Benton Increases Interest in Great Burnt Project and Identifies High Priority Target

On April 6, 2026 Benton Resources announced that its joint‑venture partner Homeland Nickel has withdrawn from the Great Burnt (GB) property. As of Dec 31 2025 Homeland had funded $2,201,072 (26.49%) of GB exploration spend while Benton had contributed $6,108,232 (73.51%). The withdrawal increases Benton’s ownership share and obliges it to fund all future exploration from Jan 1 2026 onward. Benton will launch an aggressive summer program that includes airborne EM/magnetic surveys over the southern half of GB, prospecting, mapping, trenching and diamond drilling at both the South Pond Gold‑Copper and Great Burnt Copper deposits. Recent winter soil sampling on the northern portion of GB returned gold values up to 5.1 g/t Au, with adjacent bedrock/float samples assaying to 896 ppb Au and historic float samples of 12.0 g/t Au.

The news is material‑positive because it: - Increases Benton’s controlling interest in its flagship GB project, reducing partner dilution and giving the company full decision‑making authority over exploration spend. - Signals management confidence in the asset’s upside, prompting a funded summer work program that could delineate additional resources. - Provides concrete near‑term catalysts (airborne EM survey, trenching, drilling) that have the potential to generate new drill intercepts and resource upgrades. - Does not involve dilution or financing; instead it strengthens Benton’s strategic position without immediate cash outflow.

Benton Resources Inc. is a Newfoundland‑focused mineral exploration company. Its flagship asset is the Great Burnt Copper‑Gold property, in which Benton holds a 70% interest (operator) with Homeland Nickel retaining 30%. Historical drilling at GB has returned high‑grade copper intercepts up to >12 % Cu over narrow widths and associated gold values. The adjacent South Pond Gold‑Copper deposit shows robust gold mineralization, with drill intervals grading up to 9 g/t Au and recent metallurgical tests indicating gold recoveries as high as 88.4%. Benton also holds a portfolio of earlier‑stage claims (Dominion Lake, Victoria West, Stoney Caldera) that provide additional copper‑gold VMS upside.