Mr. Barry O'Shea reports

HIGHLAND COPPER ANNOUNCES INITIATION OF DRILLING PROGRAM AT WHITE PINE NORTH PROJECT

The White Pine Copper LLC, Highland Copper Company Inc.'s joint venture with Kinterra Copper USA LLC, has initiated a drilling program at the White Pine North project in Ontonagon county, Michigan.

The winter drilling program initiated mid-January intends to obtain material for additional metallurgical and geotechnical testwork programs. The drilling program, which will run through second quarter 2024, focuses on data collection to advance project development. The intent is to complete 10 drill holes, three PQ and seven HQ sized, for a total of approximately 6,460 metres. Downhole geotechnical imaging is planned for all drill holes to support mine design engineering. The successful completion of the program will be dependent on weather conditions over the course of the coming months.

The initiation of this drilling program demonstrates the joint venture's commitment to advancing the White Pine North project while at the same time progressing permitting and engineering studies. The forthcoming testing will contribute to further refining the economic results obtained in the 2023 preliminary economic assessment. White Pine Copper has also recently hired a senior environmental representative that will manage environmental compliance requirements, future environmental baseline work and permitting activities. Operating responsibly in Michigan remains a key focus of Highland.

"We are very excited with the focus that our joint venture partner, Kinterra, is putting on White Pine North. Kinterra has assembled a strong project leadership team to take charge of development of the project and is pro-actively moving it forward. We created the joint venture on White Pine North to draw on Kinterra's expertise in permitting and technical studies, in addition to their strong balance sheet. This has allowed Highland's management to focus its time and capital on progressing the fully permitted, 100-per-cent-owned Copperwood project, building value at both assets simultaneously," stated Barry O'Shea, interim chief executive officer of Highland Copper.

About Highland Copper Company Inc.

Highland Copper is a Canadian company focused on exploring and developing copper projects in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan, United States. The company owns the Copperwood deposit through long-term mineral leases and 34 per cent of the White Pine North project. The company also owns surface rights securing access to the deposit and providing space for infrastructure as required. The company has 736,363,619 common shares issued and outstanding. Its common shares are listed on the TSX Venture Exchange under the symbol HI and trade on the OTCQB Venture Market under the symbol HDRSF.

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