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Earn-in ground hosts 30+ documented gold occurrences* including 121.7 g/t Au with 1.80% Cu, 111.8 g/t Au over 2.21 m and 13.0 g/t Au over 7.3 m

*Sourced from historical reports, Assessment Files, Ministry of Northern Development and Mines, Red Lake Office.

Vancouver, British Columbia – TheNewswire - October 2, 2026 - Rockland Resources Ltd. (the “Company” or "Rockland") ( CSE: RKL ) (OTCQB: BERLF) (FSE: GB2) is pleased to announce it has signed an arms length definitive earn-in agreement with Evolution Mining Gold Operations Ltd., a subsidiary of Evolution Mining Limited (ASX: EVN) (“Evolution”), under which Rockland may earn up to a 70% interest in a ground position surrounding Pipestone Bay (the “Evolution Option”). The agreement with Evolution significantly expands Rockland’s exploration footprint over the Pipestone Bay gold system, which includes Rockland’s 100%-owned Cole Gold Mine property, with the properties collectively situated in the western part of the Red Lake Mining district in northwestern Ontario.

PIPESTONE BAY EARN-IN AT A GLANCE:

• Earn-in agreement provides Rockland with the opportunity to expand its exploration footprint at Pipestone Bay from 608 ha to approximately 3,471 ha, representing a 5.7x increase in project area.  

• Expanded project area covers a 6.5 km by 1.5 km ultramafic-mafic intrusive complex comprising regional-scale rheological contact, strong alteration and major structural overprint.  

• 1,050 m by 625m buried magnetic target. Target shows similarities to Dome Stock; never been drilled.  

• 30+ documented mineral occurrences on the Evolution Option ground. Selected historical results include 121.7 g/t Au with 1.80% Cu, 111.8 g/t Au over 2.21 m and 13.0 g/t Au over 7.3 m  

• Minimal drilling has been undertaken on some of the historical showings on the Evolution Option ground.  

“The ability to earn-in to an expanded land package truly gives Rockland the best opportunity of finding something substantial" stated Tim Twomey, Advisor to Rockland Resources. “This new land package combined with the Rockland’s Cole Gold Mines property gives Rockland a unique opportunity to assess and rank numerous gold occurrences, which gives a higher probability for success by focusing on the highest-ranked targets”.

WHY THIS GROUND MATTERS:

• Scale. The combined package is large and enables Rockland to test the Pipestone Bay gold system as one.  

• Placement. Gold occurs in a similar geological setting as at the Cole Gold Mines property, within major shear zones, associated with mafic and ultramafic contacts, intrusive rocks, folding and faulting.  

• Multiple geological events. D1 and D2 deformation, faulting, alteration, veining and intrusive activity provide repeated episodes to deposit, remobilize and concentrate gold.  

Click Image To View Full Size

Figure 1. Rockland ground (blue at the top) and Evolution option ground (gold), with over 30 documented historical gold occurrences across the broader Pipestone Bay area.

WHAT 2026 CHANGED AT ROCKLAND’S COLE GOLD MINES PROJECT (adjacent to the Evolution Option ground):

• The ultramafic contact is not one discrete boundary. Mafic and ultramafic units are repeated throughout the stratigraphy by folding and by faulting, creating multiple rheological contacts through the same structural package especially those at oblique angles to D2 structures.  

• The gold relationship is also measurable. Every assay above 25 g/t Au in the 19 hole dataset occurred within 30 m of a logged mafic dyke or ultramafic contact, and for assays above 10 g/t Au the median distance to a mafic dyke alone was approximately 2 m. Recent drilling encountered additional parallel veins and high-grade gold below the historic workings.  

• The drone magnetic survey added another major control. It reinforces the model of an intensely altered, structurally complex system and has identified the presence of a large, possibly felsic intrusive body beneath Pipestone Bay.  

THE BURIED PIPESTONE BAY TARGET:

The high-priority Pipestone Bay magnetic anomaly is approximately 1,050 meters by 625 meters in plan view with the top of the interpreted source about 200 m below surface. It is thought to potentially be a buried felsic intrusive body, with strong hydrothermal alteration (magnetic low). The regional structural fabric appears to wrap around it as well as be deformed by it, and a number of major D2 structures projects toward it. There has not been any drilling to date on this structure. Several interpreted D2 structures from the drone magnetic survey appear to intersect this anomaly, including the strike extension to the east of the Cole Gold Mine structure. This enhances the prospectivity of the magnetic anomaly for gold deposition.

