Mr. Mark Wall reports

MOUNTAIN PROVINCE DIAMONDS ANNOUNCES SECOND QUARTER FINANCIAL RESULTS FOR 2023

Mountain Province Diamonds Inc. has released its financial results for the second quarter ended June 30, 2023, from the Gahcho Kue (GK) diamond mine. All figures are expressed in Canadian dollars unless otherwise noted.

Second quarter 2023 key takeaways:

• 360,308 carats sold for total proceeds of $59.9-million ($44.6-million (U.S.)) at an average price of $166 per carat ($124 (U.S.));
• Adjusted EBITDA (earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization) of $30.7-million;
• Earnings from mine operations of $26.9-million;
• Net income of $17.3-million or eight cents of basic and diluted earnings per share;
• Capital expenditures in the first half (H1) of 2023 were $44.7-million, $41.3-million of which were deferred stripping costs, with the remaining $3.4-million sustaining capital expenditures related to mine operations;
• Repurchase for cancellation of approximately $12-million (U.S.) aggregate principal amount of the 9.000 per cent senior secured second lien notes during the fiscal quarter.

Mark Wall, the company's president and chief executive officer, commented:

"Second quarter production numbers saw quarter-on-quarter improvements relative to Q1 2023 with the exception of ore tonnes mined. The revenue reduction from Q1 2023 is due to the additional sale held during the first quarter delivering record revenue results. Our H1 sales results in Canadian dollars are slightly up year on year when compared to H1 2022.

"On ore tonnes mined, there was a refocus towards Tuzo waste stripping to ensure that the 5034 orebody can be mined safely given that it will be mined concurrently with the Tuzo pit, which is directly above it. During the period, there was also temporarily blocked ramp access due to geotechnical considerations in the 5034 pit.

"This movement of the sequence of ore release is temporary with mining in the 5034 pit returning to planned rates in H2 2023. Given the large stockpile of ore, there is no expected carat production interruption.

"On costs, the mine entered a period of heavy capitalized waste stripping during the quarter, which, coupled with some one-off maintenance related costs, resulted in a high unit cost per carat recovered and tonne processed. An increase in mine waste stripping is helpful to the overall plan; we expect these costs to reduce as we phase out of the heavy waste stripping and return to planned areas of mining in the pit. Excluding capitalized waste stripping costs, cash cost of production on a per-tonne-treated and per-carat basis in the first half of 2023 are approximately 10 per cent below the same period in 2022.

"A key operational initiative in Q2 was the five-day plant maintenance shutdown. There were several areas of the processing plant that were identified as being the primary drivers of plant instability. There remains one further task to be completed on the primary crusher in September for the major refresh of the processing plant to be completed. We have seen a step change in processing plant performance since these works were completed.

"Considering the points above our 2023 guidance remains unchanged, with production trending to the mid/lower end and production costs trending to the mid/upper end of the range.

"We remain focused on paying down debt, with $12.0-million (U.S.) repaid during the quarter. Subsequent to the quarter-end, we repaid a further $6-million (U.S.) of debt. The company continues to focus on achieving our long-run debt to EBITDA ratio target. Our earnings per share (EPS) at eight cents for Q2 brings us to 22 cents for H1 2023, which is consistent with H1 2022.

"On growth, drilling results to date near Tuzo, the Hearne Deep and the Northwest Extension are returning positive intercepts. We look forward to continuing our work with our joint venture partner De Beers to explore and evaluate mine life extension possibilities for the project, such as deeper drilling at Gahcho Kue as well as reviewing potential opportunities to incorporate kimberlites from our nearby Kennady North project. We intend to report on the next phase of this project in early Q4 2023."

Financial highlights for second quarter 2023 (Q2 2023):

• Revenue from 360,000 carats sold at $59.9-million ($44.6-million (U.S.)) at an average realized value of $166 per carat ($124 (U.S.)), compared with $97.8-million from 587,000 carats sold in Q2 2022 ($76.0-million (U.S.)) at an average realized value of $167 per carat ($130 (U.S.));
• Adjusted EBITDA of $30.7-million, compared with $55.1-million in Q2 2022;
• Earnings from mine operations of $26.9-million, compared with $51.4-million in Q2 2022;
• Cash costs of production, including capitalized stripping costs, of $156 per tonne treated (2022: $126 per tonne) and $87 per carat recovered (2022: $75 per carat);
• Net income of $17.3-million or earnings of eight cents per share (2022: $22.6-million or earnings of 11 cents per share). Included in the determination of the net income are foreign exchange gains of $5.5-million, the majority of which is an unrealized gain arising on the translation of the company's U.S.-dollar-denominated long-term debt, as a result of the strengthening of the Canadian dollar versus the U.S. dollar.

Operational highlights for second quarter 2023 (all figures reported on a 100-per-cent basis unless otherwise stated):

• 750,241 ore tonnes treated, largely unchanged relative to Q2 2022 (749,821 tonnes treated);
• 1,339,196 carats recovered, 6 per cent higher than the comparable quarter (Q2 2022: 1,260,899 carats);
• Average grade of 1.79 carats per tonne, a 6-per-cent increase relative to Q2 2022 (1.68 carats per tonne);
• 595,990 ore tonnes mined, a 43-per-cent decrease relative to Q2 2022 (1,043,348 ore tonnes mined).

