estimation alone, with the mine plan unchanged and full production on track for October 2026.

The updated MRE, completed by independent consultants HGS Australia under the JORC Code (2012), stands at 274,000 tonnes at 16.68 g/t Au for 146,900 ounces at a 4.0 g/t Au cut-off. Total contained ounces are down 35% from the 225,200 ounces reported in June 2023, but the overall grade is effectively unchanged at 16.68 g/t Au versus 16.72 g/t Au previously. The proportion of ounces classified as Indicated has also risen from 31% to 37%, reflecting a deposit the market can rely on with greater geological confidence.

What changed and why: mine reconciliation drives the revision

From model to mine face — how real data reshapes a resource

Mine reconciliation is the most direct test a resource model can face. It compares what the geological model predicted in tonnes and grade against what was actually mined, processed, and delivered to the plant. Where the two diverge, it reveals precisely which lodes are not performing as interpreted — information that cannot be obtained from drilling alone.

The key factors behind the revised estimate include:

• Mine reconciliation against physical production: Since recommencing mining, Vertex has developed through the orebody, stoped from it, and processed material through the Gekko gravity plant — enabling direct comparison of modelled versus actual tonnes and grade. Waste grades have also been incorporated into block model waste blocks within the minimum mining width.
• Underground mapping and face sampling: Extensive mapping and face sampling completed since 2023 have physically exposed the mineralised structures, enabling direct observation of lode geometry.
• Re-interpretation of lodes and controlling structures: Several lodes interpreted in 2023 have been shown to be narrower, shorter, or less continuous than modelled and have been reduced or removed. Conversely, remaining lodes are better constrained and showing improved reconciliation to milled grades.
• 200 g/t Au top-cut applied: A top-cut of 200 g/t Au was applied to a small number of extreme outlier assays. This is a conservative, industry-standard approach to avoid grade over-estimation in a coarse-gold system. Reported on an uncut basis, the estimate would be 276,000 tonnes at 21.57 g/t Au for 192,000 ounces — disclosed for transparency.

Investors should note that a further internal re-interpretation of lode geometry incorporating recent face samples has been completed internally but requires further independent assessment. The outcome will be reported to market in accordance with continuous disclosure obligations and may result in further changes to the MRE in either direction.

MRE at a glance: August 2026 vs June 2023

The tables below summarise the current resource and the change from the prior estimate.

Table 1: Reward Gold Mine Mineral Resource Estimate, August 2026 (200 g/t Au top-cut, 4.0 g/t Au lower cut-off). Figures rounded and may not sum exactly.

Table 2: Comparison of the August 2026 MRE with the June 2023 estimate. Both estimates reported at a 4.0 g/t Au lower cut-off.

No change to mine plan — full production on track for October 2026

The updated MRE does not result in any material change to the current mine plan, underground development schedule, or the company’s plan to reach full production from October 2026. The lodes presently being developed and stoped — including the Mica Lense currently being mined from Decline 3 via mechanised longhole open stoping — are unaffected.

Investors should note that Vertex has not declared an Ore Reserve for the Reward Gold Mine. Statements concerning the mine plan, development schedule, and future production are forward-looking and are not based on an Ore Reserve estimate.

A significant operational development underpins the next phase of activity. Bathurst Regional Council approved 24-hour underground operations on 20 August 2026, increasing available working hours from approximately 9 hours per day to up to 22 hours per day. That expanded capacity is central to establishing the underground drilling programme planned for 2027.

Three priority underground drill targets defined

The structural re-interpretation has done more than resize the resource. It has identified where Vertex should look next, defining three priority target areas:

1. Depth extensions below the existing Resource — The Reward lodes remain open at depth. Recognition of the controlling structures now provides a predictive framework for where those lodes are expected to project below the currently modelled limits. Historic mining across the Hill End field rarely extended below the water table at approximately 60 feet (less than 20 metres), leaving significant depth potential untested.

2. Hawkins Hill remnants (upper levels) — The historic Hawkins Hill mine sits directly above the Reward workings and is described in the announcement as among the highest-grade gold mines recorded in Australia. The upper levels of the Vertex workings provide access to remnant material in and around those historic stopes — blocks left behind by 19th-century mining methods that were unable to recover them selectively. Note: historic production figures for Hawkins Hill are historical records and are not reported as a Mineral Resource or Exploration Target under the JORC Code. They are not necessarily indicative of results that may be achieved at Reward.

3. Fosters — down strike to the south — Fosters lies approximately 400 metres south of the Reward Gold Mine on the same structural corridor. It is accessed via the existing Fosters adit, only a few hundred metres from the Hill End gravity gold plant, meaning any material subsequently mined would have a very short haul to existing processing infrastructure. No new approvals are required to test Fosters from underground. The Fosters Exploration Target is unchanged at 524,000 tonnes at 12.5 g/t Au for 211,000 ounces (lower range) to 524,000 tonnes at 19.0 g/t Au for 321,000 ounces (upper range).

Cautionary statement — Fosters Exploration Target

The potential quantity and grade of the Fosters Exploration Target is conceptual in nature. There has been insufficient exploration to define a Mineral Resource at Fosters, and it is uncertain whether further exploration will result in the determination of a Mineral Resource. The Exploration Target is not reported as part of any Mineral Resource or Ore Reserve estimate.

Underground drill programme planned to commence Q1 2027

Underground diamond drilling at Reward is planned to commence in the first quarter of 2027. Drilling from underground platforms is materially more effective than surface drilling at this deposit: holes are shorter, better oriented to the steeply dipping lodes, and can be positioned close to each of the three target areas.

Key points from the planned programme include:

• Underground holes are shorter and better oriented to the steeply dipping lode system than surface-drilled alternatives, improving the likelihood of useful intersections.
• The 24-hour operating approval allows dedicated drill cuddies and platforms to be established underground without displacing ore development from the production schedule.
• At Fosters, the objective is to test the Exploration Target with the aim of converting some or all of it to a Mineral Resource. There is no certainty that drilling will result in the determination of a Mineral Resource at Fosters.
• The further re-interpretation of lode geometry incorporating recent face samples will also be reported to market and may result in additional changes to the MRE in either direction.

The Q1 2027 drill programme represents a defined near-term catalyst with three distinct target areas — depth extensions, Hawkins Hill remnants, and Fosters — each carrying independent potential to add resource ounces to an already operating, high-grade gold mine.

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