Dr. Timothy Marsh reports

GOVERNMENT CRITICAL MINERAL RESEARCH AT BELL COPPER'S BIG SANDY PORPHYRY COPPER PROJECT IN ARIZONA, USA

Bell Copper Corp. has noted that the Arizona Geological Survey (AZGS), in collaboration with the University of Arizona department of geosciences, with funding from the United States Geological Survey (USGS) and the State of Arizona, has initiated a three-year project to assess potential resources of critical minerals in Arizona. The paired Diamond Joe and Big Sandy deposits are the first of several porphyry systems in Arizona to be selected for the study. For its part, the company is contributing core samples from its 100-per-cent-owned Big Sandy porphyry copper project, a large, concealed porphyry copper-molybdenum project located in northwestern Arizona, approximately 30 kilometres from the company's Perseverance project.

• Several critical minerals are commonly enriched in deposits like Big Sandy;
• Big Sandy and Diamond Joe are first selected as subjects of the study;
• Initial samples have been contributed from the company's BS-3 drill core.

The Arizona Geological Survey (AZGS) research initiative, led by Dr. Carson Richardson, chief of mineral resources and bedrock geology, has received funding from the United States Geological Survey (USGS) with matching funds from the State of Arizona to conduct a geochemical reconnaissance survey of Arizona copper deposits, host to 295 million tonnes of copper. A parallel study of New Mexico copper deposits is being led by the New Mexico Bureau of Geology and Mineral Resources. This three-year project includes Bell Copper's recently discovered Big Sandy porphyry copper deposit.

As highlighted in a Feb. 15, 2023, press release by the USGS, the goals of this project are to: 1) provide a rigorous comprehensive compilation of geochemical analyses (both new and legacy data) of porphyry systems in the Laramide magmatic arc of Arizona with an emphasis on specific porphyry systems that have elevated concentrations of critical minerals; 2) develop a better understanding of the distribution of critical minerals within the alteration haloes of porphyry systems; and 3) provide evidence for critical mineral potential for individual prospects/deposits and within specific alteration types and rock types.

Potential critical minerals in the greater Arizona project area include: aluminum, arsenic, bismuth, cobalt, gallium, germanium, indium, manganese, nickel, the platinum group elements, scandium, selenium, tellurium, tungsten and zinc. In its July, 2023, critical materials assessment, the U.S. Department of Energy included copper itself as a critical material, due to its importance in electrification.

Porphyry copper systems like Big Sandy represent excellent opportunities to recover potentially economic concentrations of critical minerals like rhenium, tellurium, selenium and rare earth elements that are currently considered co-/byproduct commodities. Dr. Richardson, in his proposal for funding from the USGS, stated:

"This project aligns well with the Earth Mapping Resources Initiative (MRI) directives, as defined by the 2022 Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (H.R. 3684), by providing integrated geologic and geochemical data that can be applied to mapping, integrating and consolidating geospatial and resource data, and by providing interpretation of subsurface and above-ground mineral resources data for a world-class mineralized province."

AZGS has kicked off the three-year project with several staff scientists, and an MS student under the supervision of Dr. Herve Rezeau (assistant professor, University of Arizona Geosciences). Samples from Bell Copper's Big Sandy project were recently collected from drill hole BS-3 as well as from the nearby Diamond Joe porphyry stock. The samples will be analyzed for their mineral chemistry, geo/thermochronology, geobarometry and fluid inclusion characteristics, with a goal of using these techniques to assess the potential for critical minerals.

Dr. Timothy Marsh, Bell's president and chief executive officer, and a qualified person as defined by National Instrument 43-101, said:

"Bell is honoured and excited to assist in this assessment of the nation's critical mineral resources. The early recognition that Big Sandy is a discovery of merit that might help to satisfy the future needs for critical minerals emphasizes the need for the company to determine the size of the system as quickly as possible. With additional samples from BS-3 being analyzed at that University of Arizona, we will learn something more about the ubiquity of the high levels of the strategic element rhenium seen in BS-1 and BS-3. We are also likely to learn something new about potential byproducts that need to be routinely analyzed during our early exploratory drilling."

About Bell Copper Corp.

Bell Copper is a mineral exploration company focused on the identification, exploration and discovery of large copper deposits located in Arizona. Bell Copper is exploring its 100-per-cent-owned Big Sandy porphyry copper project and the Perseverance porphyry copper project which is under a joint venture earn-in.

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