Casa Grande, AZ and Toronto, ON, January 31, 2025 – Arizona Sonoran Copper Company Inc. (TSX:ASCU | OTCQX:ASCUF) (“ASCU” or the “Company”), an emerging US copper developer, is pleased to announce that further to its press release dated January 9, 2025 (the “January 9 PR”), it has closed its private placement with Hudbay Minerals Inc. (“Hudbay”) of 11,955,270 common shares at a price of C$1.68 for gross proceeds to the Company of C$20,084,853 million (the “Hudbay Placement”). Additionally, Nuton LLC (“Nuton”), a Rio Tinto Venture, exercised its pre-emptive rights in respect of the Hudbay Placement, pursuant to the terms of its investor rights agreement, to maintain its 7.2% equity interest in the Company for gross proceeds of C$1,562,210 (the “Nuton Placement”). Pursuant to the Hudbay Placement and the Nuton Placement, the Company issued a total of 12,885,157 common shares at a price of C$1.68 per share for aggregate gross proceeds of C$21,647,064 to the Company (the “Private Placement”). The subscription by Hudbay reflects the base offering of 11,852,064 common shares as well as top-up shares of 103,206 common shares to achieve its 9.99% ownership of the Company after giving effect to the Private Placement. 

ASCU President and CEO, George Ogilvie commented, “With the completion of this financing, our company is fully funded with additional runway to complete our 2025 work programs. Our main deliverable in 2025 is the preparation of updated technical data on the entire Parks/Salyer deposit and producing a Pre-Feasibility Study in the second half of the year. We are excited to welcome Hudbay as a strategic investor of the Company; an endorsement by a well-known and sophisticated entity. Hudbay has significant experience in mine development and construction, and we look forward to tapping into that wealth of knowledge as we continue to de-risk the Cactus Project through the remaining study phases to an eventual final investment decision, followed by construction and development. We also value the ongoing support of and partnership with Nuton.”

Concurrent with the closing of the Hudbay Placement, ASCU and Hudbay executed an investor rights agreement substantially on the terms disclosed in the January 9 PR. A copy of the investor rights agreement will be available in due course on SEDAR+ (www.sedarplus.ca) under the Company’s issuer profile. 

Proceeds of the Private Placement are to be allocated for drilling, exploration, technical studies advancement of the Company’s Cactus Project, and for general corporate purposes. 
The common shares issued under the Private Placement are subject to a statutory hold period under applicable Canadian securities laws, expiring four months after closing the transaction. The Private Placement is subject to the final approval of the Toronto Stock Exchange.

Scotiabank acted as financial advisor, and Bennett Jones LLP as legal advisor, to the Company, in connection with the Private Placement.

Neither the Toronto Stock Exchange nor the regulating authority has approved or disproved the information contained in this press release. 

About Arizona Sonoran Copper Company (www.arizonasonoran.com | www.cactusmine.com)
ASCU is a copper exploration and development company with a 100% interest in the brownfield Cactus Project. The Project, on privately held land, contains a large-scale porphyry copper resource and a recent PEA proposes a generational open pit copper mine with robust economic returns. Cactus is a lower risk copper developer benefitting from a state-led permitting process, in place infrastructure, highways and rail lines at its doorstep and onsite permitted water access. The Company objective is to develop Cactus and become a mid-tier copper producer with low operating costs, that could generate robust returns and provide a long-term sustainable and responsible operation for the community, investors and all stakeholders. The Company is led by an executive management team and Board which have a long-standing track record of successful project delivery in North America complemented by global capital markets expertise. 

For more information
Alison Dwoskin, Director, Investor Relations 
647-233-4348
adwoskin@arizonasonoran.com

George Ogilvie, President, CEO and Director 
416-723-0458
gogilvie@arizonasonoran.com
    
Cautionary Statements regarding Forward-Looking Statements and Other Matters
Forward-Looking Statements
All statements, other than statements of historical fact, contained or incorporated by reference in this press release constitute “forward-looking statements” and “forward-looking information” (collectively, “forward-looking statements”) within the meaning of applicable Canadian and United States securities legislation. Generally, these forward-looking statements can be identified by the use of forward-looking terminology such as “advancement”, “assumptions”, “become”, “continue”, “could”, “deliverable”, “delivery”, “develop”, “development”, “emerging”, “estimates”, “expected”, “exploration”, “eventual”, “feasibility”, “followed”, “forward”, “future”, “generational”, “going”, “long-term”, “looking”, “near-term”, “objective”, “phases”, “plan”, “proposes”, “risk”, “runway”, “study”, “subject to”, “to be”, and “upgrading”, or variations of such words, and similar such words, expressions or statements that certain actions, events or results can, could, may, should, would, will (or not) be achieved, occur, provide, result or support in the future, or which, by their nature, refer to future events. In some cases, forward-looking information may be stated in the present tense, such as in respect of current matters that may be continuing, or that may have a future impact or effect.  Forward-looking statements include the use of proceeds of the Private Placement; the timing and ability of the Company to receive final approval of the Toronto Stock Exchange in respect of the Private Placement; the advancement and future of the Cactus Project (including the 2025 work programs and other operations, copper production, returns (economic or otherwise)); the PEA and results thereof; the preparation of an updated technical data on Parks/Salyer (including the timing thereof); the amount of funding required to complete the 2025 work program; the completion and delivery of a Pre-Feasibility Study and other studies on the Cactus Project (including the timing thereof); any eventual investment decision on, or development or construction of the Cactus Project; copper resource at the Cactus Project; permitting; operating costs; any upside in value and/or delivered back to shareholders, sustainability and risk; the Company’s objectives (including the Cactus Project becoming a significant producer of copper cathodes in Arizona and the U.S.); the future plans or prospects of the Company (including sustainability of the Cactus Project and becoming a mid-tier copper producer); and the impact of Hudbay’s and Nuton’s investment and support in respect of the Company and its projects. Although the Company believes that such statements are reasonable, there can be no assurance that those forward-looking statements will prove to be correct, and any forward-looking statements by the Company are not guarantees of future actions, results or performance. Forward-looking statements are based on assumptions, estimates, expectations and opinions, which are considered reasonable and represent best judgment based on available facts, as of the date such statements are made. If such assumptions, estimates, expectations and opinions prove to be incorrect, actual and future results may be materially different than expressed or implied in the forward-looking statements.  The assumptions, estimates, expectations and opinions referenced, contained or incorporated by reference in this press release which may prove to be incorrect include those set forth or referenced in this press release, as well as those stated in the technical report for the Cactus Project filed on August 27, 2024 (the “2024 PEA Technical Report”), the Company’s Annual Information Form dated April 1, 2024 (the “AIF”), Management’s Discussion and Analysis (together with the accompanying financial statements) for the year ended December 31, 2023 and the quarters already ended in 2024 (collectively, the “2023-24 Financial Disclosure”) and the Company’s other applicable public disclosure (collectively, “Company Disclosure”), all available on the Company’s website at www.arizonasonoran.com and under its issuer profile at www.sedarplus.ca. Forward-looking statements are inherently subject to known and unknown risks, uncertainties, contingencies and other factors which may cause the actual results, performance or achievements of ASCU to be materially different from any future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by the forward-looking statements. Such risks, uncertainties, contingencies and other factors include, among others, the “Risk Factors” in the AIF, and the risks, uncertainties, contingencies and other factors identified in the 2024 PEA Technical Report and the 2023-24 Financial Disclosure. The foregoing list of risks, uncertainties, contingencies and other factors is not exhaustive; readers should consult the more complete discussion of the Company’s business, financial condition and prospects that is provided in the AIF, the 2023-24 Financial Disclosure and other Company Disclosure. Although ASCU has attempted to identify important factors that could cause actual actions, events or results to differ materially from those described in forward-looking statements, there may be other factors that cause actions, events or results to differ from those anticipated, estimated or intended. Forward-looking statements contained herein are made as of the date of this press release (or as otherwise expressly specified) and ASCU disclaims any intention or obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or results or otherwise, except as required by applicable securities laws. There can be no assurance that such information will prove to be accurate, as actual results and future events could differ materially from forward-looking statements. Accordingly, readers should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements. The forward-looking statements referenced or contained in this press release are expressly qualified by these Cautionary Statements as well as the Cautionary Statements in the AIF, the 2024 PEA Technical Report, the 2023-24 Financial Disclosure and other Company Disclosure.

Preliminary Economic Assessments
The Preliminary Economic Assessment (or PEA) referenced in this press release and summarized in the 2024 PEA Technical Report is only a conceptual study of the potential viability of the Cactus Project and the economic and technical viability of the Cactus Project has not been demonstrated. The PEA is preliminary in nature and provides only an initial, high-level review of the Cactus Project’s potential and design options; there is no certainty that the PEA will be realized. For further detail on the Cactus Project and the PEA, including applicable technical notes and cautionary statements, please refer to the Company’s press release dated August 7, 2024 and the 2024 PEA Technical Report, both available on the Company’s website at www.arizonasonoran.com and under its issuer profile at www.sedarplus.ca.

Mineral Resource Estimates
Until mineral deposits are actually mined and processed, copper and other mineral resources must be considered as estimates only. Mineral resource estimates that are not classified as mineral reserves do not have demonstrated economic viability. The estimation of mineral resources is inherently uncertain, involves subjective judgement about many relevant factors and may be materially affected by, among other things, environmental, permitting, legal, title, taxation, socio-political, marketing, or other known and unknown risks, uncertainties, contingencies and other factors described in the foregoing Cautionary Statements on Forward-Looking Statements. The quantity and grade of reported “inferred” mineral resource estimates are uncertain in nature and there has been insufficient exploration to define “inferred” mineral resource estimates as an “indicated” or “measured” mineral resource and it is uncertain if further exploration will result in upgrading “inferred” mineral resource estimates to an “indicated” or “measured” mineral resource category. Inferred mineral resource estimates may not form the basis of feasibility or pre-feasibility studies or economic studies except for preliminary economic assessments. The accuracy of any mineral resource estimate is a function of the quantity and quality of available data, and of the assumptions made and judgments used in engineering and geological interpretation, which may prove to be unreliable and depend, to a certain extent, upon the analysis of drilling results and statistical inferences that may ultimately prove to be inaccurate. It cannot be assumed that all or any part of a “inferred”, “indicated” or “measured” mineral resource estimate will ever be upgraded to a higher category including a mineral reserve. The mineral resource estimates declared by the Company were estimated, categorized and reported using standards and definitions in accordance with the Canadian Institute of Mining, Metallurgy and Petroleum Definition Standards for Mineral Resources and Mineral Reserves (the “CIM Standards”) in accordance with National Instrument 43-101 of the Canadian Securities Administrators (“NI 43-101”), which governs the public disclosure of scientific and technical information concerning mineral projects.
U.S. Readers
The terms “mineral resource”, “measured mineral resource”, “indicated mineral resource” and “inferred mineral resource” as disclosed by the Company are Canadian mining terms defined in the CIM Standards (collectively, the “CIM Definitions”) in accordance with NI 43-101. NI 43-101 establishes standards for all public disclosure that a Canadian issuer makes of scientific and technical information concerning mineral projects. These Canadian standards differ from the requirements of the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”) applicable to United States domestic and certain foreign reporting companies under Subpart 1300 of Regulation S-K (“S-K 1300”). Accordingly, information describing mineral resource estimates for the Cactus Project may not be comparable to similar information publicly reported in accordance with the applicable requirements of the SEC, and so there can be no assurance that any mineral resource estimate for the Cactus Project would be the same had the estimates been prepared per the SEC’s reporting and disclosure requirements under applicable United States federal securities laws, and the rules and regulations thereunder, including but not limited to S-K 1300. Further, there is no assurance that any mineral resource or mineral reserve estimate that the Company may report under NI 43-101 would be the same had the Company prepared such estimates under S-K 1300.

