Nouveau Monde Graphite Inc. press release

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

2026-02-26

TSX - Toronto Stock Exchange · Graphite · Canada

Hub and Spoke Mine Plan in Central Newfoundland: Three deposits, Hammerdown, Orion and Stog'er Tight, centered around the Company's Pine Cove Mill Robust Economics: After-tax NPV5%[1]of $199.2 M[2]using a base case scenario (variable price deck: long-term price of US$3,475/oz averaging US$3,656/oz Au[3]) After-tax NPV5%of $415.1 M using an upside scenario (US$5,000/oz Au)

Solid Production over an Extended Mine Life: 251,287 oz Au produced over a 13-year LOM[4] Average LOM total cash costs[5]and AISC[6]of US$2,149/oz Au and US$2,429/oz Au Total after-tax free cash flow[7]of $243.3 M

Additional Value Potential from Exploration Upside: Deposits open laterally and to depth; additional target areas being evaluated Exploration planned to commence H2/26

All amounts in Canadian dollars unless stated otherwise

Toronto, Ontario--(Newsfile Corp. - February 26, 2026) - New Found Gold Corp. (TSXV: NFG) (NYSE American: NFGC) ("New Found Gold" or the "Company") is pleased to announce the results of a positive Preliminary Economic Assessment ("PEA") and updated mineral resource estimate ("MRE") for the Company's 100% owned Hammerdown Gold Project ("Hammerdown" or the "Project"), which includes the Hammerdown deposit, Orion deposit and Stog'er Tight deposit (collectively, the "Deposits") and the Pine Cove Mill ("Pine Cove" or the "Mill"), located in Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada. The Deposits are evaluated with a Hub and Spokes model centred around Pine Cove, with the Hammerdown deposit currently being ramped up to commercial production.

_"Today's updated mineral resource and life of mine plan for Hammerdown demonstrates cashflow generation from operations which will offset overhead and exploration costs as we continue to fast-track our flagship Queensway Gold Project towards production in H2/27, taking full advantage of the tremendous synergies through our strategic purchase of Pine Cove and the Nugget Pond gold circuit. This purchase accelerates the development of Queensway by two to three years, coinciding with this exciting gold market," commented_Keith Boyle, Chief Executive Officer.

_"Our team has a demonstrated track record of exploration success in the discovery of orogenic gold deposits in central Newfoundland. With the completion of the Maritime Resources Corp. acquisition just over three months ago, we have commenced evaluation of the exploration upside of the Project. As part of our Hub and Spoke strategy, the mine plan brings in additional resources with the inclusion of the Orion and Stog'er Tight deposits, which were not contemplated in previous mine plans. We look forward to commencing exploration work on our new landholdings later this year," _continued Mr. Boyle.

[1]NPV5%= net present value at a 5 percent discount rate. [2]M = million. [3]oz Au = ounces of gold; Base case gold price US$4,132 in Year 1, US$4,000 in Year 2, US$3,775 in Year 3, US$3,600 in Year 4 and 5 and US$3,475 thereafter. [4]LOM = life-of-mine. [5]Cash cost is a Non-GAAP measure; See notes below for additional information regarding cash costs. [6]AISC = all in sustaining costs; Note AISC is a Non-GAAP measure; See notes below for additional information regarding AISC. [7]Free cash flow is a Non-GAAP measure; See notes below for additional information regarding free cash flow.

Project Overview

Hammerdown includes the Company's 100% owned Hammerdown property and Pine Cove property (Figure 1). The Hammerdown property includes the Hammerdown deposit and the Orion deposit; the Pine Cove property includes the Stog'er Tight deposit and Pine Cove, a fully permitted processing plant and tailings facility.

