The fruits of that labour were finally revealed to the stock market on Wednesday, when Northern Star released its annual resource and reserve statement. Resources represent a geological estimate of what is physically in the ground, while reserves are what a mining company considers it can mine for a profit.The latest estimates say gold reserves at the Super Pit have increased from 14.4 million to 15 million ounces in the past 12 months. At current production rates, that adds at least another year of mine life to a globally significant deposit which has produced more than 60 million ounces since 1893 Northern Star allocated an additional $110 million towards the project in January and increased the budget by another $60 million in April.With the Australian dollar gold price trading at $6,254 per ounce at midday AWST on Wednesday, the commissioning cannot come soon enough for Northern Star, which downgraded its production outlook earlier this year amid equipment failures in the old mill. Post-commissioning, the Super Pit is forecast to hit production rates of 900,000 ounces a year during the 2028–29 financial year and then maintain that rate for the next decade.That would ensure the Super Pit reclaims its crown as Australia's biggest-producing gold mine, currently held by the Boddington mine in WA's South West after producing 565,000 ounces in 2025.According to Melbourne-based gold consultancy Surbiton Associates, the best year on record for the Super Pit was 2011 when it produced 796,000 ounces.