Abcourt Presents Operations Update for January 2026 in the Development of the Sleeping Giant Mine

The news release dated February 18, 2026, provides an operations update for January 2026 regarding the development of the Sleeping Giant Mine in Quebec. Key highlights include: - Record production in January 2026 with 2,759 tonnes milled at a high head grade of 7.3 g/t gold. - Production of 626 ounces of gold for the month, with 374 ounces poured and a gold inventory in circuit of 1,106 ounces. - Significant workforce expansion, hiring 25 new employees in January, bringing the total staff to 125. - Progress on 2026 infrastructure projects, including the ramp-up of long-hole stopes, replacement of hoist components for deeper mining, expansion of camp capacity, and technical upgrades to the tailings management facility. - Year-to-date (YTD) metrics showing 11,922 tonnes milled at 6.35 g/t for 2,337 ounces produced.

The impact of this news is positive but categorized as routine as it represents the expected execution following the massive US$30M financing closed with Glencore in January 2026. - Operational Validation: The 7.3 g/t head grade is a significant improvement over the 2025 YTD average (6.1-6.3 g/t), suggesting the company is accessing higher-quality stopes as development progresses. - Scale and Growth: Doubling down on personnel (25 new hires in a single month) indicates that the Glencore capital is being deployed immediately to reach the throughput levels envisioned in the 2023 Preliminary Economic Assessment (PEA). - Infrastructure De-risking: Moving forward with hoist replacements and tailings upgrades is essential for mine longevity and accessing deeper, potentially higher-grade zones. - Cash Flow Implications: While 626 ounces/month is record-breaking for the current restart phase, it represents a run-rate of approximately 7,500 ounces per year. This remains small relative to the company's total debt load, meaning the "ramp-up" must continue aggressively to achieve self-sustaining cash flow.

Abcourt Mines is a gold producer and explorer focused on the Abitibi Greenstone Belt in Quebec. - Flagship Project: Sleeping Giant Mine. It is a high-grade, underground gold mine with an on-site 950 tpd mill (currently under-utilized). - Secondary Project: Flordin. An advanced exploration project where Abcourt is attempting to prove a 2km+ continuous mineralized corridor. - Strategy: Use the Sleeping Giant mill as a central hub for company-owned deposits (Flordin, Discovery) and potential custom milling for third parties.