Mr. Mike Bandrowski reports

BIG RIDGE GOLD ANNOUNCES AMENDMENT TO HOPE BROOK EARN-IN AGREEMENT AND NOTICE OF EXERCISE OF SECOND EARN-IN RIGHT

Big Ridge Gold Corp. has entered into an agreement to amend the terms of its second earn-in right at the Hope Brook gold project under the company's earn-in agreement with, among others, First Mining Gold Corp. The Amending Agreement dispenses with the requirement for the Company to incur an additional $10,000,000 in expenditures on the Hope Brook Gold Project in exchange for the early exercise of the second earn-in right. Since the stage one earn-in right was exercised, the Company has incurred approximately $5.8 million in eligible expenditures on the Hope Brook Gold Project. The Company has concurrently notified First Mining of its intention to exercise the amended second earn-in right by April 2, 2024 which, upon closing, would increase the Company's interest in the Hope Brook Gold Project from 51% to 80% immediately. First Mining will retain a free carry on its 20% ownership interest in the Hope Brook Gold Project until such time as Big Ridge completes a feasibility study on the project.

Closing shall be subject to the approval of the TSX Venture Exchange and the satisfaction of certain conditions as set out in the Amending Agreement, including the issuance of 10,000,000 common shares of the Company to First Mining (the "Earn-in Shares") as consideration for the additional 29% interest in the Hope Brook Gold Project.

Michael Bandrowski, President & CEO of the Company, stated: "This transaction accelerates the exercise of the Company's second earn-in right and in the process, adds approximately 420,000 attributable gold ounces to Big Ridge's resource base. It also eliminates the remainder of the $10 million in project spend that would otherwise have been required for Big Ridge to achieve an 80% interest in the Hope Brook Gold Project. Overall, this is a fantastic outcome for the Company under current market conditions."

Pursuant to Multilateral Instrument 61-101 - Protection of Minority Security Holders in Special Transactions ("MI 61-101"), the issuance of the Earn-in Shares to First Mining constitutes a "related party transaction" but the Company is exempt from the requirements to obtain a formal valuation or minority shareholder approval in connection with the issuance in reliance on sections 5.5(a) and 5.7(a), respectively, of MI 61-101.

Award of Share-Based Compensation

Big Ridge also announced that it has granted a total of 208,333 equity settled deferred share units ("DSUs") to Mr. Bill Williams in connection with his appointment as Chair of the Board. These DSUs were awarded on January 2, 2024 and vest on January 2, 2025.

Big Ridge Gold Overview

Hope Brook Gold Project, Newfoundland

The Hope Brook Gold Project is an advanced stage, high-grade gold project that produced 752,162 ounces of gold from 1987 - 1995. Initial production consisted of an open pit before moving to underground mining. Hope Brook operated using both heap leach (1987 - 1990) and conventional cyanidation milling methods (1989 - 1997) with a later inclusion of flotation concentration to recover copper (1991). Gold recoveries for full years of operation between 1988 and 1995 averaged 84%. Copper flotation during the second period of operation beginning in 1992 produced 7,000 to 10,000 tons of concentrate annually at approximately 22% Cu and 1 oz/t Au. The preceding information is obtained from the Government of Newfoundland and Labrador Department of Industry, Energy and Technology via the Mineral Occurrence Database System. The Company considers this information to be historic in nature.

Hope Brook hosts an indicated gold resource totalling 16,190,000 tonnes grading 2.32 grams per tonne gold for 1.2 million ounces and inferred resources totalling 2,215,000 tonnes grading 3.25 grams per tonne gold for 231,000 ounces based on 0.4 and 2.0 gram per tonne cut-off grade for open pit and underground resources respectively, and a long-term gold price of US$1,750. The deposit also hosts a total of 47 M lbs of copper mineralization in the inferred category, defined within the gold resource model. These mineral resources are detailed in the "Technical Report on the Mineral Resource Estimate Update for the Hope Brook Gold Project, Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada" dated April 6, 2023 as filed on SEDAR and the Company's webpage.