Click Image To View Full Size

Figure 2. Magnetic inversion model over the combined land package, showing the buried Pipestone Bay target relative to the Rockland and Evolution ground. View looking north.

INITIAL WORK PROGRAM AT PIPESTONE BAY:

• Phase 1 - Target verification and ranking. field-based ground truthing and verification of identified mineral occurrences, followed by geological ranking for drill testing.  

• Phase 2 - Drill testing. An initial drill program will encompass follow-up targets at Cole and also include high-priority targets on the Evolution Option ground.  

• Phase 3 - Follow-up. Further work will be based on the results of the first two phases and Technical Committee review.  

AGREEMENT TERMS FOR EVOLUTION OPTION:

• To earn a 51% interest in the Evolution Option ground: Rockland will issue 100,000 RKL shares to Evolution on the effective date, and fund C$750,000 of exploration expenditure in Year 1, an additional C$2.25 million of exploration expenditure in Year 2, an additional C$2.0 million of exploration expenditure in Year 3, and issue Evolution a further 150,000 RKL shares by the third anniversary.  

• C$5.0 million initial exploration commitment. The three-year expenditure requirement totals C$5.0 million.  

• Path to a 70% interest in the Evolution Option ground. After earning 51%, Rockland may increase its interest to 70% by issuing Evolution an additional 250,000 RKL shares and funding at least C$6.5 million of exploration over a further 30 months.  

• Rockland is operator. Rockland was appointed Operator effective on execution of the agreement.  

• Evolution buy-back right. If Rockland declares an NI 43-101 mineral resource of at least 1.5 million ounces gold equivalent, Evolution may increase its interest to 70% (Rockland will retain 30%) by paying 150% of the relevant proportion of Rockland's exploration expenditures used to define the resource.  

• Processing right of first refusal. The contemplated joint venture grants Evolution a right of first refusal to process Project ore at its Red Lake operation on commercial terms, subject to available capacity.  

MANAGEMENT COMMENTARY:

“You are happy when a property checks two or three boxes,” said Mike England, CEO of Rockland. “This one checked the must-have boxes, and then it checked the bonus boxes as well. Size, placement and multiple geological events were already there. What changed in 2026 is that we stopped guessing about one of the key relationships. We can now measure where the best gold sits relative to the contacts, and the drone survey added a kilometre-scale buried target to an already gold-fertile system. The Evolution agreement gives us the necessary ground position to test that across the entirety of the gold system.”

Rockland further announces there were no material changes in the remaining metallic screening follow-up assays from Cole’s previous drill program.

Finder’s fees will be payable on this transaction.

QUALIFIED PERSON:

Donald Hoy, P.Geo., a Qualified Person as defined by National Instrument 43-101 and a technical consultant to Rockland, has reviewed and approved the technical information in this news release.

HISTORICAL INFORMATION:

Historical results referenced in this release were reported by previous operators between 1929 and 2012 and are sourced from the Ontario Mineral Deposit Inventory and assessment files. The Qualified Person has not verified these results and they should not be relied upon. Grab and channel samples are selective by nature and are not necessarily representative of mineralization on the property.

About Rockland Resources Ltd.:

Rockland Resources is committed to unlocking value through focused mineral exploration and discovery. The Company's flagship project is the historic Cole Gold Mines project in the prolific Red Lake district of Ontario. By leveraging geological expertise, disciplined exploration and strategic project development, Rockland Resources aims to deliver meaningful growth and long-term value to its shareholders.

We seek Safe Harbor.

About Evolution Mining Limited:

Evolution Mining is a leading, globally relevant gold miner. Evolution operates six mines, comprising five wholly-owned mines – Cowal in New South Wales, Ernest Henry and Mt Rawdon in Queensland, Mungari in Western Australia, and Red Lake in Ontario, Canada, and an 80% share in Northparkes in New South Wales.

On Behalf of the Board of Directors

Michael England, CEO & Director

For further information, please contact:

Mike England

Email: mike@engcom.ca

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