The Hammerdown deposit is an open-pit mining deposit with first gold pour in November 2025 and is currently ramping up gold production. Hammerdown is located in the north-central portion of the island of Newfoundland in the Province of Newfoundland and Labrador ("NL") on the east coast of Canada. The Hammerdown and Orion deposits are located approximately 95 kilometres ("km") by road from Pine Cove, which includes a fully permitted and operating processing plant and tailings facility. Commercial production at the Hammerdown deposit is expected to be achieved in H2/26. The Stog'er Tight deposit is located on the Pine Cove property, 4 km east of Pine Cove. The Company's 100% owned flagship Queensway Gold Project ("Queensway") is located approximately 270 km by road from Pine Cove and approximately 15 km west of the town of Gander.

Key Outcomes of the PEA:

The PEA has returned an after-tax NPV5%of $199.2 M at the base case gold price (variable price deck: long-term price of US$3,475/oz averaging US$3,656/oz Au) and an after-tax NPV5%of $415.1 M at the upside gold price of US$5,000 (Table 1), Over a 13-year period, the total mill feed throughput is expected to be 3.2 million tonnes ("Mt"), with an average mined grade of 2.19 grams of gold per tonne ("g/t Au"), a post-sorting mill feed head grade of 2.89 g/t Au and average annual gold production of approximately 19.3 thousand ounces ("koz") of gold per annum (Figure 2), Average LOM cash costs and AISC of US$2,149/oz and US$2,429/oz, respectively, Total capital costs (with contingency) are estimated at $24.3 M and reclamation, and closure costs are estimated at $18.0 M, The PEA mine plan was developed from Measured and Indicated Mineral Resources of 3,328 kt grading 2.43 grams per tonne ("g/t") gold containing 260,000 ounces of gold and Inferred Mineral Resources of 2,132 kt grading 2.34 g/t gold containing 161,000 ounces of gold.

LOM Plan:

13-year open pit project commencing in 2026, including one year of stockpile rehandling in 2038 (Figure 2), Continuation of the conventional open pit truck-and-shovel operation executed by a mining contractor, as currently underway at the Hammerdown deposit, Process plant feed rate of 700 tonnes per day ("tpd") with the addition of sorting at the Hammerdown and Orion deposits, Hammerdown deposit pit mined in multiple phases, followed by the Orion deposit pit and four Stog'er Tight deposit pits sequentially, The Hammerdown deposit accounts for 75% of mineralized material mined (82% of recovered gold), with mining taking place in this zone from year 1 to year 10 and the Orion and Stog'er Tight deposits account for 25% of mineralized material mined (18% of recovered gold), which will be mined from year 8 to year 12, The average material mined, consisting of mineralized material, waste rock and overburden, is 12,300 tpd during the LOM, ranging between 11,800 tpd and 18,400 tpd from year 1 to year 6 and between 2,500 tpd and 13,700 tpd from year 7 to year 12, The average strip ratio over the LOM is 11.4, with total material mined of 54.1 Mt including 4.4 Mt of mineralized material at an average grade of 2.19 g/t Au, With sorting, a total of 3.2 Mt of mineralized material at an average grade of 2.89 g/t Au will be processed with total gold recovery of 251.3 koz of gold; Process plant average gold recovery for the zones being mined from year 1 to year 4 is estimated to be 87.2% and 84.3% thereafter, with LOM average gold recovery of 85.5%.

Table 1:Hammerdown Gold Project PEA Summary: Key Metrics and Project Economics.

