Mr. Marcel Robillard reports

PUMA EXPLORATION CLOSES KINROSS $2M PRIVATE PLACEMENT

Puma Exploration Inc. has closed its private placement with Kinross Gold Corp. as announced yesterday (see Dec. 23, 2025, news release).

Kinross exercised its right, granted under the investor rights agreement dated Oct. 23, 2024, to increase its ownership stake in Puma's share capital from 9.1 per cent to 14.8 per cent (on an undiluted basis) and 17.4 per cent (on a partially diluted basis). Kinross subscribed to 12.5 million units of Puma at a price of 16 cents per unit for proceeds of $2-million.

Each unit is composed of one common share and one-half common share purchase warrant. Each warrant is exercisable to purchase one common share of the company at 25 cents per share until Dec. 24, 2027. The warrants are subject to an acceleration clause that allows the company to provide notice to holders that the warrants will expire 30 days after the date the acceleration notice is delivered. The company may provide the acceleration notice only if the closing price of the company's common shares on the TSX Venture Exchange is equal to or greater than 40 cents for 30 consecutive trading days. The acceleration notice may be provided at any time after the statutory hold period and before the expiry date of the warrants. All securities issued in connection with the offering will be subject to a hold period of four months and one day under applicable securities laws.

No finders' fees were paid in connection with the offering. The funds raised will support exploration activities on Puma's projects (not optioned to Kinross) and general corporate and working capital requirements.

Kinross holds 29,550,577 common shares and 6.25 million warrants of Puma. Under the IRA, Kinross retains the right to participate in future equity financings to maintain its ownership percentage or to increase its holding to up to 19.9 per cent of the company's total issued and outstanding common shares following the issuance of additional securities.

Early warning

An early warning report filed by Kinross in connection with the investment is available on Puma's SEDAR+ profile. Alternatively, you may contact Luke Crosby, senior vice-president, general counsel and corporate secretary at 647-788-4478 to obtain a copy of the report. Kinross is organized under the laws of the Province of Ontario.

Kinross acquired the units for investment purposes. Kinross may, from time to time, increase or decrease its investment in Puma through market transactions, private placements, treasury issuances or otherwise, including pursuant to the terms of the IRA between Kinross and Puma.

About Puma Exploration Inc.

Puma Exploration is a Canadian mineral exploration company focused on identifying and developing a pipeline of precious metal projects in New Brunswick, near Canada's renowned Bathurst mining camp. Puma has a long history in northern New Brunswick, having worked on regional projects for over 15 years.

Puma's successful exploration methodology, which combines traditional prospecting methods with detailed trenching and cutting-edge technologies such as artificial intelligence, has been instrumental in understanding the region's geology and associated mineralized systems. Armed with geophysical surveys, geochemical data and consultants' expertise, Puma has developed a cost-effective exploration tool to discover gold at shallow depths and maximize drilling results.

We seek Safe Harbor.