Expansion Of The Western High-Grade Zone At Whistler Gold-Copper Deposit

ANCHORAGE, AK - U.S. GoldMining Inc. reported on the confirmatory diamond core drilling program completed at the Whistler Gold-Copper Project in Alaska. The results highlight WH24-03 & WH24-04, which build upon the earlier success of the 2024 drill program including multiple broad intercepts and the best drill hole in the history of the property to date.

Tim Smith, Chief Executive Officer, said, "As a follow-up to the high-grade previously intersected in the western portion of the Whistler Deposit (WH24-02: 120 m at 1.00 g/t AuEq), WH24-04 was drilled to further delineate and target a potential extension of this high-grade zone, with the goal of further upgrading the existing mineral resource profile of the Project. The assays returned for WH24-04, which exceed the grades seen in prior drilling, demonstrate that metal grade improves with depth in the western portion of the Whistler Deposit, as predicted. This further demonstrates the Company's understanding of the zonation and controls on mineralization and why we see the potential to expand the existing Project mineral resource estimate ("MRE") beyond the current 6.48 million gold equivalent ounces in indicated resources, and further 4.16 million gold equivalent ounces in inferred resources. These drill results build towards our ongoing objectives of optimizing the large, high-quality and robust MRE, while concurrently conducting ongoing engineering and environmental studies. On the back of these latest drill results, we're very excited heading into the 2025 exploration season. In addition to our strong local and state support, Whistler is also now positioned to see greater federal support following President Trump's Executive Order dated January 20, 2025, "Unleashing Alaska's Extraordinary Resource Potential."

WH24-04 confirmed and extended the high-grade mineralization located within the western portion of the Whistler Deposit, which was initially intersected in WH24-02: Main Zone intercept of 458 meters (m) at 0.46 grams per tonne (g/t) gold (Au), 0.16% copper (Cu) and 1.66 g/t silver (Ag), or 0.75 g/t gold equivalent (AuEq), from 224 m to 682 m depth down hole; Including higher-grade intercepts: 1) 48 m at 1.23 g/t AuEq (0.61 g/t Au, 0.34% Cu and 2.19 g/t Ag) from 260 m depth. 2) 50 m at 0.98 g/t AuEq (0.73 g/t Au, 0.13% Cu and 1.50 g/t Ag) from 406 m depth. 3) 116 m at 1.00 g/t AuEq (0.76 g/t Au, 0.13% Cu and 1.75 g/t Ag) from 508 m depth.

WH24-03 tested the deep northwest quadrant of the Whistler Deposit: 1) 12.7 m at 1.96 g/t AuEq (1.30 g/t Au, 0.35% Cu, 2.37 g/t Ag) from 40 meters depth. 2) 139.9 m at 0.47 g/t AuEq (0.21 g/t Au, 0.14% Cu, 0.97 g/t Ag) from 385 meters depth, including; 1) 28 m at 0.85 g/t AuEq (0.41 g/t Au, 0.24% Cu, 1.74 g/t Ag) from 401 meters depth. 2) Assays remain pending for one additional drill hole from the Company's 2024 drilling program.

The western portion of the Whistler Deposit is relatively under drilled with respect to its potential for expansion of mineralization and improved delineation of higher grade mineralization. It follows that the Company targeted this region in its 2024 drilling campaign. This focus also followed up on WH23-02, drilled in 2023, which demonstrated the potential to extend mineralization southwards along strike in the southwest, and containing mineralization with a low gold:copper ratio and associated clay mineralogy indicative of relatively cooler and shallow mineralization. WH23-02 was thus interpreted to over-lie a hydrothermal center, which could contain deeper higher grade Au-Cu mineralization.

Furthermore, WH24-02 returned additional positive results including a high-grade intercept of 120 m at 1.00 g/t AuEq, also testing the under-drilled western portion of the Whistler Deposit. The drill specifically targeted a position directly above a zone of stockwork quartz veining, interpreted as high temperature 'deep early' quartz veins. Such deep early quartz veins indicate the location of hydrothermal fluid ascent paths which brought Au-Cu up from below during the mineralization process. Thus, high grade mineralization was correctly postulated to occur between these geologically diagnostic zones, that is, above the deep early quartz veins, but below the relatively cool, low Au:Cu ratio mineralization seen in WH23-02.

Following confirmation of this geological model (based on the positive results of WH24-02), the Company subsequently targeted additional under-drilled areas in the Whistler Deposit using these criteria to vector towards potentially higher grade mineralization.

WH24-04 thus targeted 250 m vertically beneath WH23-02 and approximately 100 m to the south of the deep early quartz veining, to further test this geologic hypothesis of predictable high-grade zonation and to potentially extend mineralization into an under-drilled portion of the deposit. As predicted, WH24-04 subsequently intersected increasing gold:copper ratio down the drill hole, and over a total mineralized envelope of 591.00 meters at 0.66 g/t AuEq (0.37 g/t Au, 0.15% Cu and 1.48 g/t Ag) starting from 91 meters depth downhole. This mineralization intercept included, within the deeper portion of the envelope, a number of broad high grade zones: 1) 48 m at 1.23 g/t AuEq (0.61 g/t Au, 0.34% Cu and 2.19 g/t Ag) from 260 m downhole. 2) 50 m at 0.98 g/t AuEq (0.73 g/t Au, 0.13% Cu and 1.50 g/t Ag) from 406 m downhole. 3) 116 m at 1.00 g/t AuEq (0.76 g/t Au, 0.13% Cu and 1.75 g/t Ag) from 508 m downhole.  

WH24-03 was designed to test the deep center-north of the Whistler Deposit. The upper part of the hole was primarily designed to infill poorly defined zones of copper-gold mineralization, and the deeper section designed to test a deep exploration target predicated on an observed zone of elevated molybdenum mineralization delineated in previous drilling, which suggested potential for higher grade gold-copper mineralization below this elevated molybdenum zone.

The upper part of the hole intersected post-mineralization late-stage porphyry ("LSP") dykes striking at a shallow angle to the drill azimuth, with the exception of a short interval of high-grade mineralization located between LSP dykes, which returned 12.7 m at 1.96 g/t AuEq (1.30 g/t Au, 0.35% Cu, 2.37 g/t Ag) from 40 meters depth down hole.

The middle section of the drill hole confirmed modelled mineralization grades hosted in Intermineral Porphyry, comprising 139.9 m at 0.47 g/t AuEq (0.21 g/t Au, 0.14% Cu, 0.97 g/t Ag) from 385.08 meters down hole, and including 28 m at 0.85 g/t AuEq (0.41 g/t Au, 0.24% Cu, 1.74 g/t Ag) from 401 meters down hole.

In the lower portion of WH24-03 the postulated higher grade gold-copper mineralization below the elevated molybdenum zone was not intersected, however a newly defined zone of deep early quartz veins with three broad zones of low-grade mineralization was intercepted as follows: 1) 36 m at 0.29 g/t AuEq (0.08 g/t Au, 0.12% Cu and 1.08 g/t Ag) from 643 m depth. 2) 36 m at 0.40 g/t AuEq (0.20 g/t Au, 0.11% Cu and 1.23 g/t Ag) from 731 m depth. 3) 49 m at 0.28 g/t AuEq (0.18 g/t Au, 0.05% Cu and 1.90 g/t Ag) from 868 m depth.

As successfully demonstrated with WH24-02 and WH24-04, the deep early quartz veins potentially underly zones of high-grade gold-copper mineralization. Thus, the region directly overlying this newly identified zone of deep early quartz veining in the lower portion of WH24-03, represents a potential deep target for future follow-up drilling.