| Production1 | 2026 PEA | Units | | LOM | 13 | years | | Total Potential Mill Feed Tonnage | 3,159 | kt | | Average Mined Grade | 2.19 | g/t Au | | Mill Feed Head Grade (Post-Sorting) | 2.89 | g/t Au | | Cut-off Grade (Range Depending on Deposit) | 0.41-0.56 | g/t Au | | Process Plant Average Gold Recovery | 85.5 | % | | Contained Gold | 306.6 | koz | | Recovered Gold | 251.3 | koz | | Average Annual Gold Production | 19.3 | koz/yr | | Average Mineralized Material Mining Rate (Post Sorting) | 700 | tpd | | Strip Ratio | 11.4:1 | waste:ore | | Operating & Capital Costs1 | | | | Total Operating Costs1,2 | 725.9 | $M | | Sustaining Capital Costs (with contingency) | 97.7 | $M | | Total Capital Costs (with Contingency) | 24.3 | $M | | Reclamation and Closure Capital | 18.0 | $M | | Royalty NSR | 17.4 | $M | | Total Cash Cost | 2,149 | US$/oz Au | | AISC (LOM) | 2,429 | US$/oz Au | | Financial Summary | | | | Gold Price (Average LOM Base Case) | 3,656 | US$/oz Au | | Exchange Rate | 1.39 | C$/US$ | | Discount Rate | 5 | % | | Pre-Tax NPV5%(Base Case Gold Price: US$3,656 average LOM) | 318.5 | $M | | After-Tax NPV5%(Base Case Gold Price: US$3,656 average LOM) | 199.2 | $M | | Pre-Tax NPV5%(Upside Gold Price: US$5,000) | 680.8 | $M | | After-Tax NPV5%(Upside Case Gold Price: US$5,000) | 415.1 | $M | | Internal Rate of Return | N/A | - | | Payback Period | N/A | - |

Notes: 1 Denotes a "specified financial measure" within the meaning of National Instrument 52-112 - non-GAAP and Other Financial Measures Disclosure. See note on "Non-IFRS Financial Measures". 2Total operating costs refer to onsite charges that cover open pit mining, processing and material handling, and onsite general and administrative costs. 3AISC is calculated as the sum of doré transportation, treatment and refining charges, royalties, onsite operating costs, and sustaining capital costs, divided by the quantity of ounces sold.

The PEA is preliminary in nature, it includes Inferred Mineral Resources that are considered too speculative geologically to have economic considerations applied to them that would enable them to be categorized as Mineral Reserves, and there is no certainty that the PEA will be realized. No Mineral Reserves are defined for the Project.

[](https://images.newsfilecorp.com/files/7337/285504_5cc229df2479f9df_001full.jpg)

Figure 1: Hammerdown Gold Project: Location Map.

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[](https://images.newsfilecorp.com/files/7337/285504_5cc229df2479f9df_002full.jpg)

Figure 2:Hammerdown Gold Project: Gold Production by Year with Mill Feed Head Grade and AISC.

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Mineral Resource Estimate

Mineral Resources are reported for the Hammerdown, Orion, and Stog'er Tight deposits, which are planned to share Pine Cove. Measured and Indicated Mineral Resources ("M&I") for the projects combined total 3.328 Mt at an average gold grade of 2.43 g/t Au for 260,000 contained ounces of gold. Inferred Mineral Resources total 2.132 Mt at an average grade of 2.34 g/t Au for 161,000 ounces of gold (Table 2).

Table 2: Hammerdown Gold Project Consolidated MRE (effective date January 22, 2026)12.

| Property | Deposit | Mining Method | Category | Tonnage (kt) | Grade (g/t Au) | Contained Oz (koz)3 | | Hammerdown | Hammerdown | Open Pit | Measured | 271 | 8.24 | 72 | | Indicated | 1,823 | 1.96 | 115 | | | | | Measured & Indicated | 2,094 | 2.77 | 187 | | | | | Inferred | 973 | 2.59 | 81 | | | | | Hammerdown | Orion | Open Pit | Indicated | 598 | 1.75 | 33.6 | | Inferred | 91 | 1.92 | 5.6 | | | | | Underground | Indicated | 636 | 1.92 | 39.3 | | | | Inferred | 523 | 2.16 | 36.2 | | | | | Pine Cove | Stog'er Tight | Open Pit | Inferred | 545 | 2.16 | 37.8 | | | Total | | | | | | | | Measured | 271 | 8.24 | 72 | | | | | Indicated | 3,057 | 1.91 | 188 | | | | | Measured & Indicated | 3,328 | 2.43 | 260 | | | | | Inferred | 2,132 | 2.34 | 161 | | |

