Mr. Robert Eckford reports

NEW ZEALAND GOVERNMENT PUBLISHES ITS CRITICAL MINERALS LIST - NAMING GOLD AND ANTIMONY. RUA GOLD PROVIDES EXPLORATION UPDATE ON THE REEFTON PROJECT'S EXTENSIVE ANTIMONY POTENTIAL

Rua Gold Inc.'s executives attended the launch event for the minerals strategy for New Zealand to 2040 and critical minerals list event hosted by New Zealand Petroleum and Minerals in Waihi on Jan. 31, 2025. Shane Jones, Resource Minster for New Zealand, presented the critical minerals list that included both gold and antimony.

Furthermore, Rua Gold is pleased to provide an update from the exploration campaign under way at the Reefton project on the South Island of New Zealand with significant added potential of antimony within the project.

Highlights:

• Rua Gold is sitting on the vast majority of New Zealand's antimony inventory.
• A byproduct credit for antimony brings the potential to add considerable economic value to the Reefton project and New Zealand's strategic mineral inventory.
• The antimony spot price increased 250 per cent in 2024 and has held at all-time high levels of over $40,000 (U.S.) per ton.
• Auld Creek already has an antimony resource, and the company is focused on expanding this in 2025. The resource is restricted to two of the four known shoots. Soil geochemistry indicates the potential for discovery of additional mineralized shoots over a strike length of 2.5 kilometres.
• Drilling of Auld Creek commenced in December, 2024. Holes ACDD024 and ACDD025 intersected four or five metres of strong stibnite (antimony sulphide) mineralization. Assays are pending in the lab.
• Rock chips have been found in several areas across the Reefton district with grades with up to 40.3 per cent antimony (and gold grades up to 74.3 grams per tonne).
• It is common for high-grade gold and stibnite (antinomy ore mineral) to be co-located, and the stibnite is often used as a pathfinder for gold.

Robert Eckford, chief executive officer of Rua Gold, commented: "Having New Zealand's largest known antimony presence on our property is extremely encouraging, especially with it trading at all-time highs and with it being announced on New Zealand's first ever critical minerals list.

"We commenced drilling on Auld Creek antimony-gold prospect, which already has an antimony resource. Rock chips across the other projects on the property increase our confidence this gold-antimony occurrence is consistent across the Reefton goldfield. We are focused on expanding the Auld Creek resource, and we will have assay results from the latest holes coming out in February.

This all comes on the back of the government's launch event for the minerals strategy for New Zealand to 2040 and critical minerals list, where both gold and antimony in Reefton goldfield was called out as being one of the key focus points of the critical minerals strategy for New Zealand."

Global supply and value of antimony

Antimony is a critical metalloid primarily sourced from the mineral stibnite. It is highly valuable and increasing in demand due to its versatility, and has essential applications across renewable energy, liquid battery metals, defence and technological sectors.

Due to its limited supply, predominantly controlled by China, Russia and Tajikistan, antimony is considered a strategic material essential for supply chain security, particularly during periods of geopolitical instability. This was heightened in August, 2024, when China announced export controls on processed antimony products. In response to these controls, nations have accelerated their efforts to secure alternative sources of antimony to mitigate the risk of significant supply chain vulnerabilities.

The United States, European Union, United Kingdom, Japan, Canada and Australia all designate antimony as a critical mineral. On Jan. 31, 2025, New Zealand also announced its critical mineral list, which included antimony.

Reflecting heightened demand, the price of antimony has reached new highs, currently trading at over $40,000 (U.S.) per tonne, a significant increase from $11,350 (U.S.) per tonne at the start of 2024. This market shift has intensified interest in the strategic antimony potential held by Rua Gold.

Exploration potential

Auld Creek focus

Rua Gold commenced drilling at Auld Creek in December, 2024. It has a targeted program to drill four mineralized shoots identified from historical surface exploration work interpreted by the Rua Gold team over the past three months.

Auld Creek is situated between two past-producing mines: Globe Progress mine and the Crushington group of mines, which collectively produced 933,000 ounces at 14.0 grams per tonne gold (Barry, 1993). Auld Creek has three historic adits but no commercial production from the reefs.

Rua Gold has an inferred resource indicating 700,000 tonnes at 3.1 g/t Au and 1.1 per cent Sb for 67,000 oz of gold and 8,000 tonnes of antimony (110,000 gold equivalent ounces). The resource is restricted to two of the four known shoots. Soil geochemistry indicates the potential for discovery of additional mineralized shoots over a strike length of 2.5 kilometres.

Two of the four holes completed to date intersected four or five m of strong visible stibnite (antimony sulphide) mineralization in the Fraternal-Bonanza structure. Logging and assaying are in progress.