Gunnison Copper Corp. (TSX: GCU) (OTCQB: GCUMF) (FSE: 3XS) (“Gunnison”) and Rio Tinto venture Nuton LLC have been selected to receive US$13.9 million in tax credits (the “48C tax credit”) under the Qualifying Advanced Energy Project Credit Program (the “48C program”) to expand production of Made in America copper, which is designated a Critical Material for Energy, from its Johnson Camp Mine in Southern Arizona.

The competitive process for funding was managed by the U.S. Department of Energy as advisor to the Internal Revenue Service (“IRS”), which selected recipients based on an extensive review of each project. “We are honored to receive this significant support from the Department of Energy and the IRS,” said Stephen Twyerould, CEO of Gunnison Copper. “This tax credit will allow us to produce significant quantities of copper metal domestically in the United States to directly supply American production in a variety of critical industries such as energy and defense.”

Gunnison is expanding the Johnson Camp Mine, which is under construction, with first copper production expected in mid-2025. The asset is fully funded by Nuton LLC, a Rio Tinto venture, with a production capacity of up to 25 million pounds of finished copper cathode annually.

“The goal of 48C is to support projects that achieve a cleaner and more sustainable energy future. At Nuton, our ambition is to redefine how copper is produced by applying nature-based technologies that achieve more positive social, economic and environmental outcomes,” said Adam Burley, CEO of Nuton. “Our first industrial-scale deployment of the Nuton technology at Johnson Camp is a major step on the journey to achieving that ambition.”

“I am very pleased with the government support for this project.” Said Fred DuVal, Chairman of Gunnison Copper. “We remain committed to providing good jobs, paying prevailing wages, for Cochise County residents and to developing our partnership with Cochise College to implement an apprenticeship program for labor on behalf of Gunnison.”

The 48C tax credit is part of the US$10 billion in funding under the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 (“IRA”) to intensify clean energy manufacturing and recycling, industrial decarbonization, and critical materials projects in the US. In March 2024, the IRS allocated $4 billion in 48C credits. In April 2024, the Department of the Treasury and the Internal Revenue Service, in partnership with DOE, announced up to $6 billion in a second round of tax credit allocations and Gunnison and Nuton applied for these credits for the Johnson Camp project. Under the IRA, a qualifying advanced energy project credit can either be monetized through its sale for cash or by using it to offset income tax liability. Realization of the full amount of this tax credit is subject to satisfaction of the requirements set forth in Section 48C of the Internal Revenue Code including certification of the operational and employment plans set out in the application.

The tax partnership has a period of two years within which to satisfy the certification requirements and claim the tax credits.

The actual allocation of the 48C tax credits as between Gunnison and Nuton will be determined in a tax partnership agreement that will be entered into between the parties. Final details will be confirmed in a subsequent press release.

ABOUT GUNNISON COPPER

Gunnison Copper Corp. is a multi-asset pure-play copper developer and producer that controls the Cochise Mining District (the district), containing 12 known deposits within an 8 km economic radius, in the Southern Arizona Copper Belt.

Its flagship asset, the Gunnison Copper Project, has a measured and indicated mineral resource containing over 831 million tons with a total copper grade of 0.31% (measured mineral resource of 191.3 million tons at 0.37% and indicated mineral resource of 640.2 million tons at 0.29%), and yielding robust economics including an NPV8% of $1.3Billion, IRR of 20.9%, and payback period of 4.1 years. It is being developed as a conventional operation with open pit mining, heap leach, and SX/EW refinery to produce finished copper cathode on-site with direct rail link.

The PEA is preliminary in nature and includes inferred mineral resources that are considered too speculative geologically to have the economic considerations applied to them that would enable them to be categorized as mineral reserves. There is no certainty that the conclusions reached in the PEA will be realized. Mineral resources that are not mineral reserves do not have demonstrated economic viability.

In addition, Gunnison’s Johnson Camp Asset, which is under construction with first copper production expected in mid 2025, is fully funded by Nuton LLC, a Rio Tinto Venture, with a production capacity of up to 25 million lbs of finished copper cathode annually.

Other significant deposits controlled by Gunnison in the district, with potential to be economic satellite feeder deposits for Gunnison Project infrastructure, include Strong and Harris, South Star, and eight other deposits.

For additional information on the Gunnison Project please refer to the Company’s technical report entitled “Gunnison Project NI 43-101 Technical Report Preliminary Economic Assessment” dated effective November 1, 2024 and available on SEDAR+ at www.sedarplus.ca.

Dr. Stephen Twyerould, Fellow of AUSIMM, President and CEO of the Company is a Qualified Person as defined by NI 43-101. Mr. Twyerould has reviewed and is responsible for the technical information contained in this news release.

For more information on Gunnison, please visit our website at www.GunnisonCopper.com

ABOUT NUTON

Nuton, a subsidiary of Rio Tinto, is an innovative venture focused on finding better ways to produce the copper the world needs with the smallest possible environmental footprint. At the core of Nuton is a portfolio of proprietary nature-based leaching technologies and capabilities that offer the potential to economically unlock copper through bio-heap leaching, including from primary sulfide resources, achieving market-leading recovery rates and increasing copper production at new and ongoing operations. One of the key differentiators of Nuton is our ambition to produce the world’s lowest carbon footprint copper while having at least one Positive Impact at each deployment site across five pillars: water, energy, land, materials and society.

To learn more about Nuton, visit https://nuton.tech/

For further information regarding this press release, please contact:

Gunnison Copper Corp.
Concord Place, Suite 300, 2999 North 44th Street, Phoenix, AZ, 85018
Shawn Westcott
T: 604.365.6681
E: info@GunnisonCopper.com
www.GunnisonCopper.com

Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Information

This news release contains “forward-looking information” concerning anticipated developments and events that may occur in the future. Forward looking information contained in this news release includes, but is not limited to, statements with respect to: (i) the intention to deploy the Nuton® technology at the Johnson Camp mine and future production therefrom; (ii) the continued funding of the stage 2 work program by Nuton; (iii) the details and expected results of the stage two work program; (iv) future production and production capacity from the Company’s mineral projects; (v) the results of the preliminary economic assessment on the Gunnison Project; (vi) the exploration and development of the Company’s mineral projects; (vii) the satisfaction of final conditions and receipt of 48C tax credits; (viii) the direct supply of American production in a variety of critical industries such as energy and defense.

In certain cases, forward-looking information can be identified by the use of words such as “plans”, “expects” or “does not expect”, “budget”, “scheduled”, “estimates”, “forecasts”, “intends”, “anticipates” or “does not anticipate”, or “believes”, or variations of such words and phrases or state that certain actions, events or results “may”, “could”, “would”, “might”, “occur” or “be achieved” suggesting future outcomes, or other expectations, beliefs, plans, objectives, assumptions, intentions or statements about future events or performance. Forward-looking information contained in this news release is based on certain factors and assumptions regarding, among other things, Nuton will continue to fund the stage 2 work program, the availability of financing to continue as a going concern and implement the Company’s operational plans, the allocation of the 48C tax credits between the Company and Nuton, the satisfaction of the requirements set forth in Section 48C of the Internal Revenue Code, the estimation of mineral resources, the realization of resource and reserve estimates, , copper and other metal prices, the timing and amount of future development expenditures, the estimation of initial and sustaining capital requirements, the estimation of labour and operating costs (including the price of acid), the availability of labour, material and acid supply, receipt of and compliance with necessary regulatory approvals and permits, the estimation of insurance coverage, and assumptions with respect to currency fluctuations, environmental risks, title disputes or claims, and other similar matters. While the Company considers these assumptions to be reasonable based on information currently available to it, they may prove to be incorrect.

Forward looking information involves known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors which may cause the actual results, performance or achievements of the Company to be materially different from any future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by the forward-looking information. Such factors include risks related to the Company not obtaining adequate financing to continue operations, Nuton failing to continue to fund the stage 2 work program, the failure to satisfy the requirements set forth in Section 48C of the Internal Revenue Code, 100% of the 48C tax credits may be allocated to repay capital expenditures for the Johnson Camp mine, the breach of debt covenants, risks inherent in the construction and operation of mineral deposits, including risks relating to changes in project parameters as plans continue to be redefined including the possibility that mining operations may not be sustained at the Gunnison Copper Project, risks related to the delay in approval of work plans, variations in mineral resources and reserves, grade or recovery rates, risks relating to the ability to access infrastructure, risks relating to changes in copper and other commodity prices and the worldwide demand for and supply of copper and related products, risks related to increased competition in the market for copper and related products, risks related to current global financial conditions, risks related to current global financial conditions on the Company’s business, uncertainties inherent in the estimation of mineral resources, access and supply risks, risks related to the ability to access acid supply on commercially reasonable terms, reliance on key personnel, operational risks inherent in the conduct of mining activities, including the risk of accidents, labour disputes, increases in capital and operating costs and the risk of delays or increased costs that might be encountered during the construction or mining process, regulatory risks including the risk that permits may not be obtained in a timely fashion or at all, financing, capitalization and liquidity risks, risks related to disputes concerning property titles and interests, environmental risks and the additional risks identified in the “Risk Factors” section of the Company’s reports and filings with applicable Canadian securities regulators.

Although the Company has attempted to identify important factors that could cause actual actions, events or results to differ materially from those described in forward-looking information, there may be other factors that cause actions, events or results not to be as anticipated, estimated or intended. Accordingly, readers should not place undue reliance on forward-looking information. The forward-looking information is made as of the date of this news release. Except as required by applicable securities laws, the Company does not undertake any obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking information.

VANCOUVER, CANADA (December 23, 2024) – Aldebaran Resources Inc. (“Aldebaran” or the “Company”) (TSX-V: ALDE, OTCQX: ADBRF) is pleased to announce that Nuton Holdings Ltd. (“Nuton”), a Rio Tinto venture, has confirmed it will make the second payment (US$20 Million) pursuant to the Option to Joint Venture Agreement with Aldebaran announced on November 7, 2024. Aldebaran anticipates receiving the payment in early January 2025.

