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Thesis Gold Updated PEA for Lawyers-Ranch Project: After-Tax NPV5% of C$1.28 Billion, IRR of 35.2% and 2.0 Year Payback

Press Release

Vancouver, British Columbia–(– September 5, 2024) – Thesis Gold Inc. (TSXV: TAU) (FSE: A3EP87) (OTCQX: THSGF) is pleased to announce positive results from the updated independent Preliminary Economic Assessment (“PEA”) for its 100% owned Lawyers-Ranch Project (the “Project”) in the prolific Toodoggone Mining District of northern British Columbia. The updated PEA outlines a plan for developing the combined Lawyers-Ranch project using both open-pit and underground mining methods, with mineralized material processed at a single facility, achieving an estimated average gold recovery of 93%. The PEA was prepared by JDS Energy & Mining Inc. (“JDS”) of Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada in accordance with National Instrument 43-101 – Standards of Disclosure for Mineral Projects (“NI 43-101”). The updated NI 43-101 PEA Technical Report will be filed on SEDAR+ at www.sedarplus.ca and Thesis Gold’s website www.thesisgold.com within 45 days of this announcement.

Highlights

  • Strong Economics: Pre-tax internal rate of return (“IRR”) of 46.0%, pre-tax net present value at a 5% discount rate (“NPV5%”) of C$1.99 billion, after-tax IRR stands at 35.2%, and an after-tax NPV5% of C$1.28 billion, using US$1,930 per ounce of gold and US$24 per ounce of silver (see Table 1).
  • Gold Price Sensitivity: The project remains robust at a wide range of gold prices from US$1,750 to US$2,500 with after-tax IRR of 28.8% to 52.8% (see Table 2).
  • Increased Production: The 2024 PEA saw a considerable increase in production versus the previous (2022) PEA with a 32% increase in annual average production to 215,000 gold-equivalent (“AuEq”*) ounces, including an average 273,000 gold-equivalent ounces annually over the first three years, and a 55% increase in Life-of-mine (“LOM”) production to 3.0 milliongold-equivalent ounces, extending mine life to over 14 years.
  • Low AISC: LOM all-in sustaining cash cost (“AISC”) of US$1,013 per ounce of gold equivalent.
  • Quick Payback: The project offers a quick after-tax payback of 2.0 years, a 29% decrease compared to the previous (2022) PEA.
  • Capex: Initial capital expenditure is estimated at C$598.4 million, with a compelling after-tax NPV5% to initial capital ratio of 2.1:1.
  • Project Upside: Significant Mineral Resource growth potential remains across both Lawyers and Ranch projects. The underground Mineral Resource at Lawyers is still open for expansion at depth, while Ranch Mineral Resource zones also remain open. Additionally, there are over 20 unexplored targets that hold potential for further discoveries.

Dr. Ewan Webster, President and CEO, commented, “Starting in 2023, we set an ambitious goal to focus our exploration and engineering efforts on optimizing our project establishing a low-cost future producer with a quick payback period and a projected mine life exceeding 10 years, while in parallel establishing substantial opportunities for future expansion. We are delivering on that promise, with 215,000 ounces per year over a 14-year mine life, a 117% improvement in NPV, and a 46% improvement in IRR. This translates to a robust after-tax NPV5% of C$1.28 billion and an after-tax IRR of 35.2%, based on a conservative 3-year trailing average gold price of US$1,930 per ounce. With today’s gold price near US$2,500 per ounce, the substantial economic potential of the Lawyers-Ranch Project is clear. As we advance toward key project development milestones, we will continue to explore new targets within our expansive, highly prospective land package. This approach will further enhance a project that is not only straightforward and low-risk but also benefits from high-grade, easily accessible open-pit and underground ounces, combined with proximity to existing infrastructure. This positions the Lawyers-Ranch Project as one of Canada’s most prospective gold projects.”

Bill Lytle, Non-Executive Chairman, added, “The 2024 PEA confirms the positive potential of the Lawyers-Ranch Project, utilizing industry-standard open-pit and underground mining methods alongside an optimized processing flowsheet that ensures exceptional recoveries from both Lawyers and Ranch streams, all while maintaining a compact project footprint. The inclusion of the Lawyers underground brings high-grade, easily accessible ounces into the early stages of the mine life, significantly enhancing the project’s economics compared to the 2022 PEA. With 301,316 meters drilled to date, 86.9% of the updated 2024 Mineral Resource is now classified as Measured and Indicated. Combined with well-advanced engineering and environmental baseline work, the project is rapidly moving towards Pre-Feasibility and an accelerated permitting timeline, while still offering substantial upside potential and opportunities for Mineral Resource growth.”

PEA Overview

The PEA is preliminary in nature and includes Inferred Mineral Resources considered too speculative geologically to have the economic considerations applied to them that would enable them to be categorized as Mineral Reserves, and there is no certainty that the results of the PEA will be realized. Mineral Resources are not Mineral Reserves and do not have demonstrated economic viability.

The 2024 PEA considers a conventional truck and shovel open-pit mining (“OP”) operation with common equipment sizing feeding a 12,600 tonnes per day (t/d) industry standard processing plant with crushing, grinding, flotation, leaching and a Merrill Crowe recovery circuit, with production of precious metal concentrate and gold-silver doré bullion on site. The 2024 PEA considers a crossover to underground mining (“U/G”) using longhole stoping and a small zone of drift and fill to feed up to 2,500 t/d from the Duke’s Ridge, Cliff Creek and Ranch Deposits from years 2 to 14. The PEA is based on an update of the Mineral Resource Estimate announced by the Company on the June 1, 2024 press release.

JDS was appointed as lead consultant in January 2024 to prepare the updated PEA in accordance with NI 43-101 and was assisted by Knight Piesold Consulting (“KP”) for tailings storage facility (“TSF”) and waste rock storage facility (“WRSF”) design and costing, Frank Wright Consulting (“Frank Wright”) for metallurgy, P&E Mining Consultants Inc. for Mineral Resource estimation, and One-Eighty Consulting for permitting.

PEA Highlights

  • Positive after-tax NPV (5%) of C$1.28 billion, 35.2% IRR and 2.0 Year Payback Period.
  • Open pit and underground mining at the Lawyers and Ranch properties, with the inclusion of underground mining leading to an increase grade and tonnage compared to previous PEA.
  • Inclusion of underground mining leading to an overall reduction in LOM strip ratio for the Project.
  • Optimized flowsheet utilizing both flotation and leaching to maximize overall recovery. The addition of a flotation circuit allows for an increased gold recovery to 93% and silver recovery to 86.1% across a combined Lawyers and Ranch process plant feed.
  • Increase Life of Mine of 14 years with 215, 000 oz AuEq* average annual production.
  • Life of Mine (LOM) production of 64.7 Mt of Process Plant Feed at an average grade of 1.61 g/t AuEq*.
  • Optimized infrastructure to increase operational efficiency.

These results reinforce the economic potential of the project, highlighting efficient and effective processing strategies to maximize metal recovery.

PEA Parameters and Assumptions

The financial modeling for this PEA was done by JDS Energy & Mining Inc. and included the following parameters and assumptions:

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