Vault Minerals has recorded a bumper September quarter, the first since it became the product of the recently merged Red 5 and Silver Lake Resources.
Vault continued the winning streak Red 5 was on with its gold production, producing 97,493 ounces (oz) of gold during the September quarter.
The quarter marked the sixth consecutive one in which operations owned by Red 5 produced over 50,000oz.
Vault also sold 102,529oz gold at an all-in sustaining cost (AISC) of $2231/oz and an average realised sales price of $3162/oz.
“The quarter saw a significant investment in open pit waste stripping at the Leonora and Mount Monger operations, which has Vault well positioned for increased ore tonnes and grade in H2 FY25 (the second half of the 2024–25 financial year) and FY26,” Vault said.
“The [approximate] $30 million investment in exploration for FY25 commenced with the encouraging discovery of Deflector style mineralisation grading 0.3m at 71.8 g/t (grams per tonne) gold and 8.3 per cent copper [around] 500m southwest of the Deflector South-West lode, supporting the potential for further discovery in the Deflector corridor.”
The Deflector operations produced a record quarterly mill throughput for 30,591oz and 188 tonnes of copper. Deflector also delivered gold sales of 32,127oz and 160 tonnes of copper at an AISC of $1820/oz.
The King of the Hills (KOTH) open pit saw a 10 per cent increase in material movements quarter on quarter, with Vault focusing on waste stripping as excess mining capacity from limited available working areas in stage one was redirected to stage two waste stripping.
“Material mined in stage two accounted for 58 per cent of total material moved through the quarter at a strip ratio of 43:1,” Vault said.
“The strong stripping performance in Stage 2 has Vault on schedule to access the primary ore zones in the southwest of the open pit in H2 FY25.”
Vault is advancing engineering studies for a Leonora plant expansion to six million tonnes per annum, with the studies expected to be completed and considered for investment approval in the first quarter of FY25.
The company is also accelerating its exploration drive at KOTH to test for extensions to high-grade underground mineralisation.
As of June 30 2024, Vault has 12.3 million ounces (Moz) of gold in mineral resources and 3.4Moz in ore reserves. The company also ended the September quarter with $523.4 million in cash and bullion and no debt.
Subscribe to Australian Mining and receive the latest news on product announcements, industry developments, commodities and more.