Transaction Details

Aldebaran entered into an Option to Joint Venture Agreement with Nuton, whereby Nuton has the exclusive right to acquire a 20% interest in the Altar project by making the following payments:

• US$10 Million upon signing (paid)
• US$20 Million upon delivery of an updated mineral resource estimate (payment confirmed)
• US$30 Million upon delivery of a Preliminary Economic Assessment
  • PEA expected to be completed in Q2-2025
• US$190 Million upon delivery of a Pre-Feasibility Study
  • PFS expected to be completed in H2-2026

On Behalf Of The Aldebaran Board

(signed) “John Black”

John Black
Chief Executive Officer and Director
Tel: +1 (604) 685-6800
Email: info@aldebaranresources.com

Please click here and subscribe to receive future news releases: https://aldebaranresources.com/contact/subscribe/

For further information, please consult our website at www.aldebaranresources.com or contact:

Ben Cherrington
Manager, Investor Relations
Phone: +1 347 394-2728 or +44 7538 244 208
Email: ben.cherrington@aldebaranresources.com

About Aldebaran Resources Inc.

Aldebaran is a mineral exploration company that was spun out of Regulus Resources Inc. in 2018 and has the same core management team. Aldebaran holds a 60% interest in the Altar copper-gold project in San Juan Province, Argentina and can earn an additional 20% interest in the project by completing a further $25 million in expenditures at Altar over the next three years. The Altar project hosts multiple porphyry copper-gold deposits with potential for additional discoveries. Altar forms part of a cluster of world-class porphyry copper deposits which includes Los Pelambres (Antofagasta Minerals), El Pachón (Glencore), and Los Azules (McEwen Copper). In November 2024, the Company announced an updated mineral resource estimate for Altar, prepared by Independent Mining Consultants, Inc., including the three main porphyry discoveries (Altar Central, Altar East, and Altar United) reported within a single conceptual open pit (see Company news release dated November 25, 2024).

Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

Forward-Looking Statements

Certain statements regarding Aldebaran, including management’s assessment of future-plans and operations, may constitute forward-looking statements under applicable securities laws and necessarily involve known and unknown risks and uncertainties, most of which are beyond Aldebaran’s control. Often, but not always, forward-looking statements or information can be identified by the use of words such as “plans”, “expects” or “does not expect”, “is expected”, “budget”, “scheduled”, “estimates”, “forecasts”, “intends”, “anticipates” or “does not anticipate” or “believes” or variations of such words and phrases or statements that certain actions, events or results “may”, “could”, “would”, “might” or “will” be taken, occur or be achieved.

Specifically, and without limitation, all statements included in this press release that address activities, events or developments that Aldebaran expects or anticipates will or may occur in the future, including the proposed exploration and development of the Altar project described herein, and management’s assessment of future plans and operations and statements with respect to the completion of the anticipated exploration and development programs, may constitute forward-looking statements under applicable securities laws and necessarily involve known and unknown risks and uncertainties, most of which are beyond Aldebaran’s control. These risks may cause actual financial and operating results, performance, levels of activity and achievements to differ materially from those expressed in, or implied by, such forward-looking statements. Although Aldebaran believes that the expectations represented in such forward-looking statements are reasonable, there can be no assurance that such expectations will prove to be correct. The forward-looking statements contained in this press release are made as of the date hereof and Aldebaran does not undertake any obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statements or information, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, unless so required by applicable securities law.

TORONTO, Oct. 24, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — McEwen Copper Inc., a subsidiary of McEwen Mining Inc. (NYSE: MUX) (TSX: MUX), is pleased to announce closing of an additional $35 million investment by Nuton LLC, a Rio Tinto Venture.

McEwen Copper previously announced a non-brokered private placement financing of up to 2,333,333 common shares at a subscription price of US$30.00 per common share, for gross proceeds of up to US$70 million (the “Offering”). The first tranche of the Offering was led by a $14 million investment by McEwen Mining and a $5 million investment by Rob McEwen.

In this second tranche of the Offering, Nuton (a Rio Tinto Venture) has purchased an additional 1,166,666 common shares of McEwen Copper for $35 million and two other investors have acquired 66,669 common shares for $2 million. Following the closing of this second tranche of the Offering, McEwen Copper has raised a total of $56 million.

Nuton now owns 17.2% of McEwen Copper on a fully diluted basis. Following these share issuances, McEwen Copper will have 32,804,284 common shares outstanding, giving it a post-money market value of $984 million, and its shareholders are: McEwen Mining Inc. 46.4%, Stellantis 18.3%, Nuton 17.2%, Rob McEwen 12.7%, Victor Smorgon Group 3.0%, and other shareholders 2.0%.

Proceeds from the Offering will be used to advance ongoing work on the feasibility study for the Los Azules copper project, which is scheduled for publication in the first half of 2025.

Subscription for the remaining 466,664 common shares in the Offering is available to qualified accredited investors, subject to a US$1 million minimum investment and certain other conditions. The securities sold in the Offering are private and subject to transfer restrictions until such time when they become listed on a public exchange.

This press release shall not constitute an offer to sell or the solicitation of an offer to buy, nor shall there be any sale of these securities in any jurisdiction in which such offer, solicitation or sale would be unlawful.

About Nuton

Nuton is an innovative venture that aims to help grow Rio Tinto’s copper business. At the core of Nuton is a portfolio of proprietary copper leaching related technologies and capability – a product of almost 30 years of research and development. Nuton offers the potential to economically unlock copper from primary sulfide resources through leaching, achieving market-leading recovery rates and contributing to an increase in copper production at new and ongoing operations. One of the key differentiators of Nuton is the ambition to produce the world’s lowest footprint copper while having at least one Positive Impact at each of our deployment sites, across our five pillars: water, energy, land, materials and society.

About McEwen Copper

McEwen Copper Inc. holds a 100% interest in the Los Azules copper project in San Juan, Argentina and the Elder Creek copper/gold project in Nevada, USA.

Los Azules was ranked in the top 10 largest undeveloped copper deposits in the world by Mining Intelligence (2022). A PEA published in June 2023 for the project estimated a $2.7 billion after-tax NPV8% at $3.75/lb Cu, a 27-year mine life, and an updated copper resource of 10.9 billion pounds at grade 0.40% Cu (Indicated category) and an additional 26.7 billion pounds at grade 0.31% Cu (Inferred category). For more details about the Los Azules PEA click here.

CAUTION CONCERNING FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS

This news release contains certain forward-looking statements and information, including “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. The forward-looking statements and information expressed, as at the date of this news release, McEwen Mining Inc.’s (the “Company”) estimates, forecasts, projections, expectations or beliefs as to future events and results. Forward-looking statements and information are necessarily based upon a number of estimates and assumptions that, while considered reasonable by management, are inherently subject to significant business, economic and competitive uncertainties, risks and contingencies, and there can be no assurance that such statements and information will prove to be accurate. Therefore, actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated in such statements and information. Risks and uncertainties that could cause results or future events to differ materially from current expectations expressed or implied by the forward-looking statements and information include, but are not limited to, fluctuations in the market price of precious metals, mining industry risks, political, economic, social and security risks associated with foreign operations, the ability of the corporation to receive or receive in a timely manner permits or other approvals required in connection with operations, risks associated with the construction of mining operations and commencement of production and the projected costs thereof, risks related to litigation, the state of the capital markets, environmental risks and hazards, uncertainty as to calculation of mineral resources and reserves, and other risks. Readers should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements or information included herein, which speak only as of the date hereof. The Company undertakes no obligation to reissue or update forward-looking statements or information as a result of new information or events after the date hereof except as may be required by law. See McEwen Mining’s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2023 and other filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, under the caption “Risk Factors”, for additional information on risks, uncertainties and other factors relating to the forward-looking statements and information regarding the Company. All forward-looking statements and information made in this news release are qualified by this cautionary statement.

The NYSE and TSX have not reviewed and do not accept responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of the contents of this news release, which has been prepared by management of McEwen Mining Inc.

About McEwen Mining

McEwen Mining is a gold and silver producer with operations in Nevada, Canada, Mexico and Argentina. In addition, it owns approximately 46.4% of McEwen Copper which owns the large, advanced stage Los Azules copper project in Argentina. The Company’s goal is to improve the productivity and life of its assets with the objective of increasing its share price and providing a yield. Rob McEwen, Chairman and Chief Owner, has personally invested $225 million in the companies and takes an annual salary of $1.

Phoenix, Arizona–(Newsfile Corp. – October 21, 2024) – Excelsior Mining Corp. (TSX: MIN) (OTCQB: EXMGF) (FSE: 3XS) (“Excelsior” or the “Company”) is pleased to announce that it has received all permits to commence operations at the Johnson Camp Mine (“JCM”) in southeast Arizona, which will produce Made in America copper expected to be used domestically to strengthen American supply chains. First copper production is anticipated in H1 of 2025.

Excelsior received the amended Mined Land Reclamation Plan (MLRP) approval from the State of Arizona. The MLRP, along with the recently approved Air Quality Permit (AQP) and the Aquifer Protection Permit (APP), means that all approvals needed to start the production of copper at JCM have been received.

“This final permit is a key milestone bringing us one step closer to copper production at JCM. We believe the partnership with Nuton LLC for the first industrial-scale deployment of their sulfide leaching technology, combined with the oxide ore production, generates an exciting opportunity for both organizations and the wider copper industry,” comments Robert Winton, Senior Vice President Operation & GM of Excelsior Mining. He adds, “Excelsior’s local and state engagement continues to deliver opportunity in Southeastern Arizona.”

About the Johnson Camp Mine

The Johnson Camp Mine is a past producing open pit, heap leach operation, which with Nuton LLC, a Rio Tinto Venture is in Stage 2 of a process to restart the mine using Nuton technologies, with first copper expected to be produced in 2025. The operation includes two open pits, a fully functioning SX-EW plant capable of producing 25 million pounds of cathode copper per year, a complete set of PLS and raffinate ponds, and full infrastructure (ancillary facilities, access, power, water, and communications).

About Excelsior Mining

Excelsior is a mineral exploration and development company that owns the Gunnison Copper Deposit, the Johnson Camp Mine, and a portfolio of exploration projects, including the Peabody Sill and the Strong and Harris deposits, in Cochise County, Arizona.

For more information on Excelsior, please visit our website at www.excelsiormining.com.

Excelsior’s exploration work on the Johnson Camp mine is supervised by Stephen Twyerould, Fellow of AUSIMM, President and CEO of Excelsior and a Qualified Person as defined by NI 43-101. Mr. Twyerould has reviewed and is responsible for the technical information contained in this news release.

For further information regarding this press release, please contact:

Excelsior Mining Corp.
Concord Place, Suite 300, 2999 North 44^th Street, Phoenix, AZ, 85018.

Shawn Westcott
T: 604.365.6681
E: info@excelsiormining.com
www.excelsiormining.com

Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Information

This news release contains “forward-looking information” concerning anticipated developments and events that may occur in the future. Forward-looking information contained in this news release includes, but is not limited to, statements with respect to the timing and amount of future production from Johnson Camp, the expected production capacity from Johnson Camp, that copper produced from Johnson Camp will be used to strengthen American supply chains, and expectations regarding the exploration and development of the Company’s mineral projects.

