Mr. Marc Prefontaine reports

ORLA REPORTS POSITIVE METALLURGICAL TEST RESULTS ON OXIDE MATERIAL FROM THE CERRO QUEMA PROJECT, PANAMA

Orla Mining Ltd. has released positive results from metallurgical column tests on oxide material from its wholly owned Cerro Quema project in Panama. Gold recoveries on material crushed to 150 millimetres were 96 per cent for the La Pava deposit, which contains approximately two-thirds of the current mineral reserves and 91 per cent for the Quemita deposit. Operational recovery estimates are typically derated from column test data, but these results compare very favourably with an average operational recovery of 86 per cent in the 2014 prefeasibility study (PFS) at a crush size of minus 70 millimetres. Results will be incorporated into an updated process plan and operational recovery estimates that will consider one-stage crushing or run of mine instead of the two-stage crushing modelled in the 2014 prefeasibility study.

Recent metallurgical testwork is part of the company's effort to update the PFS completed on the Cerro Quema project in 2014. Orla expects to complete the update of the PFS, including new mineral reserve and mineral resource estimates, by mid-2019. In addition to the work on oxide mineralization, Orla will continue to advance exploration of the Caballito copper-gold sulphide discovery. This style of mineralization, identified late last year, presents potential value to the project in addition to the current heap-leach oxide gold project.

Samples for the metallurgical testing program were generated from six HQ-size core holes drilled specifically for metallurgical testing. Three of the holes were drilled in the La Pava deposit, and three were drilled in the Quemita deposit, which combined host the 488,000-ounce Cerro Quema oxide gold mineral proven and probable reserve (19.7 million tonnes at 0.77 gram per tonne gold) (1). Material from the drill holes was combined into two composites: one for La Pava and one for Quemita. Along with a series of characterization testwork, both the La Pava and Quemita composites were evaluated to determine a preferred crush size by column leach tests at three different particle sizes (100-per-cent passing sizes of 150 millimetres, 50 millimetres and 12.5 millimetres). Testwork showed very high recoveries and essentially no difference in recovery by crush size tested. Leach rates were also high, with the bulk of the gold recovered within 20 days.

(1) For more information on the Cerro Quema mineral reserves, please refer to the National Instrument 43-101 technical report "Cerro Quema Project & Pre-Feasibility Study on the La Pava and Quemita Oxide Gold Deposits," published on Aug. 15, 2014, and filed on SEDAR and on the company's website.

A summary of the results from the column leach tests is presented in the attached table.

                        RESULTS FROM THE COLUMN LEACH TESTS

KCA test      Description   Crush size,   Calc. head, g Au/   Tails assay, g      Extracted,
No.                                 mm                  mt             Au/mt           % Au

81716   Quemita composite        150.0               0.639             0.058             91%      
81722   Quemita composite         50.0               0.444             0.053             88%      
81728   Quemita composite         12.5               0.569             0.046             92%      
81719   La Pava composite        150.0               1.066             0.043             96%      
81725   La Pava composite         50.0               1.046             0.052             95%      
81731   La Pava composite         12.5               1.034             0.035             97%      

In addition to the column leach testing, agglomeration studies and compacted permeability on leached residue samples were performed. It was concluded that agglomeration will not be required, and no percolation issues were encountered. To further investigate mine closure and postmine conditions, composites were tested for environmental characterization and final barren solution and column wash water characterization were included in the testing program. Leached residues were tested by the meteoric water mobility procedure.

Testwork protocols

The metallurgical testwork described in this release was performed by Kappes Cassiday & Associates in Reno, Nev. All sample preparation, solution, and solid assaying and metallurgical studies were performed utilizing accepted industry standard procedures. All solid samples are assayed in duplicate, and for column leach testing, granulated active carbon samples are used to check against daily pregnant and barren leach solution assays completed by flame atomic absorption methods. Solid samples are assayed in small batches, along with certified standards, blanks and additional duplicates. Metallurgical mass balances are followed throughout the program with multiple tests completed on each sample to define operating assumptions.

Qualified person

The technical information in this news release has been reviewed and approved by Hans Smit, PGeo, chief operating officer of Orla Mining, who is the qualified person as defined by National Instrument 43-101 (Standards of Disclosure for Mineral Projects).

About Orla Mining Ltd.

Orla is developing the Camino Rojo project, an advanced gold and silver open-pit and heap-leach project, located in Zacatecas state, central Mexico. The project is 100 per cent owned and covers over 200,000 hectares. Orla also owns 100 per cent of the Cerro Quema project in Panama, which includes a near-term gold production scenario and various exploration targets. The Cerro Quema project is currently in the last stage of the permitting process for a proposed open-pit mine and gold heap-leach operation.

We seek Safe Harbor.