Grande Portage Resources Receives Approval for 2026 Plan of Operations (Drill Permit) from the US Forest Service

VANCOUVER, BC / ACCESS Newswire / January 20, 2026 / Grande Portage Resources Ltd. (TSXV:GPG)(OTCQB:GPTRF)(FSE:GPB) ("Grande Portage" or the "Company") is pleased to announce that it has received a letter of approval for its 2026 Plan of Operations (drill permit) from the US Forest Service for upcoming drilling and fieldwork at the New Amalga Gold property in Southeast Alaska.

The program planned for 2026 includes up to 4,300 meters of diamond drilling from up to 14 drillholes, as well as installation of instrumentation, surface mapping, and trench sampling. The drillholes will provide additional definition to upgrade resource classification in key areas of the deposit and will characterize the geotechnical and hydrogeological aspects of the rock mass in order gather data necessary for the environmental review and permitting process as well as to inform mine development plans.

The geotechnical and hydrogeological characterization work will include:

• Detailed geotechnical logging to define the rock conditions in areas of key underground infrastructure,

• Installation of piezometers in select drillholes to measure groundwater levels and pressures, and

• Packer testing, which involves pumping pressurized water into a drillhole to determine the hydraulic conductivity or permeability of the rock structures intersected by the hole

The Company is currently in the process of evaluating proposals from drilling contractors, with the scope of work planned to be awarded in the coming weeks. Drilling work is expected to begin in late June in line with the permit conditions.

Ian Klassen, President and CEO comments: "The U.S. Forest Service's approval of the 2026 drill plan marks an important advancement for the New Amalga project as it moves beyond solely exploration and into the development planning phase. The upcoming drilling program will generate key geotechnical and hydrogeological datasets required for engineering analysis and environmental evaluation. These activities are fundamental to progressing the project through regulatory review and toward mine development."

Project Summary:

The New Amalga Gold Project is located only 25km from Alaska's capital city of Juneau and 6km from paved highway. The resource remains open to expansion in multiple directions and hosts an Indicated Resource of 1,438,500 ounces of gold at an average grade of 9.47 g/t Au (4,726,000 tonnes) and an Inferred Resource of 515,700 ounces of gold at an average grade of 8.85 g/t Au (1,813,000 tonnes) (with an effective date of July 17, 2024).

The current development concept envisions a small-footprint underground mining operation which would transport material offsite for processing by a third party, eliminating the need for an onsite gold recovery plant or tailings storage facility.

This setup is designed to provide several benefits:

• Eliminates the need to build a gold recovery plant, minimizing mine footprint, power requirements and reducing project construction CAPEX.

• Eliminates the need to develop a tailings disposal facility at the site, as no tailings would be generated.

• Removes the need for permanent waste rock storage facilities. Waste rock generated from mine development would be returned to the underground workings as stope backfill.

• No use of chemical reagents for gold processing at the site.

• Dramatically reduces land usage and overall environmental footprint.

• Greatly facilitates post-mining closure and reclamation.

• Simplifies the environmental review and permitting process.

Project Highlights:

• A 100% interest in the New Amalga Gold Project, located near infrastructure only 25km north of Juneau, Alaska and 6km from paved all-season highway (Fig. 2)

• The property is host to at least 8 large, long, gold bearing mesothermal veins

• 240 drill holes from 55 platforms totaling ~65,000 m confirm a large gold-quartz system

• Past drilling produced multi-ounce assays on several veins. Select samples include:
  
  Deep Trench Vein: 15.3m grading 37.1 g/t Au, 8.3m grading 58.6 g/t Au, 11.6m grading 28.3 g/t Au
  Goat Vein: 2.1m grading 74.2 g/t Au, 6.3m grading 15.7 g/t Au
  Main Vein: 3.1m grading 79.2 g/t Au, 2.1m grading 37.2 g/t Au, 3.1m grading 13.9 g/t Au
  Ridge Vein: 1.5m grading 43.0 g/t Au, 1.5m grading 29.2 g/t Au
  Sleeping Giant Vein: 2.1m grading 15.4 g/t Au, 3.2m grading 20.7 g/t Au

See Fig. 1 below for approximate locations of selected intercepts.

• The Company's updated NI43-101 Mineral Resource Estimate (MRE) with an effective date of July 17, 2024 reported an Indicated Resource of 1,438,500 ounces of gold at an average grade of 9.47 g/t Au (4,726,000 tonnes); and an Inferred Resource of 515,700 ounces of gold at an average grade of 8.85 g/t Au (1,813,000 tonnes), as well as an Indicated Resource of 891,600 ounces of silver at an average grade of 5.86 g/t Ag (4,726,000 tonnes); and an Inferred Resource of 390,600 ounces of silver at an average grade of 7.33 g/t silver (1,813,000 tonnes).

• The deposit is open to the north, south and at depth.

• Goat vein surface outcrop channel samples assayed 129.02 g/t gold (3.76 opt) and 290 g/t gold (8.46 opt) with 224 g/t silver (6.53 opt)

• LiDAR survey of property discovered numerous targets - the first of these tested confirmed gold discovery

• Received excellent metallurgical recoveries up to 98.2%

• Completed 6+ years of environmental baseline water sampling

• Current development strategy envisions a small-footprint underground mining operation with third-party offsite processing, eliminating the need for an onsite mill or tailings storage facility. This configuration reduces capital costs, greatly minimizes the project's environmental footprint, and facilitates permitting.