In certain cases, forward-looking information can be identified by the use of words such as “plans”, “expects” or “does not expect”, “budget”, “scheduled”, “estimates”, “forecasts”, “intends”, “anticipates” or “does not anticipate”, or “believes”, or variations of such words and phrases or state that certain actions, events or results “may”, “could”, “would”, “might”, “occur” or “be achieved” suggesting future outcomes, or other expectations, beliefs, plans, objectives, assumptions, intentions or statements about future events or performance. Forward-looking information contained in this news release is based on certain factors and assumptions regarding, among other things, the availability of financing to implement the Company’s operational plans, the estimation of mineral resources and mineral reserves, the realization of resource and reserve estimates, copper and other metal prices, the timing and amount of future development expenditures, the estimation of initial and sustaining capital requirements, the estimation of labour and operating costs (including the price of acid), the availability of labour, material and acid supply, receipt of and compliance with necessary regulatory approvals and permits, the estimation of insurance coverage, and assumptions with respect to currency fluctuations, environmental risks, title disputes or claims, and other similar matters. While the Company considers these assumptions to be reasonable based on information currently available to it, they may prove to be incorrect.

Forward-looking information involves known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors which may cause the actual results, performance or achievements of the Company to be materially different from any future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by the forward-looking information. Such factors include risks inherent in the construction and operation of mineral deposits, including risks relating to changes in project parameters as plans continue to be redefined including the possibility that mining operations may not be sustained at the Gunnison Copper Project, risks relating to variations in mineral resources and reserves, grade or recovery rates, risks relating to the ability to access infrastructure, risks relating to changes in copper and other commodity prices and the worldwide demand for and supply of copper and related products, risks related to increased competition in the market for copper and related products, risks related to current global financial conditions, risks related to current global financial conditions on the Company’s business, uncertainties inherent in the estimation of mineral resources, access and supply risks, risks related to the ability to access acid supply on commercially reasonable terms, reliance on key personnel, operational risks inherent in the conduct of mining activities, including the risk of accidents, labour disputes, increases in capital and operating costs and the risk of delays or increased costs that might be encountered during the construction or mining process, regulatory risks including the risk that permits may not be obtained in a timely fashion or at all, financing, capitalization and liquidity risks, risks related to disputes concerning property titles and interests, environmental risks and the additional risks identified in the “Risk Factors” section of the Company’s reports and filings with applicable Canadian securities regulators.

Although the Company has attempted to identify important factors that could cause actual actions, events or results to differ materially from those described in forward-looking information, there may be other factors that cause actions, events or results not to be as anticipated, estimated or intended. Accordingly, readers should not place undue reliance on forward-looking information. The forward-looking information is made as of the date of this news release. Except as required by applicable securities laws, the Company does not undertake any obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking information.

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/227130

Phoenix, Arizona–(Newsfile Corp. – October 10, 2024) – Excelsior Mining Corp. (TSX: MIN) (OTCQB: EXMGF) (FSE: 3XS) (“Excelsior” or the “Company”) is pleased to announce that it has entered into a letter of intent (LOI) for a Workforce Development Agreement with Cochise College for a local workforce development partnership for its under-construction Johnson Camp Mine (JCM) and future development Gunnison Copper project in Cochise County, Arizona.

“We believe this collaboration holds great promise and potential for both Excelsior and Cochise College to develop and foster highly skilled mining jobs in the area,” states Craig Hallworth, SVP and Chief Financial Officer of Excelsior Mining. He continues, “Excelsior is rapidly constructing the Johnson Camp Mine which will be a crucial part of the clean energy supply chain and provide dozens of permanent mine jobs and temporary construction jobs to the area.”

“Cochise College is excited to explore workforce training opportunities with Excelsior Mining that will create jobs and strengthen the economic vitality of our County,” comments Dr. James Perey, Executive Vice President for Academics at Cochise College.

Based on the LOI, Excelsior welcomes:

• Engaging Cochise College to design, set up and administer Excelsior’s apprenticeship program.
• Cochise College developing specialized course content, such as Mine Safety and Health Administration (MHSA) training or process plant instrumentation technician training, including the possibility of Excelsior providing for qualified course instructors.
• Excelsior participating in career days and in job boards to advertise available positions.

Excelsior has been hiring a local workforce from the area for over a decade and has made community engagement a key priority. Excelsior participates in community support through its donations of money, people and materials to assist local organizations. Excelsior is a member of the Southeast Arizona Economic Development Group (SAEDG) which promotes economic development in the region.

About Excelsior Mining

Excelsior “The Copper Solution Company” is a mineral exploration and production company that owns and operates the Gunnison Copper Project in Cochise County, Arizona. The project is a low cost, environmentally friendly in-situ recovery copper extraction project that is permitted to 125 million pounds per year of copper cathode production. Excelsior also owns the past producing Johnson Camp Mine, which with Nuton LLC, a Rio Tinto Venture is in Stage 2 of a process to restart the mine using Nuton technologies, with first copper expected to be produced in 2025. Excelsior additionally owns a portfolio of exploration projects, including the Peabody Sill and the Strong and Harris deposits.

For more information on Excelsior, please visit our website at www.excelsiormining.com.

For further information regarding this press release, please contact:

Excelsior Mining Corp.
Concord Place, Suite 300, 2999 North 44^th Street, Phoenix, AZ, 85018.

Shawn Westcott
T: 604.365.6681
E: info@excelsiormining.com
www.excelsiormining.com

Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Information

This news release contains “forward-looking information” concerning anticipated developments and events that may occur in the future. Forward looking information contained in this news release includes, but is not limited to, statements with respect to the terms and benefits of the letter of intent with Cochise College, the rapid construction the Johnson Camp Mine, that the Johnson Camp Mine will be a crucial part of the clean energy supply chain, the number of permanent and temporary jobs provided, future production and production capacity from the Company’s mineral projects.

In certain cases, forward-looking information can be identified by the use of words such as “plans”, “expects” or “does not expect”, “budget”, “scheduled”, “estimates”, “forecasts”, “intends”, “anticipates” or “does not anticipate”, or “believes”, or variations of such words and phrases or state that certain actions, events or results “may”, “could”, “would”, “might”, “occur” or “be achieved” suggesting future outcomes, or other expectations, beliefs, plans, objectives, assumptions, intentions or statements about future events or performance. Forward-looking information contained in this news release is based on certain factors and assumptions regarding, among other things, the availability of financing to implement the Company’s operational plans, the execution of a definitive agreement for the letter of intent with Cochise College, the estimation of mineral resources and mineral reserves, the realization of resource and reserve estimates, copper and other metal prices, the timing and amount of future development expenditures, the estimation of initial and sustaining capital requirements, the estimation of labour and operating costs (including the price of acid), the availability of labour, material and acid supply, receipt of and compliance with necessary regulatory approvals and permits, the estimation of insurance coverage, and assumptions with respect to currency fluctuations, environmental risks, title disputes or claims, and other similar matters. While the Company considers these assumptions to be reasonable based on information currently available to it, they may prove to be incorrect.

Forward looking information involves known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors which may cause the actual results, performance or achievements of the Company to be materially different from any future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by the forward-looking information. Such factors include risks inherent in the construction and operation of mineral deposits, including risks relating to changes in project parameters as plans continue to be redefined including the possibility that mining operations may not be sustained at the Gunnison Copper Project or JCM, the risk that a definitive agreement with Cochise College is not executed, risks relating to variations in mineral resources and reserves, grade or recovery rates, risks relating to the ability to access infrastructure, risks relating to changes in copper and other commodity prices and the worldwide demand for and supply of copper and related products, risks related to increased competition in the market for copper and related products, risks related to current global financial conditions, risks related to current global financial conditions, uncertainties inherent in the estimation of mineral resources, access and supply risks, risks related to the ability to access acid supply on commercially reasonable terms, reliance on key personnel, operational risks inherent in the conduct of mining activities, including the risk of accidents, labour disputes, increases in capital and operating costs and the risk of delays or increased costs that might be encountered during the construction or mining process, regulatory risks including the risk that permits may not be obtained in a timely fashion or at all, financing, capitalization and liquidity risks, risks related to disputes concerning property titles and interests, environmental risks and the additional risks identified in the “Risk Factors” section of the Company’s reports and filings with applicable Canadian securities regulators.

Although the Company has attempted to identify important factors that could cause actual actions, events or results to differ materially from those described in forward-looking information, there may be other factors that cause actions, events or results not to be as anticipated, estimated or intended. Accordingly, readers should not place undue reliance on forward-looking information. The forward-looking information is made as of the date of this news release. Except as required by applicable securities laws, the Company does not undertake any obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking information.

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/226227

• Key Performance Indicators: 
  • US$2.03B Net Present Value (“NPV”) (8% discount, after-tax) 
  • 24% Internal rate of return (“IRR”) 
  • 4.9 years Payback Period 
• Life of Mine (“LoM”) Gross Revenue of $20.8 billion 
• LoM Free Cash Flow (“FCF”) of $7.3 billion (unlevered)
• Cash costs (C1) of $1.82 and All in Sustaining Costs (“AISC”) of $2.00 per pound of copper
• Financial and operational executability nowthrough transition to Open Pit operation
  • 94% material from open pit mining (Cactus West and Parks/Salyer), 6% from the Stockpile and Cactus East underground 
• 232 million pounds (“lbs”) (116,052 short tons (“st”)) average annual copper cathode production over the first 20 years of operation and a total of 5,339 million lbs (2,669,342 st) of copper cathode produced over the 31-year operating mine life
• Cactus Project is well positioned to add value in a variety of copper price environmentsCopper Price Assumption$3.90/lb Cu$4.50/lb CuNPV8 (after-tax)$2,032 million$2,927 millionIRR (after-tax)24%30%Payback (after-tax)4.9 Years4.5 YearsDevelopment Capital $668 million$668 millionLoM FCF (After Tax)7,295 million9,777 million

Casa Grande, AZ and Toronto, ON, August 7, 2024 – Arizona Sonoran Copper Company Inc. (TSX:ASCU | OTCQX:ASCUF) (“ASCU” or the “Company”) today reports the results from an NI 43-101 Preliminary Economic Assessment (“PEA”) on its 100%-owned brownfield Cactus Project in Arizona, USA. The PEA supersedes the previously released Pre-Feasibility Study (“PFS”) in all respects, and rescopes Parks/Salyer as an open pit operation resulting from the inclusion of the MainSpring property. The inclusion materially improves the economics and operations of the project, producing a total of 5.3 billion lbs or 2.7 million st of LME Grade A Copper Cathodes over a 31-year operating LoM via heap leaching and solvent extraction and electrowinning (“SXEW”), an established and industry standard hydrometallurgical extraction technology. All dollar amounts referenced herein in US dollars, and all references to tons are imperial or short tons, unless otherwise noted; 1 short ton equals approximately 0.91 metric tonnes. The Company previously issued a news release on JUL 16, 2024 (the “MRE News Release“), disclosing an updated mineral resource estimate (the “2024 MRE“) for the Cactus Project which formed the basis for the PEA.

A webinar will be held on August 8, 2024, at 10:30 am ET. Please join George Ogilvie, Nick Nikolakakis, Bernie Loyer, Steve Dixon and Anthony Bottrill in discussion of the PEA and the Company’s next steps by registering here https://www.bigmarker.com/vid-conferences/ASCU-VID-THF-07082024. 

