Mr. John Banning reports

LION COPPER & GOLD EXPANDS STRATEGIC LAND POSITION ASSOCIATED WITH THE BEAR PROJECT AREA IN THE YERINGTON COPPER DISTRICT

Lion Copper and Gold Corp. has completed the acquisition of approximately 183 acres of additional strategic lands associated with the Bear project area within the Yerington copper district, Nevada.

The acquisitions form part of the company's continuing strategy of consolidating strategic property interests throughout the Yerington copper district to support future exploration, engineering, permitting and long-term project development.

The newly acquired lands strengthen Lion's overall land position within the broader Bear project area and provide additional flexibility for future infrastructure planning, access, environmental management, operational layouts and other development-related activities as the company continues advancing its district-scale copper portfolio.

Building long-term district value

Over the past several years, Lion has pursued a disciplined strategy of assembling and consolidating key mineral, surface and infrastructure-related property interests throughout the Yerington copper district.

The company believes that controlling strategically located lands is an important component of responsible project development and enhances its ability to optimize future engineering and permitting decisions while reducing long-term development constraints.

The acquisition of strategic interests announced today represents another step in executing that long-term strategy.

John Banning, chief executive officer of Lion Copper and Gold, commented:

"We continue to take a disciplined approach to strengthening our position within the Yerington copper district by acquiring strategic property interests where we believe they can create long-term value for the company and its shareholders.

"These acquisitions improve our flexibility as we continue advancing technical studies and evaluating future development opportunities across the district. We view strategic land consolidation as an important part of reducing long-term project risk and maximizing optionality as our projects continue to advance."

Continuing advancement of the Yerington copper district

Lion continues to advance multiple technical and engineering initiatives across its Yerington copper district assets while evaluating opportunities to further strengthen its district-wide land position where acquisitions are considered strategically beneficial.

The company remains focused on systematically advancing one of North America's premier copper development districts through technical excellence, disciplined project planning and responsible long-term development.

Nuton LLC earn-in agreement

The Bear deposit forms part of the mining assets subject to the option to earn-in agreement between the company and Rio Tinto America Inc., acting through its wholly owned subsidiary, Nuton, originally announced in March, 2022. Under that agreement, Nuton may earn a minimum 65-per-cent interest in the mining assets -- which include the historic Yerington mine, the MacArthur project, the Wassuk property, the Bear deposit and associated water rights, by financing a staged program of studies, engineering, exploration and permitting activities.

Nuton has previously financed exploration and technical work on the Yerington copper project, including work specifically directed at the Bear deposit. In December, 2025, the company and Nuton executed a definitive earn-in agreement, and in January, 2026, the company received a further financing instalment from Nuton to advance the definitive feasibility study (DFS) and associated permitting activities for the Yerington copper project.

Nuton's interest in the mining assets, including Bear, has not yet vested. Upon completion of the DFS, Nuton and the company are expected to determine whether to establish an investment vehicle to which the mining assets would be transferred, with Nuton holding a 65-per-cent interest. There can be no assurance as to the timing or outcome of that determination, or that Nuton's earn-in will ultimately be completed on the terms currently contemplated or at all.

Additional information regarding the Nuton earn-in arrangement is set out in the company's prior news releases and continuous disclosure filings.

About Lion Copper and Gold Corp.

Lion Copper and Gold is a junior mining company advancing its Yerington, MacArthur and Bear projects in Lyon county, Nevada, through an earn-in agreement with Nuton. The project focuses on accelerating production from its long-life, low-strip-ratio, brownfield-advantaged Yerington copper project utilizing modern processing technologies.

About Nuton LLC

Nuton is an innovative venture that aims to help grow Rio Tinto's copper business. At the core of Nuton is a portfolio of proprietary copper leaching related technologies and capability that offers the potential to economically unlock copper from primary sulphide resources through leaching, achieving market-leading recovery rates, and contributing to an increase in copper production at new and continuing operations.

One of the key differentiators of Nuton is the ambition to produce the world's lowest footprint copper while having at least one positive impact at each deployment site across five pillars: water, energy, land, materials and society.

We seek Safe Harbor.