The Hope Brook gold deposit is a high-sulfidation epithermal gold deposit hosted in the Proterozoic aged Whittle Hill Sandstone and is intruded by a Late Proterozoic quartz-feldspar porphyry sill-dike complex of the Roti Intrusive Suite. The deposit is located adjacent to and within an extensive advanced argillic alteration envelope which includes pyrophyllite, kaolinite, andalusite, and alunite. The principal gold mineralization occurs in a buff-colored massive, vuggy silicic alteration with an associated, less developed grey silicic alteration both having observable amounts of pyrite, chalcopyrite and lesser bornite and other accessory minerals. Gold mineralization is also found with pyrite in units of advanced argillic alteration adjacent to or near silicic alteration horizons. The altered and mineralized zone is cut by mafic dykes whose contacts are often mineralized. All the altered and mineralized sequences and the intruded dykes have been folded.

Hope Brook is located 85 kilometers east of Port aux Basques, Newfoundland. The project has well maintained infrastructure on site, including an operational 28-person camp, an 1,100-meter airstrip, ice-free docking facility and importantly, connection to the provincial electrical power grid via an on-site substation.

Significant exploration potential remains on the 24,000-hectare concession providing a great opportunity to expand the mine area as well as surface showings throughout the concessions.

Destiny Gold Project, Quebec

The 100% owned Destiny Project is in Despinassy Township, Quebec within the Abitibi greenstone belt. The Destiny project hosts the DAC and Darla Zones where drilling has intersected gold mineralization. At the DAC Zone a Mineral Resource Estimate has reported 10.8 million tonnes of mineralization with average grade of 1.05 g/t Au in the indicated category calculated at the 0.5 g/t gold cut-off grade. The mineral resource was prepared for Alto Ventures (now Big Ridge) and reported in the Technical Report and Resource Estimate of the DAC Deposit, Destiny Property, Quebec (Effective Date: March 1, 2011), available on the Company's SEDAR profile.

Drilling by Big Ridge after completion of the Resource Estimate in the in the 1 km long Gap Zone between the Darla and the DAC zones in 2012 confirmed the presence of gold within wide envelopes of anomalous mineralization. Drilling in 2021 provided additional positive gold results; Drill hole DES-21-173 (8.90 g/t Au over 0.4 m), DES-21-177 (5.17 g/t Au over 5.8 m including 43.1 g/t Au over 0.6 m), Drill hole DES-21-179 (3.78 g/t Au over 16.3 m including 8.85 g/t Au over 6.7 m and 42.6 g/t Au over 1.0 m).

Oxford Gold Project, Manitoba

The 100% owned Oxford Lake Property is in central Manitoba, approximately 150 km southeast of the city of Thompson in the Oxford-Knee Lake greenstone belt. In October 13, 2020, Big Ridge and the Bunibonibee Cree Nation signed a Long-Term Exploration Agreement related to future exploration in the First Nation's traditional lands at Oxford Lake.

The Oxford Lake property hosts the Rusty Gold Deposit, with Historical Resource of 800,000 tonnes averaging 6 g/t gold and containing approximately 154,000 ounces of gold hosted in banded iron formation ("BIF"). A Qualified Person (QP), as defined by NI43-101, has not done sufficient work to classify this historical estimate as current mineral resource. Several other gold occurrences are found on the property.

BIF deposits such as the Musselwhite Mine in Ontario have the potential to host significant gold resources. The Rusty Gold Deposit and other potential BIF and orogenic type gold targets including the Blue Jay Zone lie along the Carrot River-Rusty-Blue Jay Trend, that can be traced for 30 km as identified by Big Ridge's 2011 VTEM and aeromagnetic surveys.

Qualified Person

The scientific and technical content of this press release has been reviewed and approved by William McGuinty, P.Geo., the Company's Vice President Exploration, and a Qualified Person for the purposes of NI 43-101.

About Big Ridge Gold Corp.

Big Ridge Gold Corp. is an exploration and development company managed by a disciplined and experienced team of officers and directors. The Company is committed to the development of advanced stage mining projects using industry best practices combined with strong social license from our local communities. Big Ridge owns a 100% interest in the highly prospective Oxford Gold Project located in Manitoba and the Destiny Gold Project in Quebec. Big Ridge is the operator of the Hope Brook Gold Project located in Newfoundland and Labrador. The company currently owns 51% of the Hope Brook Gold Project and has an option to earn up to 80% by June 2026.

For more details regarding the Company's projects, please visit Big Ridge's website at www.bigridgegold.com

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