Lake Victoria starts 4,000 m drill campaign at Imwelo

Mr. Marc Cernovitch reports BUILDING THE STARTER PIT: LAKE VICTORIA GOLD MOBILIZES DRILL RIG AT IMWELO'S AREA C Lake Victoria Gold Ltd. has commenced a 4,000-metre, multipurpose drilling campaign at the Area C zone of its fully permitted Imwelo gold project in northwestern Tanzania. The program is designed to support short-term production readiness, resource expansion and conversion, and final pit design optimization. This campaign forms a key component of Lake Victoria's strategy to initiate a low-capex open-pit operation at Imwelo, with future underground development to be evaluated as part of continuing high-grade exploration and resource growth. Mobilization of the first rig is under way this week, with drilling scheduled to commence Oct. 6, 2025. A second rig has been ordered to accelerate the program and is expected to mobilize in the coming weeks. Strategic context The Imwelo project, located just 12 kilometres from AngloGold Ashanti's Geita gold mine, is fully permitted under a 10-year mining licence. Backed by a simple development plan and metallurgical recoveries greater than 90 per cent, the company is targeting first gold within 12 months of commencement of construction. Area C is the first zone planned for production and has an average grade of 3.7 grams per tonne Au. It also represents one of the highest-grade zones within the Imwelo historical resource envelope. Previous intercepts include: Two metres at 5.06 g/t Au from 15 m and 6.8 m at 14.6 g/t Au from 33.2 m (IMWRC-037); Seven m at 3.22 g/t Au from 27 m (IMRC-014); Two m at 7.5 g/t Au from 22 m (IMWRC-038). Reported intercepts are down-hole lengths; true widths are unknown. Marc Cernovitch, president and chief executive officer of Lake Victoria Gold, commented: "By mobilizing now and adding a second rig, we're advancing Imwelo on two fronts -- short-term production readiness and resource growth potential. This drill program is designed to tighten mine scheduling, validate pit and slope design, and test down-dip and western extensions at Area C." Program highlights Strike extensions. Stepouts to the west will test continuity across the interpreted fault. Geophysics and mapping indicate mineralization may be offset rather than terminated beyond the current pit limits; these holes will assess continuity and potential expansion of the open-pit resource envelope. Depth extensions. Historical drilling at Area C has, on average, tested only to approximately 45 metres. The planned holes are designed to intersect mineralization at approximately 100 m and approximately 200 m down dip. If mineralization continues at depth as interpreted, results could improve confidence, support potential resource expansion and help progress the case for future underground targeting of higher-grade zones. Geotechnical work. Select diamond holes will be oriented for structural logging. Data will be used to update geotechnical domains and slope designs for Area C's final pit shells. Metallurgical work. Representative core will be composited for confirmatory testing, with an emphasis on the transition horizon to inform recovery assumptions and early stage mine scheduling. Seth Dickinson, PEng, chief operating officer, added: "This program is about turning plans into mine-ready decisions -- validated pit design and targeted stepouts for potential growth. With two rigs, we expect steady results that support a disciplined transition toward production at Imwelo." Qualified person The scientific and technical information in this news release has been reviewed and approved by David Scott, PrSciNat, who is a qualified person as defined by National Instrument 43-101 -- Standards of Disclosure for Mineral Projects. Mr. Scott is a director and officer of the company. Cautionary note on production decision The company cautions that it has not completed a feasibility study on the Imwelo project that establishes mineral reserves demonstrating economic and technical viability. As a result, there is increased uncertainty and a higher risk of economic and technical failure associated with the company's production decision. In particular, there is no certainty that the planned low-capex open-pit operation will be economically viable or that planned production will occur as anticipated. Risks include, but are not limited to, variations in grade and recovery, unexpected geotechnical or metallurgical challenges, cost overruns, funding availability, and operational or permitting risks. About Lake Victoria Gold Ltd. Lake Victoria Gold is a rapidly growing gold exploration and development company listed on the TSX Venture Exchange under the symbol LVG. Leveraging its unique position and experience, the company is principally focused on growth and consolidation in the highly prolific and prospective Lake Victoria goldfield in Tanzania. The company has a 100-per-cent interest in the Tembo project which has over 50,000 meters of drilling and is located adjacent to Barrick's Bulyanhulu mine. The company also holds a 100-per-cent interest in the Imwelo project which is a fully permitted gold project west of AngloGold Ashanti's Geita gold mine. With historical resource estimates and a 2021 prefeasibility study, the project is fully permitted for mine construction and production, positioning it as a near-term development opportunity. Lake Victoria has assembled a highly experienced team with a record of developing, financing and operating mining projects in Africa with management, directors and partners owning more than 60 per cent of the shares. Notably, the company is grateful for the validation that comes with the support and equity investment from Barrick and recent strategic partnership with Taifa Group. Taifa Group (a diverse group of companies with interests in amongst others, mining, telecoms, oil and gas, agricultural business, pharmaceuticals, and leather) has entered into an agreement with the company to obtain an equity stake in the company and through its wholly owned subsidiary Taifa Mining (a wholly Tanzanian owned company), or other nominees. Taifa Mining will also carry out all the contract mining and civil works for the Imwelo project. Taifa Mining is Tanzania's largest mining contractor with over 30 years mining related experience. Taifa have been the contractor of choice to most mines in Tanzania and have maintained long and successful relationships with companies such as Petra, De Beers, Barrick and AngloGold Ashanti. In addition, Taifa also owns the largest fleet of mining equipment in Tanzania. As a company, Taifa is committed to adopting and adhering to the latest internationally recognized standards throughout all aspects of its business. We seek Safe Harbor.