The PEA is preliminary in nature and it includes inferred mineral resources that are considered too speculative
geologically to have the economic considerations applied to them that would enable them to be categorized as mineral reserves. There is no certainty that the project described in the PEA will be realized. Mineral resources that are not mineral reserves do not have demonstrated economic viability.

TABLE 1: SUMMARY OF KEY METRICS

Valuation Metrics (Unlevered)	Unit	2024 PEA $3.90/lb Cu
Net Present Value @ 8% (pre-tax)	$ millions	2,769
Net Present Value @ 8% (after-tax)	$ millions	2,032
Internal Rate of Return (after-tax)	%	24.0
Payback Period (after-tax)	# years	4.9
Project Metrics (Imperial)	Unit	2024 PEA $3.90/lb Cu
Construction Period – SXEW plant	# years	1.5 – 2
Life of Mine (“LoM”)	# years	31
Strip Ratio	Waste : Ore	2.02
LoM Mineralized Material Mined	ktons	889,004
LoM Copper Grade	% CuTSol	0.41
LoM Avg Annual Contained Copper Production	000 tons millions lbs	86 172
LoM Annual Crusher Throughput	millions tons	29
Annual Copper Production  (years 1-20)	000 tons millions lbs	116 232
Recovery (years 1-20)	%CuTSol	83
LoM Recoveries (LOM)	% CuTSol	73
LoM Oxide	% CuTSol	92
LoM Enriched	% CuTSol	85
LoM Primary (conventional leaching)	% CuT	25
LoM Recovered Copper Cathodes	K pounds	5,338,683
Initial Capital (including contingency)	$ millions	668
Sustaining Capital	$ millions	1,169
Cash Cost (C1)*	$/lb Cu	1.82
All in Sustaining Cost (AISC)*	$/lb Cu	2.00
LoM Revenues	$ millions	20,821
LoM EBITDA	$ millions	11,292
LoM FCF (unlevered) after tax	$ millions	7,295

Notes:
*Project operating costs include mine operating, process plant operating, and general and administrative costs (“G&A”). Total production costs include royalty expense. The AISC additionally includes initial Capex, sustaining Capex, reclamation & closure. 
George Ogilvie, ASCU President and CEO commented, “We achieved, and far surpassed each goal to demonstrate leading NPV, IRR and payback and all other operational and economic metrics from the Cactus Project. The PEA represented herein delivers a highly compelling copper mining operation, on a standalone basis. The project size and top-tier location are complemented by a highly skilled operations and development team already based in Casa Grande and motivated to deliver an executable plan. After completing the MainSpring title transfer in March 2024, and subsequently obtaining the General Plan Arrangement approval, MainSpring’s integration to Parks/Salyer positively impacts the operations, lowers mining risks and is overall transformational to the economics.

He continued, “We now look forward to completing metallurgical programs and the infill drilling to support a PFS expected in 1H2025. Clearly, Cactus shows merit on a standalone basis and we will continue to move forward with this mine plan, while continuing to work with our partner, Nuton Technologies, a Rio Tinto Venture. We envisage Cactus, a brownfield Copper Mine as having the size and scale capable of making a meaningful positive impact to the US copper mining industry.”

Key Impacts on the NPV:

• Mine plan execution rescopes to 94% open pit 
  • Parks/Salyer and Cactus West are open pit operations; changes positively impact annual throughput, mining costs, operating costs and processing costs.
• Mineralized material impacts
  • LoM tonnage processed of 889 million st, including:
    • 659 million st of oxides and enriched material
      • Parks/Salyer: 69%
        • Including: new MainSpring inferred mineral resources of 245 Mst @ 0.39% CuT (PR dated JUL 16, 2024)
      • Cactus West: 23%
      • Cactus East: 6%
      • Stockpile 2%
    • 230 million st of primary sulphides to the leach pads with current recoveries reported at an average of 25% from year 15
      • Parks/Salyer 34%
      • Cactus West: 66%
• Processing cost impacts
  • Processing initial capital expenditure (“capex”) of $511 million including contingency (SXEW plant and owner’s costs)
  • Processing sustaining capital of $553 million (process plant – average of $18 million per year)
  • Processing operating costs (“opex”) of $2.29/st
• Other cost impacts
  • Updated salvage cost, land sales, closure and royalties
• Mining cost impacts
  • Mining opex and capex impacted by Parks/Salyer rescope to an open pit mining operation 
  • Parks/Salyer cut-off grade of 0.1% cut off grade
  • Initial Capex of $157 million (pre-production stripping)
  • Mining sustaining capital of $544 million, optimizing the per ton mining costs (average of $18 million per year)
  • Operating expenditures of $8.16/t processed

Bernie Loyer, ASCU SVP Projects commented, “The evolution of the MainSpring and Parks/Salyer open pit combination as demonstrated by this PEA presents a profound change to the Cactus Mine business case. That impact can be gauged in the project’s robust economics and also in the contribution that this generational asset is expected to make to our local communities for years to come. With the anticipated creation of more than 3,000 direct and indirect jobs and more than $2.2 billion in life of mine federal and state tax revenues, Cactus Mine is anticipated to become a cornerstone business for the local economy. Great copper projects are where you find them and that often translates to remote and sometimes complicated jurisdictions around the world.  In contrast, the combined heritage of the Arizona and Pinal County copper mining legacy married to a Casa Grande venue sets an incredible launch platform for this great project.”  

Nick Nikolakakis, ASCU CFO commented, “The economics at Cactus in the PEA afford us an opportunity to begin seeking project financing. The Company has been in initial discussions with a group of lenders including commercial banks and an export credit agency. Cactus is projected to generate robust cash flows over a 30+ year mine life. The current economic metrics present a unique opportunity for the Company to actively pursue financing alternatives as the project advances towards a pre-feasibility and definitive feasibility study in 2025.”

The Company intends to file a technical report (the “Technical Report”) in respect of the PEA in accordance with National Instrument 43-101 – Standards of Disclosure for Mineral Projects (“NI 43-101”) on SEDAR+ (www.sedarplus.ca) under the Company’s issuer profile and the Company’s website within 45 days of the MRE News Release.

Preliminary Economic Assessment Summary
The 2024 PEA supersedes the PFS titled “Cactus Mine Project NI 43-101 Technical Report and Pre-Feasibility Study, Arizona, United States of America”, dated March 28, 2024 (with an effective date of February 21, 2024) (“March 2024 PFS”) in its entirety. The PEA integrates the new Parks/Salyer additions from the MainSpring property as inferred mineral resources, re-scoped as an open pit. By applying open pit mining costs to the Parks/Salyer mineral resource estimate, it now contributes 531 M tons of feed material grading 0.530% CuT to the total 889 million tons of feed material at 0.46% CuT over the LoM. FIGURE 1 illustrates the cumulative stacked production in this PEA. Overall, the Cactus Project PEA envisages a 31-year mine life with annual average throughput of 29 million tons, for an average of 86 kstpa of copper cathodes produced annually. The result is a lower risk brownfield open pit mining operation with a long life and a streamlined permitting process on private land in Arizona with water rights and access to water from in-situ water wells.

A total of 2,872 million tons will be mined and a total of 889 million tons processed, recovering 5.34 billion pounds of copper cathodes over the LoM or 2,669,000 tons. Copper cathodes will be produced directly onsite via heap leach and SXEW, including a four year ramp up period. Total Copper recoveries are planned at an average of 73%, extracting copper from the oxides, enriched and primary sulphides. See Exhibit 1 and 2 for mine plan, sequencing, costs and economics. Gross acid usage is calculated at 22 lbs per ton at a cost of $160 per ton.

FIGURE 1: Cumulative Stacked Recoverable Copper 

FIGURE 2: Annual Production and Revenue and EBITDA

Onsite facilities at the mine site will consist of two open pits, one underground mining operation, a fine crushing plant incorporating all crushing, classification, agglomeration and conveying systems, heap leach pad, water supply and distribution systems, technical and operational support offices, additional electrical substation, warehousing and an SXEW process plant. Onsite supporting infrastructure will include site power distribution, access roads, mine operations infrastructure, and heap leach facilities, of which the power and roads are already in use.

Current onsite and nearby infrastructure includes:

• Onsite administration buildings, geology, core storage, completed earthworks, substation, parking lot and access roads
• Clean power via onsite substation for $0.07/kWh
• Paved access roads and easy access to interstate highways I-8 and I-10
• Union Pacific railroad line adjacent to the property
• Casa Grande, Maricopa and Phoenix are all located nearby to supply materials/consumables in addition to a skilled labour pool
• Permitted water available onsite, and additional water may be available through the city
• Flat land and low altitude
• Located within the City of Casa Grande industrial park

TABLE 2: Report Sensitivities to the Copper Price

Revenue, NPV and IRR Sensitivity Based on Copper Price
Metal Price	Copper Price	Revenue  (US$000)	NPV, before tax @ 8% (US$000)	NPV, after tax @ 8% (US$000)	IRR   after Tax
Base Case	$3.90	$20,820,863	$2,769,280	$2,031,671	24%
20%	$4.68	$24,985,035	$4,237,162	$3,196,838	32%
10%	$4.29	$22,902,949	$3,503,221	$2,612,817	28%
-10%	$3.51	$18,738,777	$2,035,338	$1,450,505	20%
-20%	$3.12	$16,656,690	$1,301,397	$861,488	16%

FIGURE 3: NPV Sensitivity to the Metal Price, CAPEX and OPEX

Mining and Processing Operations
Mineralized material will be sourced mainly from the two open pits with an overall LoM strip ratio of 2:1. The Cactus West pit (1.0:1 strip ratio) and new Parks/Salyer pit (3.2:1 strip ratio) comprise 94% of the total material to the leach pads. The remaining 5% of material will be sourced from the Cactus East underground deposit utilizing sub-level cave from the 1,200 ft (366 m) level, and 1% from the Stockpile.

Both Parks/Salyer and Cactus West will be mined using 40 ft (12.1 m) single benches, with ramps sized to allow 320-ton class haul trucks. At Parks/Salyer, all walls have been designed with 45-degree inter-ramp slopes, while geotechnical step-outs are employed to reduce the overall slope to approximately 40 degrees. At Cactus West, inter-ramp slopes range from 45–50 degrees depending on material type, with typical overall slope angles of 41-43 degrees. Gila conglomerate and alluvium constitute the large majority of the waste in the pits.

The mine schedule for open pit mining at Parks/Salyer consists of 531 million tons of feed material grading 0.530% CuT, including 453 million tons of oxide and enriched leach feed material grading 0.55% CuT and 78 million tons of primary sulphide leach feed material grading 0.41% CuT. Open pit mining will initiate in Parks/Salyer in Year -1 and operate continuously for 23 years over seven pit phases. Total waste mined in Parks/Salyer is 1,680 million tons. 