Financial highlights for H1 2023:

• Total sales revenue of $188.6-million ($139.6-million (U.S.)) at an average realized value of $143 per carat ($106 (U.S.)), compared with $182.4-million in 2022 ($142.7-million (U.S.)) at an average realized value of $167 per carat ($130 (U.S.));
• Half-year adjusted EBITDA of $98.2-million, compared with $99.7-million in H1 2022;
• Earnings from mine operations of $74.1-million (2022: $94.2-million);
• Cash costs of production, including capitalized stripping costs, of $155 per tonne treated (2022: $136 per tonne) and $89 per carat recovered (2022: $81 per carat);
• Net income for the half year at June 30, 2023, was $45.5-million or basic earnings of 22 cents per share and diluted earnings of 21 cents per share (2022: net income of $47-million or earnings of 22 cents per share). Included in the determination of the net income for the half year at June 30, 2023, are foreign exchange gains of $5.6-million, the majority of which is an unrealized gain on the translation of the company's U.S.-dollar-denominated long-term debt arising as a result of the strengthening of the Canadian dollar versus the U.S. dollar;
• Capital expenditures in H1 2023 were $44.7-million, $41.3-million of which were deferred stripping costs, with the remaining $3.4-million for sustaining capital expenditures related to mine operations.

Operational highlights for H1 2023:

• 18.2 million total tonnes mined in H1 2023, a 13-per-cent increase from the 16.0 million total tonnes mined in H1 2022;
• 1,517,000 tonnes of ore treated in H1 2023, a 4-per-cent increase compared with the 1,457,000 tonnes treated in H1 2022;
• 2,659,000 carats recovered at an average grade of 1.75 carats per tonne, a 9-per-cent increase compared with the 2,446,000 carats (1.68 carats per tonne) recovered in H1 2022.

Sales highlights for second quarter of 2023

As previously released, during the second quarter, 360,308 carats were sold for total proceeds of $59.9-million ($44.6-million (U.S.)), resulting in an average price of $166 per carat ($124 (U.S.) per carat). These results compare with Q2 2022, where 586,567 carats were sold for total proceeds of $97.0-million ($74.5-million (U.S.)) at an average price per carat of $165 per carat ($129 (U.S.) per carat).

The reduction in volume sold in Q2 2023 relative to Q2 2022 was due to the acceleration of sales into Q1 2023, where three sales were held versus the historical norm of two. Relative to Q2 2022, average price per carat in Q2 2023 benefited from a coarser-than-average mix of goods sold, offsetting a softening in the market. The company expects a finer mix of goods sold in Q3 2023.

Growth

Recent results from the company's 2023 drill program revealed a new kimberlite discovery located 40 metres northeast of the known Tuzo kimberlite. Following the discovery and delineation of the Hearne northwest extension, a program to look for a similar extension was started at Tuzo; a single drill hole was collared east of Tuzo to test for a northeast extension, returning approximately 40 metres of kimberlite. Despite exploration northeast of Tuzo being in the early stage, the company is encouraged by the width of the kimberlite intersection and its similarities to Tuzo based on initial logging.

In addition, during the quarter, the company announced positive drilling results at Hearne Deep and the northwest extension, which returned multiple intercepts, with the longest returning 287 metres of kimberlite. During the 2023 program, 11 drill holes were drilled (seven drill holes were collared outside of the pit and four were collared on the kimberlite within the pit) to test the width and depth of the extension. Combined with past results, Mountain Province has 21 drill holes that define the extension below the final pit and to the northwest, which will be evaluated with the company's operating partner, De Beers, to examine ways to recover this deeper kimberlite.

Gahcho Kue mine operations

The attached table summarizes key operating statistics for the Gahcho Kue mine in the three and six months ended June 30, 2023, and June 30, 2022.

Conference call

The company will host its quarterly conference call on Friday, Aug. 11, 2023, at 11 a.m. Eastern Time.

Title:  Mountain Province Q2 2023 earnings conference call

Conference ID No.:  76959572

Date of call:  Aug. 11, 2023

Time of call:  11 a.m. Eastern Time

Expected duration:  60 minutes

Webcast:  A webcast will be available.

Participant toll-free dial-in number:  1-888-390-0546

Participant international dial-in number:  1-416-764-8688

A replay of the webcast and audio call will be available on the company's website following the call.

About Mountain Province Diamonds Inc.

Mountain Province is a 49-per-cent participant with De Beers Canada in the Gahcho Kue diamond mine, located in Canada's Northwest Territories. The Gahcho Kue joint venture property consists of several kimberlites that are actively being mined, developed and explored for future development. The company also controls more than 113,000 hectares of highly prospective mineral claims and leases surrounding the Gahcho Kue mine, including an indicated mineral resource for the Kelvin kimberlite and inferred mineral resources for the Faraday kimberlites. Kelvin was estimated to contain 13.62 million carats in 8.50 million tonnes at a grade of 1.60 carats per tonne and value of $63 (U.S.) per carat, at February, 2019. Faraday 2 was estimated to contain 5.45 million carats in 2.07 million tonnes at a grade of 2.63 carats per tonne and value of $140 (U.S.) per carat, at February, 2019. Faraday 1-3 was estimated to contain 1.90 million carats in 1.87 million tonnes at a grade of 1.04 carats per tonne and value of $75 (U.S.) per carat, at February, 2019. All resource estimations are based on a one-millimetre-diamond-size bottom cut-off.

Qualified persons

The disclosure in this news release of scientific and technical information regarding Mountain Province's mineral properties has been reviewed and approved by Matthew MacPhail, PEng, MBA, and Tom E. McCandless, PhD, PGeo, both employees of Mountain Province and qualified persons as defined by National Instrument 43-101, Standards of Disclosure for Mineral Projects.

We seek Safe Harbor.