New Found Gold Announces Preliminary Economic Assessment and Updated Mineral Resource Estimate for the Hammerdown Gold Project

juniorminingnetwork.com · Feb 27, 2026 · Collected from GDELT

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Mr. Keith Boyle reports: Hub and Spoke Mine Plan in Central Newfoundland: Three deposits, Hammerdown, Orion and Stog'er Tight, centered around the Company's Pine Cove Mill Robust Economics: After-tax NPV5%[1] of $199.2 M[2] using a base case scenario (variable price deck: long-term price of US$3,475/oz averaging US$3,656/oz Au[3]) After-tax NPV5% of $415.1 M using an upside scenario (US$5,000/oz Au) Solid Production over an Extended Mine Life: 251,287 oz Au produced over a 13-year LOM[4] Average LOM total cash costs[5] and AISC[6] of US$2,149/oz Au and US$2,429/oz Au Total after-tax free cash flow[7] of $243.3 M Additional Value Potential from Exploration Upside: Deposits open laterally and to depth; additional target areas being evaluated Exploration planned to commence H2/26 All amounts in Canadian dollars unless stated otherwise Toronto, Ontario--(Newsfile Corp. - February 26, 2026) - New Found Gold Corp. (TSXV: NFG) (NYSE American: NFGC) ("New Found Gold" or the "Company") is pleased to announce the results of a positive Preliminary Economic Assessment ("PEA") and updated mineral resource estimate ("MRE") for the Company's 100% owned Hammerdown Gold Project ("Hammerdown" or the "Project"), which includes the Hammerdown deposit, Orion deposit and Stog'er Tight deposit (collectively, the "Deposits") and the Pine Cove Mill ("Pine Cove" or the "Mill"), located in Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada. The Deposits are evaluated with a Hub and Spokes model centred around Pine Cove, with the Hammerdown deposit currently being ramped up to commercial production. "Today's updated mineral resource and life of mine plan for Hammerdown demonstrates cashflow generation from operations which will offset overhead and exploration costs as we continue to fast-track our flagship Queensway Gold Project towards production in H2/27, taking full advantage of the tremendous synergies through our strategic purchase of Pine Cove and the Nugget Pond gold circuit. This purchase accelerates the development of Queensway by two to three years, coinciding with this exciting gold market," commented Keith Boyle, Chief Executive Officer. "Our team has a demonstrated track record of exploration success in the discovery of orogenic gold deposits in central Newfoundland. With the completion of the Maritime Resources Corp. acquisition just over three months ago, we have commenced evaluation of the exploration upside of the Project. As part of our Hub and Spoke strategy, the mine plan brings in additional resources with the inclusion of the Orion and Stog'er Tight deposits, which were not contemplated in previous mine plans. We look forward to commencing exploration work on our new landholdings later this year," continued Mr. Boyle. [1] NPV5% = net present value at a 5 percent discount rate.[2] M = million.[3] oz Au = ounces of gold; Base case gold price US$4,132 in Year 1, US$4,000 in Year 2, US$3,775 in Year 3, US$3,600 in Year 4 and 5 and US$3,475 thereafter.[4] LOM = life-of-mine.[5] Cash cost is a Non-GAAP measure; See notes below for additional information regarding cash costs.[6] AISC = all in sustaining costs; Note AISC is a Non-GAAP measure; See notes below for additional information regarding AISC.[7] Free cash flow is a Non-GAAP measure; See notes below for additional information regarding free cash flow. Project Overview Hammerdown includes the Company's 100% owned Hammerdown property and Pine Cove property (Figure 1). The Hammerdown property includes the Hammerdown deposit and the Orion deposit; the Pine Cove property includes the Stog'er Tight deposit and Pine Cove, a fully permitted processing plant and tailings facility. The Hammerdown deposit is an open-pit mining deposit with first gold pour in November 2025 and is currently ramping up gold production. Hammerdown is located in the north-central portion of the island of Newfoundland in the Province of Newfoundland and Labrador ("NL") on the east coast of Canada. The Hammerdown and Orion deposits are located approximately 95 kilometres ("km") by road from Pine Cove, which includes a fully permitted and operating processing plant and tailings facility. Commercial production at the Hammerdown deposit is expected to be achieved in H2/26. The Stog'er Tight deposit is located on the Pine Cove property, 4 km east of Pine Cove. The Company's 100% owned flagship Queensway Gold Project ("Queensway") is located approximately 270 km by road from Pine Cove and approximately 15 km west of the town of Gander. Key Outcomes of the PEA: The PEA has returned an after-tax NPV5% of $199.2 M at the base case gold price (variable price deck: long-term price of US$3,475/oz averaging US$3,656/oz Au) and an after-tax NPV5% of $415.1 M at the upside gold price of US$5,000 (Table 1), Over a 13-year period, the total mill feed throughput is expected to be 3.2 million tonnes ("Mt"), with an average mined grade of 2.19 grams of gold per tonne ("g/t Au"), a post-sorting mill feed head grade of 2.89 g/t Au and average annual gold production of approximately 19.3 thousand ounces ("koz") of gold per annum (Figure 2), Average LOM cash costs and AISC of US$2,149/oz and US$2,429/oz, respectively, Total capital costs (with contingency) are estimated at $24.3 M and reclamation, and closure costs are estimated at $18.0 M, The PEA mine plan was developed from Measured and Indicated Mineral Resources of 3,328 kt grading 2.43 grams per tonne ("g/t") gold containing 260,000 ounces of gold and Inferred Mineral Resources of 2,132 kt grading 2.34 g/t gold containing 161,000 ounces of gold. LOM Plan: 13-year open pit project commencing in 2026, including one year of stockpile rehandling in 2038 (Figure 2), Continuation of the conventional open pit truck-and-shovel operation executed by a mining contractor, as currently underway at the Hammerdown deposit, Process plant feed rate of 700 tonnes per day ("tpd") with the addition of sorting at the Hammerdown and Orion deposits, Hammerdown deposit pit mined in multiple phases, followed by the Orion deposit pit and four Stog'er Tight deposit pits sequentially, The Hammerdown deposit accounts for 75% of mineralized material mined (82% of recovered gold), with mining taking place in this zone from year 1 to year 10 and the Orion and Stog'er Tight deposits account for 25% of mineralized material mined (18% of recovered gold), which will be mined from year 8 to year 12, The average material mined, consisting of mineralized material, waste rock and overburden, is 12,300 tpd during the LOM, ranging between 11,800 tpd and 18,400 tpd from year 1 to year 6 and between 2,500 tpd and 13,700 tpd from year 7 to year 12, The average strip ratio over the LOM is 11.4, with total material mined of 54.1 Mt including 4.4 Mt of mineralized material at an average grade of 2.19 g/t Au, With sorting, a total of 3.2 Mt of mineralized material at an average grade of 2.89 g/t Au will be processed with total gold recovery of 251.3 koz of gold; Process plant average gold recovery for the zones being mined from year 1 to year 4 is estimated to be 87.2% and 84.3% thereafter, with LOM average gold recovery of 85.5%. Table 1: Hammerdown Gold Project PEA Summary: Key Metrics and Project Economics. Production1 2026 PEA Units LOM 13 years Total Potential Mill Feed Tonnage 3,159 kt Average Mined Grade 2.19 g/t Au Mill Feed Head Grade (Post-Sorting) 2.89 g/t Au Cut-off Grade (Range Depending on Deposit) 0.41-0.56 g/t Au Process Plant Average Gold Recovery 85.5 % Contained Gold 306.6 koz Recovered Gold 251.3 koz Average Annual Gold Production 19.3 koz/yr Average Mineralized Material Mining Rate (Post Sorting) 700 tpd Strip Ratio 11.4:1 waste:ore Operating & Capital Costs1 Total Operating Costs1,2 725.9 $M Sustaining Capital Costs (with contingency) 97.7 $M Total Capital Costs (with Contingency) 24.3 $M Reclamation and Closure Capital 18.0 $M Royalty NSR 17.4 $M Total Cash Cost 2,149 US$/oz Au AISC (LOM) 2,429 US$/oz Au Financial Summary Gold Price (Average LOM Base Case) 3,656 US$/oz Au Exchange Rate 1.39 C$/US$ Discount Rate 5 % Pre-Tax NPV5% (Base Case Gold Price: US$3,656 average LOM) 318.5 $M After-Tax NPV5% (Base Case Gold Price: US$3,656 average LOM) 199.2 $M Pre-Tax NPV5% (Upside Gold Price: US$5,000) 680.8 $M After-Tax NPV5% (Upside Case Gold Price: US$5,000) 415.1 $M Internal Rate of Return N/A - Payback Period N/A - Notes:1 Denotes a "specified financial measure" within the meaning of National Instrument 52-112 - non-GAAP and Other Financial Measures Disclosure. See note on "Non-IFRS Financial Measures".2 Total operating costs refer to onsite charges that cover open pit mining, processing and material handling, and onsite general and administrative costs.3 AISC is calculated as the sum of doré transportation, treatment and refining charges, royalties, onsite operating costs, and sustaining capital costs, divided by the quantity of ounces sold. The PEA is preliminary in nature, it includes Inferred Mineral Resources that are considered too speculative geologically to have economic considerations applied to them that would enable them to be categorized as Mineral Reserves, and there is no certainty that the PEA will be realized. No Mineral Reserves are defined for the Project. Figure 1: Hammerdown Gold Project: Location Map. Figure 2: Hammerdown Gold Project: Gold Production by Year with Mill Feed Head Grade and AISC. Mineral Resource Estimate Mineral Resources are reported for the Hammerdown, Orion, and Stog'er Tight deposits, which are planned to share Pine Cove. Measured and Indicated Mineral Resources ("M&I") for the projects combined total 3.328 Mt at an average gold grade of 2.43 g/t Au for 260,000 contained ounces of gold. Inferred Mineral Resources total 2.132 Mt at an average grade of 2.34 g/t Au for 161,000 ounces of gold (Table 2). Table 2: Hammerdown Gold Project Consolidated MRE (effective date January 22, 2026)12. Property Deposit Mining Method Category Tonnage (kt) Grade (g/t Au) Contained Oz (koz)3