Mr. Michael Bandrowski reports

2026 METALLURGICAL PROGRAM ACHIEVES 90% COPPER RECOVERY AND 88% GOLD RECOVERY AT THE HOPE BROOK GOLD PROJECT

Big Ridge Gold Corp. has released positive results from the 2026 metallurgical program on mineralization from its 100-per-cent-owned Hope Brook gold project (HBGP), located on the southwest coast of island of Newfoundland. The program was undertaken at Base Metallurgical Labs (BaseMet) and directed by Canenco Consulting Corp., and supports the advancement of the company's preliminary economic assessment (PEA).

Locked-cycle flotation produced a concentrate grading approximately 24 per cent copper, 300 grams per tonne gold and 93 g/t silver, with 90.3-per-cent copper recovery to concentrate. Leaching of the cleaner tails returns overall gold recovery of 88 per cent.

Michael Bandrowski, president and chief executive officer of Big Ridge Gold, commented: "The strong copper and gold recoveries and high-grade copper-gold concentrate significantly exceeded our expectations for the Hope Brook project. The additional gold recovery potential from tails leaching returns recoveries above historical production figures. This work supports evaluating a conventional flotation and leaching flowsheet in our PEA. We are excited to move forward on the process design of the HBGP PEA and highlight the significant value in our flagship gold project."

Metallurgical highlights

• 90-per-cent copper recovery into a flotation concentrate grading 24 per cent copper;
• High-grade precious metal concentrate containing 300 g/t gold and approximately 93 g/t silver, in addition to copper;
• 88-per-cent overall gold recovery including gold to concentrate plus leached cleaner tailing;
• Up to 96.6-per-cent gold recovery and 98.6 per cent copper recovery demonstrated in rougher flotation testing;
• 53.7-per-cent gravity-recoverable gold potential identified;
• Simplified conventional processing flowsheet consisting of primary grinding, copper flotation, concentrate cleaning and leaching of cleaner tailings.

Metallurgical performance outshines historic production results

Historical production data from 1994 through 1997 achieved gold recoveries ranging from approximately 82 per cent to 90 per cent at an average feed grade of approximately 3.0 g/t gold.

The recent metallurgical program was conducted on mineralization with an average gold feed grade of approximately 1.08 g/t. The current testwork indicates the potential to achieve increased overall gold recovery of approximately 88 per cent using the revised flotation and cleaner-tail leaching flowsheet.

The results from the 2026 metallurgical program are very encouraging and indicate that increased metallurgical performance may be achievable at feed grades similar to those processed from 1994 to 1997.

Gravity recovery evaluated

Gravity recoverable gold testing identified that 53.7 per cent of the gold could be recovered into approximately 1.75 per cent of the feed mass under laboratory test conditions. Subsequent gravity circuit modeling indicated potential plant gravity recoveries ranging from approximately 27 per cent to 40 per cent, depending on circuit configuration. However, comparative flotation tests conducted with and without gravity concentration demonstrated minimal differences in rougher flotation gold and copper recoveries.

Metallurgy -- next steps

The company, working with its metallurgical and engineering consultants, intends to undertake additional metallurgical and process development work to further optimize the flowsheet and support future engineering studies.

The planned work includes:

• Additional locked-cycle flotation testing on representative composites to further define metallurgical responses;
• Integrated flotation and cleaner-tail leaching testing to confirm overall gold recovery;
• Assessment of coarser primary grind sizes to potentially reduce grinding energy consumption;
• Additional fine-grinding energy testing to optimize cleaner-tail leaching conditions;
• Evaluation of gravity recovery as an optional processing enhancement;
• Metallurgical variability testing across different ore types, gold grades, and copper and sulphur domains;
• Thickening, tailings characterization and geochemical testing to support process and environmental engineering.

Hope Brook gold project -- next steps

• Complete metallurgical testing on 150 kilograms of tailings samples from the HBGP;
• Update historic 2014 mineral resource estimate for the HBGP tailings;
• Complete Alpha IP geophysics program on Woodman's Droke;
• Continue with Main and 240 zone diamond drill program;
• Continue environmental baseline studies.

Results from these programs will be used to refine project criteria and support the company's continuing work.

Qualified person

Stacy Freudigmann, PEng, FAusIMM, principal SME for Canenco Consulting Group, a qualified person within the meaning of National Instrument 43-101 -- Standards of Disclosure for Mineral Projects, has reviewed and approved the technical information contained in this news release.

Paul Robinson, PGeo, vice-president of exploration for Big Ridge, a qualified person within the meaning of NI 43-101 -- Standards of Disclosure for Mineral Projects, has reviewed and approved the technical information contained in this news release.

About Hope Brook

The Hope Brook gold project is an advanced-stage, high-grade gold project that produced 752,162 ounces of gold from 1987 to 1997. Initial production consisted of an open pit before moving to underground mining. Hope Brook operated using both heap leach (1987 to 1990) and conventional cyanidation milling methods (1989 to 1997) with a later inclusion of flotation concentration to recover copper (1991). Government records indicate that gold recoveries from milling ranged between a low of 78.8 per cent in 1987 and a high of 85.9 per cent in 1989. Government and company annual reports indicate that gold recoveries ranged between a low of 82.1 per cent in 1994 and a high of 89.83 per cent in 1996 following a change of ownership. Copper flotation produced a concentrate at approximately 22 per cent Cu and 34.3 g/t Au for shipment in 1992.

Hope Brook hosts an indicated gold resource totalling 16.19 million tonnes grading 2.32 grams per tonne gold for 1.2 million ounces and inferred resources totalling 2,215,000 tonnes grading 3.25 grams per tonne gold for 231,000 ounces based on a 0.4- and 2.0-gram-per-tonne cut-off grades for open pit and underground resources respectively using a long-term gold price of $1,750 (U.S.).

The Hope Brook gold deposit is a high-sulphidation epithermal gold deposit hosted in the proterozoic aged Whittle Hill Sandstone and is intruded by a Late proterozoic quartz-feldspar porphyry sill-dike complex of the Roti intrusive suite. The deposit is located adjacent to and within an extensive advanced argillic alteration envelope which includes pyrophyllite, kaolinite, andalusite and alunite. The principal gold mineralization occurs in light grey to dark grey, massive silicic rocks, commonly vuggy, with several percent pyrite and/or chalcopyrite plus bornite either as disseminations or veinlets. Gold mineralization is also found with pyrite in units of advanced argillic alteration adjacent to or near silicic alteration horizons. The altered and mineralized zone is cut by mafic dykes whose contacts are often mineralized. All the altered and mineralized sequences and the intruded dykes have been folded.

The Hope Brook is located 40 kilometres west of Burgeo and 85 kilometres east of Port aux Basques, Nfld. The project has well-maintained infrastructure on site, including an operational 28-person camp, an 1,100-metre airstrip, an ice-free docking facility and, importantly, connection to the provincial electrical power grid via an on-site substation.

About Big Ridge Gold Corp.

Big Ridge Gold is an exploration and development company managed by a disciplined and experienced team of officers and directors. The company is committed to the development of advanced-stage mining projects using industry-best practices combined with strong social licence from the company's local communities. Big Ridge owns a 100-per-cent interest in its flagship Hope Brook gold project, located in Newfoundland and Labrador. Big Ridge also owns 100 per cent in the highly prospective Oxford gold project located in Manitoba and the Destiny gold project in Quebec.

Acknowledgement

Big Ridge acknowledges and appreciates the Newfoundland and Labrador Ministry of Natural Resources' financial support of the company's 2023 exploration programs through the Junior Exploration Assistance (JEA) program.

We seek Safe Harbor.