Previous diamond drilling by Siren Gold Ltd. confirmed the presence of significant antimony, with notable drill holes including:

• ACDDH011: 8.1 m of 2.73 g/t Au and 4.33 per cent Sb (11.0 g/t AuEq) 80 m below the surface;
• ACDDH015: 12.4 m of 5.19 g/t Au and 13.65 per cent Sb (31.3 g/t AuEq) 75 m below the surface.

A full table of results is found below.

Other Reefton prospects

With the increased interest in antimony over 2024, the exploration team widened its focus to include testing for stibnite (antimony) mineralization across other known targets of the Reefton goldfield.

In the early 1900s, the Fiery Cross lode, within Capleston, reported significant antimony mineralization associated with the gold-bearing quartz reef, but, at the time, in common with many other Reefton goldfield mines, mining this posed a problem for gold recovery, and the material was discarded on the tip head. Resampling of this mined material from the tip head (float) and from an in situ quartz reef of the old mine at surface has returned exceptionally high results, including:

• Sample GER3721 with 23.5 g/t gold and 20.6 per cent antimony;
• Sample GER3725 with 7.53 g/t gold and 16.7 per cent antimony;
• Sample GER3726 with 52.3 g/t gold and 16.0 per cent antimony.

Refer to the table below for a complete list of rock samples.

Murray Creek hosts the Golden Treasure mine, 350 m south/southwest of the Victoria-Inglewood mines. Gold recovery at the Golden Treasure was also hindered by the presence of stibnite. In parts of the mine where the shoot consisted of 30 to 40 per cent antimony, the ore was stacked in the workings for future sale (Downey, 1928).

Rua Gold conducted both channel samples on surface and assayed a suite of rocks from the tip head of the mine workings. This has provided first-hand evidence of the tenor of the antimony and has returned exceptionally high results, including:

• GERS6027: trench with one m wide with 10.8 g/t gold and 1.7 per cent antimony;
• GERS6028: trench with one m wide with 3.66 g/t gold and 3.8 per cent antimony;
• GERS3714: rock sample with 2.29 g/t gold and 40.3 per cent antimony;
• GERS3716: rock sample with 6.72 g/t gold and 26.9 per cent antimony;
• GERS3720: rock sample with 4.77 g/t gold and 23.3 per cent antimony.

Refer to the tables below for a complete list of trench and rock samples.

With results from this surface exploration work, the exploration team is encouraged that the stibnite mineralization is demonstrated throughout the Reefton goldfield, and further work will form part of the surface exploration campaign in 2025.

About Rua Gold Inc.

Rua Gold is an exploration company, strategically focused on New Zealand. With decades of expertise, the team has taken major discoveries into producing world-class mines across multiple continents. The team is focused on maximizing the asset potential of Rua Gold's two highly prospective high-grade gold projects.

The company controls the Reefton gold district as the dominant landholder in the Reefton goldfield on New Zealand's South Island with over 120,000 hectares of tenements in a district that historically produced over two million ounces of gold grading between nine and 50 g/t.

The company's Glamorgan project solidifies Rua Gold's position as a leading high-grade gold explorer on New Zealand's North Island. This highly prospective project is located within the North Island's Hauraki district, a region that has produced an impressive 15 million ounces of gold and 60 million ounces of silver. Glamorgan is adjacent to Oceanagold Corp.'s biggest gold mining project, Wharekirauponga.

Technical information

Simon Henderson, CP, AusIMM, a qualified person under National Instrument 43-101 (Standards of Disclosure for Mineral Projects), chief operating officer and a director of Rua Gold, has reviewed and approved the technical disclosure contained herein. Mr. Henderson has participated in the geochemical sampling and mapping programs to verify that they have been conducted in accordance with standard operating procedures. Mr. Henderson has verified the data disclosed by running checks on the location, analytical and test data underlying the information in the technical disclosure herein.

Quality assurance/quality control rock samples and channel samples

Veins were sampled in one-metre intervals. Before sampling, outcrops were cleared of debris and alluvial sediments with shovels and hammers to uncover the full extent of the veins. One-metre intervals were measure with a tape and marked with flagging tape or spray paint. A line was made along the outcrop, and then chips were taken continuously along that line. Each one-metre interval sample is 1.5 kilograms of material.

Rock samples were sent to SGS Laboratories, Westport, for sample preparation. Samples were crushed and pulverized to 85 per cent passing 75 microm. The pulverized rock chips were split into two samples: an approximately 50 grams sent for laboratory analysis and the reject returned to RGL for pXRF analysis and storage. Pulverized rock chip samples were analyzed for gold by 50-gram fire assay with AAS finish at SGS Waihi (SGS Code FAA505) and for antimony by sodium peroxide fusion analysis by ICP-MS at SGS Waihi.

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