Positive PEA For The Rowan Project

VANCOUVER – West Red Lake Gold Mines Ltd. reported on the positive Preliminary Economic Assessment (PEA) prepared in accordance with National Instrument 43-101 – Standards of Disclosure for Mineral Projects (NI 43-101) for a toll milling mine operation at the Rowan project in the Red Lake Gold District of northwestern Ontario, Canada.

High-Grade Efficient Mine: Underground mine via long hole retreat method, delivering an average diluted head grade of 8.0 grams per tonne (“g/t”) gold “Au), accentuated by 10.4 g/t Au average grade in Year 1. Notable Production: 35,230 oz. average annual Au production over the 5-year mine life from an average mining rate of 385 tonnes per day (tpd).

Strong Value: $125.3M post-tax Net Present Value (NPV) at US$2,500 per oz Au. Post-tax NPV rises to $239M at US$3,250 per oz Au. Low Costs and Strong Returns: US$1,408/oz all-in sustaining cost (AISC) and 41.9% post-tax internal rate of return (IRR), underscoring the viability of the Company’s second potential mine in the region. IRR increases to 81.7% at a US$3,250/oz gold price. Modest Initial Capital: Multiple mills in the area with excess capacity create the opportunity to develop Rowan as a toll milling operation with initial capital of just over $70 million.

High Confidence Inventory: PEA mine design includes 63% of mined tonnes and 72% of mined ounces from the Indicated category – provides solid base for transition into prefeasibility study (PFS) level assessment. Simple Metallurgy: Free gold-dominant mineralization resulting in 75.8% to 94.9% gold recovery through gravity processing during metallurgical test work, which also supports toll milling potential. Development and Permitting Timeline: The Company plans to complete a Pre Feasibility Study (PFS) on the Rowan Project by Q3 2026, to continue advancing this valuable opportunity. The final year of 3-year baseline environmental data collection period is underway and the Company has been engaging with the regulators to support an expedited permitting process.  New Bill 5 legislation in Ontario is intended to speed up the mine approval process.  The WRLG team will work with the regulators and its Indigenous partners to permit and construct the Rowan Mine.

There are multiple opportunities to define additional mineralization at Rowan by (1) expansion drilling on the two main veins of the deposit included in this PEA mine plan (v001 and v004) especially at depth, (2) infill and expansion drilling on parallel veins adjacent to the PEA mine plan with data gaps stemming from selective historic drill sampling, (3) drill testing expansion targets along strike from the Rowan vein system, and (4) testing high potential new targets at the property including Apex and Big Bend.

“Rowan is a high grade, relatively wide, nearly vertical deposit that starts at surface and this PEA captures how such designed-for-mining characteristics lead to strong economics,” said Shane Williams, President and CEO. “There is ample opportunity to grow the resource further at Rowan along strike, at depth, and via discovery at new nearby targets, but we ideally want to do that work while turning this asset into a mine sending high-grade mineralization to an operating mill in the area and potentially generating significant revenue for the Company.

A NPV of $239 million at close-to-spot gold pricing provides a compelling case to advance Rowan swiftly from here. We plan to advance engineering work while completing a drill program to infill gaps that prevented parts of the resource from being considered in the mine plan and upgrade roughly 37% of the mine plan tonnes that currently sits within the inferred resource category. That work will inform and maximize the value outlined in a PFS that we target issuing within 12 months that would be completed in tandem with permitting efforts at Rowan. It is also positive that the recent enactment of Bill 5 in Ontario creates potential for a simplified, collaborative, and expedited permitting process.”