The mine schedule for open pit mining at Cactus West consists of 306 million tons of feed material grading 0.29% CuT, including 154 million tons of oxide/enriched leach feed material grading 0.26% CuT and 152 million tons of primary leach feed material grading 0.32% CuT. Open pit mining will take place at Cactus West in the years of 7-11, 15, 19, and 23-31. Phase 1 Cactus West is used to smooth stripping requirements of Parks/Salyer in the middle-years of the mine plan, while Phase 2-3 are mined in the later years and predominantly supply primary feed material. Total waste mined from Cactus West is 299 million tons. 

The Stockpile project contributes 9.8 million tons of conventional leach feed material grading 0.24% CuT which will be used for project commissioning in Year 1 of processing.

After a comprehensive review of Cactus East¸ sub-level caving (“SLC”) was selected as the preferred underground mining method. A sublevel cave underground mine is planned for Cactus East with development beginning in Year 8 and mining completed in Year 22, peaking at 3.9 million tons per year. Total Cactus East feed material mined is projected to be 42 million tons grading 0.83% CuT. The initial Cactus East SLC level will begin at 1,325 ft (404 m) below the surface over 7 sublevels, to a final depth of 1,845 ft (562 m). Access will be via a single decline with a portal located within the existing Cactus West pit. Haulage of mineralized material to surface will be via a vertical conveyor which can be supplemented with truck haulage to surface via the open pit if necessary.

The Cactus Project heap leaching process design includes crushing of all material types for leaching to a minus ¾” P80 size. All material types, oxides, enriched and primary are to be leached in on a single pad with an initial leaching cycle of 180 days. A maximum 3-year leaching cycle has been assumed (3 lifts) as the practical limit for effective recovery based on experience and hydrodynamic analysis of the materials by HydroGeoScience Inc. (HGS). The copper leaching metallurgical test data has been extrapolated from the testing data at one year based on the rates prevailing after one year using a logarithmic curve fit projection that considers the decaying rate of copper extraction.

Average annual water consumption is planned at approximately 1,200 gallons per minute, the equivalent of 1,935 acre feet per year, well within ASCU’s permitted 3,600 acre feet per year industrial use allocation, using in place onsite wells.

The PEA envisages that overall tonnage will comprise approximately 25% oxide material, 50% enriched (secondary sulphides) and 25% primary sulphides within the LoM. From year 15 to 22 placed tons will consist of approximately 25% primary, whereas from year 23, will comprise 100% of the operation. Overall copper extraction is impacted by the lower rates from primary sulphides. In the PEA, ASCU includes a conservative 25% extraction rate.

The total LoM costs, operating costs per ton ($/st) of processed material, and dollars per pound ($/lb) of cathode produced are summarized in the three tables below. Project operating costs include mine operating, process plant operating, and general and administrative costs (“G&A”). Total production costs include royalty expense. The AISC additionally includes initial Capex, sustaining Capex, reclamation & closure. 

Mining operating cost estimates, prepared by AGP Mining Consultants Inc., are based on a small owner’s team managing mining activities using an owner-operator model. Process operating cost estimates were prepared by Samuel Engineering and G&A cost estimates were prepared by M3 Engineering with input from ASCU, as summarized in TABLES 3-5 below (note numbers may not add due to rounding). Sequencing of operations and annual cash flows are detailed in Exhibit 1 and 2, at the end of this release.

TABLE 3: LoM OPERATING AND PRODUCTION COSTS
Cost Elements	LoM (US$)
	Total Cost (US$M)	US$ / st Processed	US$ / lb Copper
Mine Operating Cost	$7,252	$8.16	$1.36
Process Plant Operating Cost	$2,039	$2.29	$0.38
G & A	$50	$0.06	$0.01
Operating Costs	$9,341	$10.51	$1.75
Royalties	$388	$0.44	$0.07
Total Production Costs	$9,729	$10.94	$1.82
Sustaining Capex	$1,169	$1.31	$0.22
Reclamation & Closure	$25	$0.03	$0.00
Salvage	-$225	-$0.25	-$0.04
All-In Sustaining Costs	$10,697	$12.03	$2.00
Property & Severance Taxes	$562	$0.63	$0.11
Initial Capex (non-sustaining)	$668	$0.75	$0.13
All-In Costs	$11,927	$13.42	$2.23

TABLE 4: LoM OPERATING COST AND CASH FLOW
ACTIVITY (LOM)	US$M	US$ / st
LOM REVENUE	20,821	–
Mining (OP and UG)	7,252	8.16
Process Plant	2,039	2.29
General & Administration	50	0.06
Total Cash Operating Cost	9,341	10.51
Royalties	388	0.44
Salvage Value	-$225	-0.25
Reclamation & Closure	$25	0.03
Total Production Cost	9,529	10.72
EBITDA	11,292	–
Total CAPEX	1,836	2.07
Net Income Before Taxes	9,456	–
Taxes and Depreciation	2,161	2.43
Free Cash Flow (unlevered)	7,295	–

The capital cost estimates for the PEA were developed with a -25% to +30% accuracy. The Company uses an estimated overall mining contingency of approximately 18% and according to the Association of the Advancement of Cost Engineering International (AACE) Class 5 estimate requirements.

TABLE 5: CAPITAL COST ESTIMATES
AREA	DETAIL	INITIAL CAPEX (US$000’s)	SUSTAINING CAPEX (US$000’s)	TOTAL CAPEX (US$000’s)
Direct Costs	Mine Costs	156,856	543,609	700,465
	Processing Plant	259,320	408,240	667,560
	Infrastructure	95,740	17,211	112,951
Indirect Costs		45,470	16,944	62,414
Owner’s Costs, First Fills, & Light Vehicles		22,921	72,030	94,951
Total CAPEX without Contingency		580,307	1,058,034	1,638,341
Contingency		87,558	110,599	198,157
Total CAPEX with Contingency		667,865	1,168,633	1,836,498

The PEA is based on the updated 2024 MRE, as published in the MRE News Release on JUL 16, 2024, showing a 41% increase of Measured and Indicated (“M&I”) pounds and an 89% increase of the inferred pounds. The Mineral Resources for the Cactus Project are shown in TABLE 6 and illustrated in FIGURE 2 below. For more details relating to the 2024 MRE, please refer to the MRE News Release, a copy of which is available on SEDAR+ (www.sedarplus.ca) under the Company’s issuer profile and the Company’s website (www.arizonasonoran.com).

TABLE 6: Cactus Project Mineral Resource Estimate 

Material Type	Tons kt	Grade  CuT %	Grade Cu Tsol %	Contained Total Cu (k lbs)	Contained Cu Tsol (k lbs)
Measured
Total Leachable	55,200	0.94	0.79	1,032,200	873,800
Total Primary	12,300	0.51	0.05	124,400	13,400
Total Measured	67,500	0.86	0.66	1,156,500	887,200
Indicated
Total Leachable	414,800	0.60	0.53	4,965,000	4,365,700
Total Primary	150,400	0.39	0.04	1,173,300	126,000
Total Indicated	565,200	0.54	0.40	6,138,200	4,491,700
M&I
Total Leachable	470,000	0.64	0.56	5.997,200	5,239,500
Total Primary	162,700	0.40	0.04	1,297,600	139,400
Total M&I	632,600	0.58	0.43	7,294,800	5,378,900
Inferred
Total Leachable	299,600	0.43	0.38	2,572,400	2,262,800
Total Primary	174,500	0.36	0.04	1,267,500	124,700
Total Inferred	474,000	0.41	0.25	3,839,900	2,387,500

NOTES:
1. Total soluble copper grades (Cu TSol) are reported using sequential assaying to calculate the soluble copper grade. Tons are reported as short tons.
2. Stockpile resource estimates have an effective date of 1st March, 2022, Cactus Project mineral resource estimates have an effective date of 29th April, 2022, Parks/Salyer-MainSpring mineral resource estimates have an effective date of 11th July, 2024. All mineral resources use a copper price of US$3.75/lb. 
3. Technical and economic parameters defining mineral resource pit shells: mining cost US$2.43/t; G&A US$0.55/t, 10% dilution, and 44°-46° pit slope angle.
4. Technical and economic parameters defining underground mineral resource: mining cost US$27.62/t, G&A US$0.55/t, and 5% dilution. Underground mineral resources are only reported for material located outside of the open pit mineral resource shells. Designation as open pit or underground mineral resources are not confirmatory of the mining method that may be employed at the mine design stage.
5. Technical and economic parameters defining processing: Oxide heap leach (“HL”) processing cost of US$2.24/t assuming 86.3% recoveries, enriched HL processing cost of US$2.13/t assuming 90.5% recoveries, sulphide mill processing cost of US$8.50/t assuming 92% recoveries. HL selling cost of US$0.27/lb; Mill selling cost of US$0.62/lb.
6. Royalties of 3.18% and 2.5% apply to the ASCU properties and state land respectively. No royalties apply to the MainSpring property.
7. Variable cut-off grades were reported depending on material type, potential mining method, potential processing method, and applicable royalties. For ASCU properties – Oxide open pit or underground material = 0.099% or 0.549% Cu TSol respectively; enriched open pit or underground material = 0.092% or 0.522% Cu TSol respectively; primary open pit or underground material = 0.226% or 0.691% CuT respectively.For state land property – Oxide open pit or underground material = 0.098 % or 0.545% Cu TSol respectively; enriched open pit or underground material = 0.092% or 0.518% Cu TSol respectively; primary open pit or underground material = 0.225% or 0.686% CuT respectively.For MainSpring properties – Oxide open pit or underground material = 0.096% or 0.532% Cu TSol respectively; enriched open pit or underground material = 0.089% or 0.505% Cu TSol respectively; primary open pit or underground material = 0.219% or 0.669% CuT respectively. Stockpile cutoff = 0.095% Cu TSol.
8. Mineral resources, which are not mineral reserves, do not have demonstrated economic viability. The estimate of mineral resources may be materially affected by environmental, permitting, legal, title, sociopolitical, marketing, or other relevant factors.
9. The quantity and grade of reported inferred mineral resources in this estimation are uncertain in nature and there is insufficient exploration to define these inferred mineral resources as an indicated or measured mineral resource; it is uncertain if further exploration will result in upgrading them to an indicated or measured classification.
10. Totals may not add up due to rounding

FIGURE 2: Cactus Project Mineral Resources

Metallurgical Testwork
Metallurgical testwork used for the PEA shows good metallurgical recoveries from all deposits with no deleterious elements. Testing in the PEA shows an average of 73% of total copper extracted overall. A column leach testing program for oxides and enriched sulphides, from Parks/Salyer and the Stockpile, is ongoing at BaseMet and McClelland labs (Tucson, AZ and Reno, NV, respectively). Primary sulphide column leaching is expected to begin in the fourth quarter.

Project Overview
The Cactus Project is a brownfield project located approximately 6 mi (10 km) northwest of the city of Casa Grande and 40 road miles south-southwest of the Greater Phoenix metropolitan area in Arizona. The Greater Phoenix area is a major population centre (approximately 4.8 million persons) with a major airport and transportation hub and well-developed infrastructure and services that support the mining industry. The Cactus Mine Project is accessible on North Bianco Road off of West Maricopa-Casa Grande Highway with direct access to interstate highway 10. During historic ASARCO operations (1974-1984), a rail spur was connected directly with the United Pacific Railroad to ship concentrates to its El Paso refinery in Texas; while the spur has been removed, the onsite rail line is still in existence. Current onsite infrastructure includes power lines and substation, water wells and a water pond, geological buildings, core sheds and administrative offices, keeping the capital intensity low and demonstrating robust economics.