Notes: 1 Refer to the Appendix to see MRE notes and data verification for each deposit. 2The mineral resource database was closed on June 16, 2025, and contains 93,818 metres ("m") of drilling in 1,108 diamond drill holes ("DDH") and 310 m in 86 channels at Hammerdown, 46,017.34 m of drilling in 219 DDH at the Orion deposit and 35,246.42 m of drilling in 523 DDH at the Stog'er Tight deposit that were used to inform the MRE presented. The Qualified Person ("QP"), as defined by National Instrument 43-101 - Standards of Disclosure of Mineral Projects ("NI 43-101"), responsible for the MRE were Christian Beaulieu of Mineralis Consulting Services Inc. for the Hammerdown deposit, Chafana Sako of Norda Stelo Inc. for the Orion and Stog'er Tight deposits, and Stephen Coates of Evomine Consulting Inc. for constraining volumes on all deposits. 3Numbers may not total due to rounding.

Comparison of PEA Relative to 2022 Feasibility Study

The following section provides a comparison of the updated Mineral Resources reported herein to the technical report titled "Feasibility Study Technical Report: Hammerdown Gold Project, Newfoundland" with an effective date of August 15, 2022, prepared by JDS Energy and Mining Inc. for Maritime Resources Corp. (the "2022 Feasibility Study", Table 3).

Changes to the Hammerdown deposit MRE in the 2022 Feasibility Study primarily reflect the application of new estimation parameters informed by increased data confidence from the tightly spaced grade control drilling completed in 2024 and 2025. Specifically, tighter distance constraints were applied to high grade intervals, which affected overall grade and ultimately reduced it relative to the previous estimate. Additional changes include an increase in resources classified as inferred due to missing data validation needed to confirm the positions of historically mined out underground stopes. New optimization parameters also contribute to loss in contained ounces, as well as additional depletion of historically mined stopes. The methodology used to report the MRE in a narrow-vein environment also contributes to lower grades as more waste is accounted for as must-take material. Adjusted cut-off grades and the reporting methodology contributed to the increase in contained metal. The Orion and Stog'er Tight deposits were not included in the 2022 Feasibility Study.

Table 3:Hammerdown Gold Project Consolidated MRE Compared to 2022 Feasibility Study3.

| | 2026 PEA1, 4 | 2022 Feasibility Study (open pit only)2, 3 | | | | | | Resource Category | Tonnage (kt) | Grade (g/t Au) | Contained Oz (koz) | Tonnage (kt) | Grade (g/t Au) | Contained Oz (koz) | | Measured | 271 | 8.24 | 72 | 698 | 5.47 | 123 | | Indicated | 3,057 | 1.91 | 188 | 2146 | 3.00 | 207 | | Measured & Indicated | 3,328 | 2.43 | 260 | 2845 | 3.61 | 330 | | Inferred | 2,132 | 2.34 | 161 | 302 | 1.31 | 13 |

Notes: 1Using a cut-off grade of 0.35 g/t Au for Hammerdown (excluding Wisteria), 0.48 g/t Au for Hammerdown Wisteria area, 0.47 g/t Au for Orion open pit, 1.13 g/t Au for Orion underground and 0.42 g/t Au for Stog'er Tight open pit. 22022 Feasibility Study, with an effective date of August 15, 2022, prepared by JDS Energy and Mining Inc. for Maritime Resources Corp. 3 The Orion and Stog'er Tight deposits were not included in the 2022 Feasibility Study. 4 Refer to the Appendix for additional MRE notes.

Mining

The PEA contemplates open pit mining from the Hammerdown, Orion and Stog'er Tight deposits, designed as conventional truck and shovel open pit operations operated by a contractor. Run of mine ("ROM") mineable material from the Hammerdown and Orion deposits will be sent to the on-site crushing and sorting plant to produce mill feed that will be hauled to Pine Cove for final processing. A total of 4,354 Mt of ROM mineable material is scheduled to be mined from all open pits with a diluted grade averaging 2.19 g/t Au. A total of 48.0 Mt of non-acid generating waste rock will also be produced and stored in a waste rock stockpile adjacent to the open pits. The open pits have been designed and scheduled to maximize project NPV. Pit slope optimization has been undertaken based on geotechnical data collected between 2020 and 2021. The Hammerdown deposit's open pit development consists of two phases of pushbacks with overburden thickness averaging less than 2 m.