• LOI signed with Goldbelt Inc (an Alaska Native Corporation organized under the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act) for development of an ore export terminal at Cascade Point, Goldbelt's privately held parcel located only 22km from the project site.

• NI43-101 Preliminary Economic Assessment in progress, expected completion 2026 Q1.

Fig. 1: Approximate Locations of Selected Intercepts

Fig. 2: Location of the New Amalga Gold Project

Fig. 3: Example of Drill Station from Previous Exploration Season at the Project Site

Kyle Mehalek, P.E.., is the QP within the meaning of NI 43-101 and has reviewed and approved the technical disclosure in this release. Mr. Mehalek is independent of Grande Portage within the meaning of NI 43-101.

About Grande Portage:

Grande Portage Resources Ltd. is a publicly traded mineral exploration company focused on advancing the New Amalga Mine project, the outgrowth of the Herbert Gold discovery situated approximately 25 km north of Juneau, Alaska. The Company holds a 100% interest in the New Amalga property. The New Amalga gold system is open to length and depth and is host to at least six main composite vein-fault structures that contain ribbon structure quartz-sulfide veins. The project lies prominently within the 160km long Juneau Gold Belt, which has produced over eight million ounces of gold.

The Company's updated NI#43-101 Mineral Resource Estimate (MRE) reported at a base case mineral resources cut-off grade of 2.5 grams per tonne gold (g/t Au) and consists of: an Indicated Resource of 1,438,500 ounces of gold at an average grade of 9.47 g/t Au (4,726,000 tonnes); and an Inferred Resource of 515,700 ounces of gold at an average grade of 8.85 g/t Au (1,813,000 tonnes), as well as an Indicated Resource of 891,600 ounces of silver at an average grade of 5.86 g/t Ag (4,726,000 tonnes); and an Inferred Resource of 390,600 ounces of silver at an average grade of 7.33 g/t silver (1,813,000 tonnes). The MRE was prepared by Dr. David R. Webb, Ph.D., P.Geol., P.Eng. (DRW Geological Consultants Ltd.) with an effective date of July 17, 2024. Additional information on the New Amalga Mine project is available in the technical report titled "Technical Report of the Herbert Gold Property, Juneau District, Southeast Alaska" dated July 17, 2024, which is available under Grande Portage's SEDAR+ profile at www.sedarplus.ca.

ON BEHALF OF THE BOARD

"Ian Klassen"
Ian M. Klassen
President & Chief Executive Officer
Tel: (604) 899-0106
Email: Ian@grandeportage.com

Cautionary Statement Regarding Forward-Looking Information

This news release includes certain "forward-looking statements" under applicable Canadian securities legislation. Forward-looking statements include estimates and statements that describe the Company's future plans, objectives or goals, including words to the effect that the Company or management expects a stated condition or result to occur. Forward-looking statements may be identified by such terms as "believes", "anticipates", "expects", "estimates", "may", "could", "would", "will", or "plan". Forward-looking statements or information contained in this release include, but are not limited to, statements or information with respect to: plans regarding the New Amalga Mine Project, including upcoming drilling and fieldwork, including timing thereof, expected results of diamond drilling, upcoming geotechnical and hydrogeological characterization work, including timing thereof, engagement of drilling contractors, expectations regarding the New Amalga Mine project, including the Company's mineral resources, the development concept and benefits thereof, results from drilling and interpretations thereof, and timing of a preliminary economic assessment. Since forward-looking statements are based on assumptions and address future events and conditions, by their very nature they involve inherent risks and uncertainties as described in the Company's filings with Canadian securities regulators. These risks, uncertainties and other factors include, among others, ability to engage drilling contractors, including ability to negotiate terms reasonable to the Company, uncertainty regarding results of the drilling program, and risks associated with the exploration and development of the New Amalga Mine and our mineral resources. There can be no assurance that such statements will prove to be accurate, as actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated in such statements. Accordingly, readers should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements. The Company disclaims any intention or obligation to update or revise any forward-looking information, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, other than as required by law.

Please note that under National Instrument 43-101, the Company is required to disclose that it has not based any production decision on NI 43-101-compliant reserve estimates, preliminary economic assessments, or feasibility studies, and historically production decisions made without such reports have increased uncertainty and higher technical and economic risks of failure. These risks include, among others, areas that are analyzed in more detail in a feasibility study or preliminary economic assessment, such as the application of economic analysis to mineral resources, more detailed metallurgical and other specialized studies in areas such as mining and recovery methods, market analysis, and environmental, social, and community impacts. Mineral resources that are not mineral reserves do not have demonstrated economic viability. Any decision to place the New Amalga Mine into operation at levels intended by management, expand a mine, make other production-related decisions, or otherwise carry out mining and processing operations would be largely based on internal non-public Company data, and on reports based on exploration and mining work by the Company and by geologists and engineers engaged by the Company.

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SOURCE: Grande Portage Resources Limited