The Cactus Project is host to a large porphyry copper system that has been dismembered and displaced by Tertiary extensional faulting. The major host rocks are Precambrian Oracle Granite and Laramide monzonite porphyry and quartz monzonite porphyry. The mine trend features the formation of horst and graben blocks of mineralization where the Cactus deposits are situated, extending from the Cactus East deposit, southwest to the Parks/Salyer deposit. Drilling to the northeast and southwest along the trend indicates that mineralization continues in both directions and at depth at the Cactus West deposit.

Ownership, Social License and Permitting 
The Cactus Project is 100% controlled by ASCU through its wholly owned subsidiary Cactus 110 LLC and encompasses an area of approximately 5,720 acres. The Cactus Project includes exploration and mining on private land and on two Arizona State Land Department (“ASLD”) leases. There is no federal nexus for permitting the project and all permitting is limited to State of Arizona-required permits including the Aquifer Protection Permit, Industrial Air permits and the Mined Land Reclamation Permit, each of which ASCU has received from state regulators. Modifications will be required to address changes in the mine plan presented in the PEA.

Of the 5,720 acres, 4,732 acres are considered fee simple and private land. The remaining acreage is State land where ASCU owns either the surface or mineral rights and is in the process of acquiring the surface rights from the State.

ASCU has a well-developed community engagement plan that it has implemented through numerous public meetings and outreach. With the presence of legacy mining in the Casa Grande area and the determination of Cactus as a “brownfield” and disturbed site, the local community is supportive of the Cactus Project. The Company anticipates the Project to create multiple decades of high paying jobs that will benefit the local communities and the state. There is no significant opposition to the Cactus Project.

Royalties
The Cactus Project is subject to three net smelter return (“NSR”) royalties based on potential mining production. The MainSpring property does not contain any royalties. The Tembo/Elemental Altus NSR royalty applied to the originally acquired land package including, Cactus and Parks/Salyer may be reduced to 2.54% from 3.18%, with a total payment of $8.9 million. On a portion of the Parks/Salyer deposit, BCE holds a 1.5% NSR royalty, with an option to reduce it to 0.5% for payment of $0.5 million, and ASLD owns a sliding net return royalty (2.0% to 8.0% and estimated at 2%), payable to ASLD and the State Trust. ASCU will formalize the royalty percentages with ASLD once the Company submits a Mineral Development Report to ASLD, thus converting the existing Mineral Exploration Permit, to a Mineral Lease.

Opportunities and Next Steps, including Nuton Technologies 

Technical Studies
Following the issuance of the PEA, the anticipated next steps for the Cactus Project include a PFS (which is expected to be completed in 1H2025) (the “2025 PFS”), followed by an early works program, and expects to initiate a Feasibility Study in 2H2025. The Company is planning Project financing for the Cactus Project in conjunction with a potential construction decision.

It is expected that the 2025 PFS will include the major economic and operational rescope; specifically, rescoping Parks/Salyer to an open pit and the additional integration of the Nuton Technologies. Infill drilling programs are planned for Parks/Salyer composing the first 10 years of operations, and into Cactus West for the expansion of primary mineralization suitable for leaching via the Nuton Technologies. Pursuant to the option to joint venture agreement entered into between ASCU and Nuton, a PFS which includes the application of the Nuton Technologies should be issued no later than December 31, 2024, unless mutually extended by written agreement of both parties. Assuming both ASCU and Nuton agree to an extension of such PFS, completion is expected in 1H2025. Completion of the 2025 PFS will require the completion of infill to indicated drilling and updated metallurgical studies, including Phase 2 Nuton metallurgical testing.

Parks/Salyer’s grade, scale and scope secures it as the main contributor from day one to the Cactus Project. Cactus West, drilling and finding more primary material. Any future work on the project is not expected to change the mine plan within the first 10 to 15 years of the operation. It provides further optionality on a robust standalone plan.

An Early Works program is in the early phases of being defined and planned for mid-2025, dependent upon funding. The program includes executing the permitting and bonding requirements and optimizing a pre-stripping program for the Parks/Salyer pit. Due to the brownfield nature of the project, roads, power and onsite administration buildings are currently in place.

Nuton Opportunity 
The PEA proposes a robust standalone project incorporating conventional leaching technology. In order to capitalize on the primary sulphides, initial test work has validated the application of Nuton proprietary technology. As per the strategy outlined in the option to Joint Venture (“JV”) press release, dated DEC 14, 2023, Phase 2 metallurgical testing and Cactus West pit expansion drilling targeting the primary sulphides will be included to the 2025 PFS.

Nuton LLC, a Rio Tinto Venture, is a copper heap leaching technology. Nuton™ became a shareholder in 2022, and a potential JV partner in late 2023. Its Nuton™ suite of proprietary technologies provide opportunities to leach both primary and secondary copper sulfides, providing significant opportunity to optimize the mine plan and the overall mining and processing operations.

Other Future Opportunities 
The project has several other opportunities available to continue the optimization of the operation.

• The addition of an In-Pit-Crush-Convey (IPCC) for waste handling instead of truck haulage will be evaluated for improvement in the economics of the project.
• There is a potential to access the high-grade Parks/Salyer material earlier, by moving the Parks/Salyer open pit centroid further northward

Mine Plan and Key Financial Assumptions
Exhibit 1: Production and Cash Costs
Year	Production (000’s) tons								Head Grade		Recovered Copper		Costs (/lb)
	Open Pit							U/G	OP	UG
	Parks/Salyer	Cactus West	Stockpile	Open Pit Rehandle	Total Open Pit Moved	Open Pit Material	Open Pit Waste	Cactus East	% TCu	% TCu	ktons	klbs	C1 Cost	AISC
0	70,000	0	0	0	70,000	170	69,829	0	0.12		48.78	87,427
1	130,000		10,000	9	140,009	24,527	115,473	0	0.23		64.24	111,826	$3.84	$5.01
2	150,000	0	0	0	150,000	34,303	115,697	0	0.24		61.62	106,669	$3.42	$3.65
3	140,000	0	0	303	140,303	30,621	109,379	0	0.25		72.72	126,910	$3.56	$3.96
4	150,000	0	0	0	150,000	35,538	114,462	0	0.25		210.96	360,507	$3.16	$3.61
5	150,000	0	0	0	150,000	77,997	72,003	0	0.48		177.01	302,233	$1.16	$1.23
6	152,363	0	0	10,312	162,675	21,428	130,935	0	0.87		65.26	112,749	$1.15	$1.32
7	131,119	8,881	0	20,859	160,859	4,282	135,718	0	0.32		66.71	116,778	$2.79	$2.93
8	97,685	65,000	0	5,712	168,397	18,160	144,525	132	0.36	0.37	176.94	303,147	$2.99	$3.48
9	94,478	50,522	0	0	145,000	36,401	108,599	920	0.6	0.69	86.7	154,276	$1.34	$1.72
10	88,593	50,558	0	0	139,151	33,780	105,371	2,462	0.31	0.79	116.63	207,731	$2.80	$3.46
11	105,000	22,301	0	0	127,301	33,486	93,815	3,456	0.33	0.82	295.39	507,032	$2.25	$2.42
12	125,000	0	0	0	125,000	49,458	75,542	3,328	0.8	0.84	220.54	378,173	$1.01	$1.21
13	125,000	0	0	4,601	129,601	33,652	91,348	3,825	0.76	0.92	151.19	261,603	$1.33	$1.44
14	115,000	0	0	10,582	125,582	27,174	87,826	3,822	0.5	0.86	109.64	156,352	$1.82	$1.87
15	86,891	28,109	0	2,719	117,719	29,972	85,028	3,828	0.32	0.79	177.8	269,472	$2.93	$3.37
16	100,000	0	0	4,848	104,848	24,733	75,267	3,693	0.56	0.88	203.53	306,859	$1.59	$1.61
17	85,724	0	0	5,478	91,202	25,134	60,590	3,502	0.72	0.88	219.74	341,302	$1.24	$1.30
18	53,497	0	0	2,040	55,537	28,686	24,810	3,584	0.75	0.84	170.78	254,961	$0.94	$1.11
19	18,367	7,763	0	2,958	29,087	25,854	275,559	3,603	0.57	0.9	122.81	176,092	$0.96	$0.98
20	17,015	0	0	12,096	29,111	16,669	346	3,535	0.47	0.75	76.39	97,761	$1.20	$1.20
21	9,294	0	0	20,527	29,821	9,254	41	2,520	0.41	0.76	61.52	70,315	$1.76	$2.26
22	16,097	0	0	22,520	38,617	16,079	17,895	0	0.37		54.06	61,131	$1.94	$2.17
23	0	20,813	0	27,195	48,008	4,265	16,547	0	0.16		99.51	62,746	$2.45	$2.46
24	0	67,119	0	22,332	89,451	15,490	51,629	0	0.22		88.77	58,543	$3.58	$4.42
25	0	67,584	0	0	67,584	35,186	32,398	0	0.28		87.71	63,674	$4.04	$4.05
26	0	60,000	0	5,000	65,000	30,480	29,520	0	0.28		72.18	61,623	$3.45	$3.46
27	0	60,000	0	0	60,000	41,640	18,360	0	0.24		92.68	81,688	$3.72	$4.75
28	0	30,000	0	4,361	34,361	26,939	3,060	0	0.32		94.36	68,405	$2.04	$2.04
29	0	34,018	0	1,997	36,015	29,305	4,712	0	0.32		92.06	58,879	$2.54	$2.55
30	0	30,000	0	6,651	36,651	24,783	5,217	0	0.35		16.51	11,817	$3.07	$3.89
31	0	2,805	0	7,061	9,865	1,343	1,462	0	0.33				$5.00	$5.00