Mining will be completed by conventional drilling, blasting, loading and hauling on 4 m benches in mineralized material and 8 m benches in waste where practical at the Hammerdown deposit and 5 m benches at the Orion and Stog'er Tight deposits. Waste loading and haulage will be handled by 3 m3hydraulic excavators and 41-tonne payload articulated haul trucks. Mineralized material loading and hauling will be handled by a fleet of 2 m3hydraulic excavators with a 7 m3front end loader as backup and 38 tonne payload articulated haul trucks.

Grade control in the open pit is a key part of the mining process and will be accomplished through a combination of 4 to 5 m bench heights with 2 m flitches, controlled blasting, 50,000 m of close spaced diamond drilling (15 m centres, 10 m vertically) to identify and report vein orientations and grades to the mine planners, selective excavation under GPS control, and mine geological control. The sorting process is integrated to remove dilution taken with the narrow veins during the mining process.

Processing and Recovery

Pine Cove was commissioned on low grade stockpiles in 2025 and commenced processing Hammerdown deposit mineable material in Q4/25.

The mineralized material from the Hammerdown, Orion and Stog'er Tight deposits will be processed at Pine Cove, a fully permitted processing plant and in-pit tailings facility. Mineable material from the three deposits will be trucked to the Mill and processed at a nominal rate of 700 tpd. The flowsheet consists of a ball mill and flotation circuit that produces a gold-pyrite concentrate, cyanide leach, filtration and Merrill Crowe gold recovery circuit.

The process plant average gold recovery for the zones being mined from year 1 to year 4 is estimated to be 87.2% and 84.3% thereafter, with LOM average gold recovery of 85.5%.

The Company has recently purchased a sorter which it plans to commission in H2/26. Sorting at the Hammerdown deposit is expected to commence in 2027, at the Orion deposit in 2033 and once commenced, continue over the LOM at these two deposits.

Additional Value Potential from Exploration Upside

Hammerdown hosts multiple gold-bearing trends with potential for resource growth and new discovery over the 44,650 hectare land package. To date, only limited near surface work has been completed across large portions of the land holdings, yet the Project presents a broad pipeline of early- to advanced-stage exploration targets. Near resource expansion opportunities remain strong at the Hammerdown, Orion, and Stog'er Tight deposits, where drilling to date has largely been confined to the upper 220 m with minimal lateral testing along key structural corridors (Figure 3). The limited deeper testing that has been completed to date has intersected mineralisation at vertical depths of up to 400 m at the Orion deposit, highlighting the opportunity for continued resource growth at depth.

[](https://images.newsfilecorp.com/files/7337/285504_5cc229df2479f9df_003full.jpg)

Figure 3:Hammerdown Gold Project: Hammerdown and Orion Deposit Longitudinal Sections.

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Looking ahead, the Company plans to advance step out drilling around existing mineral resources while evaluating high priority regional targets along prospective trends, including the Hammerdown Deformation Zone, Whisker Valley, El Strato, Scrape, Goldenville, and Deer Cove (Figure 4).

In 2026, exploration activities will emphasize comprehensive data compilation, geological interpretation, and systematic targeting to support a long-term discovery strategy and inform well-designed programs for 2027 and beyond.

Concurrently, drilling is scheduled to begin in H1/26 to derisk the deeper portions of the Hammerdown deposit mine plan. Regional initiatives will focus on building foundational datasets, including property wide geophysics, reconnaissance soil sampling, and prospecting, to guide future exploration and enhance the geological understanding across the broader land package.

[](https://images.newsfilecorp.com/files/7337/285504_5cc229df2479f9df_004full.jpg)

Figure 4.Hammerdown Gold Project: Exploration Potential.

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