Annual Economics
Year	Revenue	Operating Cost	Operating Income	EBIthA	Capex	FCF
1	$340,967	$332,627	$8,340	$5,397	$102,706	-$71,907
2	$436,120	$382,077	$54,043	$54,043	$25,670	$30,440
3	$416,010	$379,520	$36,489	$36,489	$43,144	-$6,621
4	$494,949	$398,917	$96,032	$93,897	$57,236	$36,231
5	$1,405,976	$389,412	$1,016,564	$987,861	$26,734	$935,152
6	$1,178,711	$329,272	$849,439	$829,972	$49,795	$780,917
7	$439,719	$311,686	$128,033	$125,338	$16,223	$127,771
8	$455,433	$341,343	$114,090	$106,808	$57,718	$51,196
9	$1,182,272	$377,582	$804,690	$777,214	$115,440	$646,986
10	$601,678	$417,705	$183,974	$169,690	$101,252	$88,500
11	$810,151	$448,298	$361,853	$343,759	$36,426	$305,103
12	$1,977,426	$467,196	$1,510,230	$1,463,166	$99,477	$1,334,095
13	$1,474,876	$468,718	$1,006,158	$970,532	$39,170	$945,067
14	$1,020,251	$453,686	$566,565	$544,759	$14,287	$542,463
15	$609,773	$446,648	$163,125	$151,118	$68,164	$91,679
16	$1,050,943	$403,691	$647,252	$623,353	$5,512	$601,360
17	$1,196,752	$355,360	$841,392	$814,791	$16,933	$788,938
18	$1,331,076	$298,244	$1,032,832	$1,008,617	$55,195	$945,061
19	$994,347	$221,191	$773,156	$750,838	$5,241	$747,369
20	$686,759	$196,789	$489,970	$476,033	$872	$481,319
21	$381,268	$166,281	$214,987	$208,780	$48,300	$165,033
22	$274,229	$133,755	$140,474	$137,529	$15,943	$120,137
23	$238,411	$147,415	$90,996	$88,846	$560	$92,237
24	$244,709	$223,111	$21,598	$20,182	$53,006	-$25,226
25	$228,319	$235,193	-$6,874	-$8,453	$581	-$7,506
26	$248,330	$217,178	$31,152	$28,796	$470	$26,082
27	$240,331	$226,661	$13,670	$10,784	$63,237	-$51,526
28	$318,583	$162,159	$156,424	$152,150	$232	$143,451
29	$266,781	$171,065	$95,717	$93,146	$871	$94,773
30	$229,629	$179,241	$50,388	$48,994	$48,238	$2,650
31	$46,086	$58,728	-$12,642	-$12,642	$0	-$22,436

PRICE DECK – ASSUMPTIONS
PRICE / RATE	UNIT	LONG TERM
Copper	$/lb	3.90
Weighted Average Recovery	%	73
Sulfuric Acid	$/ton	160.00
Electricity (Nuclear)	$/kWh	0.071
NSR Royalty
	%	2.54% (assumes buyback) on Cactus and a portion of Parks/Salyer
	%	0.5% on Bronco Creek (portion of PS)
Effective Taxes	%	22.9

Quality Assurance and Quality Control Procedures
Skyline Labs is accredited in accordance with the recognized International Standard ISO/IEC 17025:2005. Their quality management system has been certified as conforming to the requirements defined in the International Standard ISO 9001:2015. The standard operating procedure (SOP) used while processing the ASCU samples was to process samples in groups of 20. Each tray consisted of 18 samples with samples No. 1 and No. 10 repeated as duplicates. The results from each tray were analyzed and any variance in the duplicates of more than 3% would result in the entire tray being re-assayed.

The results of these analyses, including the QA/QC checks, were transmitted to a select set of individuals at ASCU and the qualified persons.

Qualified Persons
Each of the persons listed below are authors preparing the 2024 PEA and have reviewed and verified the contents of this news release as it relates to their area of responsibilities. By virtue of their education, experience and professional association membership, each of the below listed persons are considered “qualified person” as defined by NI 43-101.

Scientific and technical aspects of this news release have been reviewed and verified by these Qualified Person’s listed below and Dan Johnson, ASCU Director of Projects, as defined by National Instrument 43-101.

Project Management, M3 Engineering, John Woodson, PE, SME-RM
Metallurgy, M3 Engineering, Laurie Tahija, QP-MMSA
Mineral Resources, Allan L. Schappert, CPG, SME-RM, ALS Geo Resources LLC
Water and Environmental, R. Douglas Bartlett, CPG, PG. Clear Creek Associates, a subsidiary of Geo-Logic Associates
Mine Planning, Gordon Zurowski, P.Eng., AGP Mining Consultants Inc.

Links from the Press Release:
Webinar: https://www.bigmarker.com/vid-conferences/ASCU-VID-THF-07082024
Figures and Tables: https://arizonasonoran.com/projects/cactus-mine-project/press-release-images/
July 16, 2024: https://arizonasonoran.com/news-releases/arizona-sonoran-updates-cactus-project-mineral-resource-estimate-to-7.3-b-lbs-of-copper-in-m-i-and-3.8-b-lbs-of-copper-in/
December 14, 2023: https://arizonasonoran.com/news-releases/arizona-sonoran-and-nuton-llc-announce-option-to-joint-venture-on-cactus-project-in-arizona/  
SEDAR+: https://www.sedarplus.ca

About Arizona Sonoran Copper Company (www.arizonasonoran.com | www.cactusmine.com)
ASCU’s objective is to become a mid-tier copper producer with low operating costs and to develop the Cactus and Parks/Salyer Projects that could generate robust returns for investors and provide a long term sustainable and responsible operation for the community and all stakeholders. The Company’s principal asset is a 100% interest in the Cactus Project (former ASARCO, Sacaton mine) which is situated on private land in an infrastructure-rich area of Arizona. Contiguous to the Cactus Project is the Company’s 100%-owned Parks/Salyer deposit that could allow for a phased expansion of the Cactus Mine once it becomes a producing asset. The Company is led by an executive management team and Board which have a long-standing track record of successful project delivery in North America complemented by global capital markets expertise.

For more information
Alison Dwoskin, Director, Investor Relations
647-233-4348
adwoskin@arizonasonoran.com

George Ogilvie, President, CEO and Director
416-723-0458
gogilvie@arizonasonoran.com

Non-IFRS Financial Performance Measures 
This news release contains certain non-IFRS measures, including sustaining capital, sustaining costs, EBITDA, C1 cash costs and AISC. The Company believes that these measures, together with measures determined in accordance with IFRS, provide investors with an improved ability to evaluate the underlying performance of the Company. Non-IFRS measures do not have any standardized meaning prescribed under IFRS, and therefore they may not be comparable to similar measures employed by other companies. The data is intended to provide additional information and should not be considered in isolation or as a substitute for measures of performance prepared in accordance with IFRS.

Cautionary Statement Regarding Estimates of Mineral Resources
This news release uses the terms measured, indicated and inferred mineral resources as a relative measure of the level of confidence in the resource estimate. Readers are cautioned that mineral resources are not mineral reserves and that the economic viability of resources that are not mineral reserves has not been demonstrated. The mineral resource estimate disclosed in this news release may be materially affected by geology, environmental, permitting, legal, title, socio-political, marketing or other relevant issues. The mineral resource estimate is classified in accordance with the Canadian disclosure requirements of Institute of Mining, Metallurgy and Petroleum’s “CIM Definition Standards on Mineral Resources and Mineral Reserves” incorporated by reference into NI 43-101. Under NI 43-101, estimates of inferred mineral resources may not form the basis of feasibility or pre-feasibility studies or economic studies except for preliminary economic assessments. Readers are cautioned not to assume that further work on the stated resources will lead to mineral reserves that can be mined economically.

Forward-Looking Statements
This news release contains “forward-looking statements” and/or “forward-looking information” (collectively, “forward-looking statements”) within the meaning of applicable securities legislation. All statements, other than statements of historical fact, are forward-looking statements. Generally, forward-looking statements can be identified by the use of forward-looking terminology such as “plans”, “expect”, “is expected”, “in order to”, “is focused on” (a future event), “estimates”, “intends”, “anticipates”, “believes” or variations of such words and phrases or statements that certain actions, events or results “may”, “could”, “would”, or the negative connotation thereof. In particular, statements regarding ASCU’s future operations, future exploration and development activities or other development plans constitute forward-looking statements. By their nature, statements referring to mineral reserves or mineral resources constitute forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements in this news release include, but are not limited to statements with respect to the results (if any) of further exploration work to define and expand or upgrade mineral resources and reserves at ASCU’s properties; the anticipated exploration, drilling, development, construction and other activities of ASCU and the result of such activities; the mineral resources and mineral reserves estimates of the Cactus Project (and the assumptions underlying such estimates); the estimates and assumptions underlying the PEA; projected production; pre-tax and after-tax NPV; [pre-tax] and after-tax IRR; payback period; LOM estimates; free-cash flows estimates; AISC and cost estimates; job creation estimates; expected revenues, EBITDA or recoveries; the ability of exploration work (including drilling) to accurately predict mineralization; the ability of management to understand the geology and potential of the Cactus Project; the focus of the 2024 drilling program at the Cactus Project including the Parks/Salyer deposit and MainSpring property; the ability to generate additional drill targets; the ability of ASCU to complete its exploration objectives in 2024 in the timing contemplated (if at all); the completion and timing for the filing of the PEA; the timing and ability of ASCU to publish the 2025 PFS (if at all); the possibility of obtaining an extension of time to issue the 2025 PFS (if at all); the timing and ability to publish a feasibility study (if at all); the scope of any future technical reports and studies conducted by ASCU; the ability to realize upon mineralization in a manner that is economic; the impact of bringing the MainSpring property into the mine plan; the ability and timing of ASCU to commence operations (if at all); the robust economics and opportunity represented by the Cactus Project; the expected impact of the Cactus Project on the local economy and stakeholders; ; the impact of the NutonTM technologies on ASCU operations and cost relating to same; the impact of the relationship with Nuton on ASCU and its operations and any other information herein that is not a historical fact.

ASCU considers its assumptions to be reasonable based on information currently available but cautions the reader that their assumptions regarding future events, many of which are beyond the control of the Company, may ultimately prove to be incorrect since they are subject to risks and uncertainties that affect ASCU, its properties and business.Such risks and uncertainties include, but not limited to, the global economic climate, developments in world commodity markets, changes in commodity prices (particularly prices of copper), risks relating to fluctuations in the Canadian dollar and other currencies relative to the US dollar, risks relating to capital market conditions and ASCU’s ability to access capital on terms acceptable to ASCU for the contemplated exploration and development at the Company’s properties, changes in exploration, development or mining plans due to exploration results and changing budget priorities of ASCU or its joint venture partners, the effects of competition in the markets in which ASCU operates, results of further exploration work, the ability to continue exploration and development at ASCU’s properties, the ability to successfully apply the NutonTM technologies in ASCU’s properties, the impact of the NutonTM technologies on ASCU operations and cost relating to same, the timing and ability for ASCU to prepare and complete the 2025 PFS and the costs relating to same, errors in geological modelling, changes in any of the assumptions underlying the PEA, the ability to expand operations or complete further exploration activities, the ability to obtain regulatory approvals, the impact of changes in the laws and regulations regulating mining exploration, development, closure, judicial or regulatory judgments and legal proceedings, operational and infrastructure risks and the additional risks described in ASCU’s most recently filed Annual Information Form, annual and interim management’s discussion and analysis, copies of which are available on SEDAR+ (www.sedarplus.ca) under ASCU’s issuer profile. ASCU’s anticipation of and success in managing the foregoing risks could cause actual results to differ materially from what is anticipated in such forward-looking statements.

Although management considers the assumptions contained in forward-looking statements to be reasonable based on information currently available to it based on information available at the date of preparation, those assumptions may prove to be incorrect. There can be no assurance that these forward-looking statements will prove to be accurate, as actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated in such statements. Accordingly, readers should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements and are urged to carefully consider the foregoing factors as well as other uncertainties and risks outlined in ASCU’s public disclosure record.

ASCU disclaims any obligation to update any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or results or otherwise, except as required by law.