Mr. Paul Chawrun reports

I-80 GOLD PROVIDES UPDATE ON LONE TREE PLANT REFURBISHMENT; PROJECT REMAINS ON SCHEDULE AND ON BUDGET

i-80 Gold Corp. has provided a status update on the refurbishment of its Lone Tree autoclave and carbon-in-leach processing plant located in Nevada, a cornerstone asset within Phase 1 of the Company's development plan. All amounts are expressed in U.S. dollars unless otherwise stated.

i-80 Gold is one of two gold companies in Nevada with an autoclave processing plant. Once refurbished and commissioned, Lone Tree is expected to serve as the central processing hub for the company's underground mines. The refurbishment is a key step in the company's transition from toll milling to an owner-operator processing model which, based on the company's December, 2025, engineering study, is expected to reduce current processing costs and increase cash margins between an estimated $1,000 to $1,500 per ounce of gold, depending on grade and gold price.

Lone Tree plant refurbishment highlights:

• Early works and preconstruction readiness activities are well under way on site and continue to advance on schedule ahead of major construction, which is expected to commence in the fourth quarter of 2026. Second and third quarter preconstruction activities include:
  • Mobilization of the EPCM (engineering, procurement and construction management) contractor to site;
  • Commencement of demolition of the existing plant components requiring replacement as part of the refurbishment;
  • Advancement of detailed engineering, procurement packages and the award of key contracts.
• Procurement activities remain on schedule, with approximately 50 per cent of procurement packages, by value, awarded as of mid-July.
• Project capital remains on budget with minimal contingency drawdown and approximately 40 per cent of capital committed as of mid-July.
• The overall plant refurbishment remains on schedule to achieve first gold pour, which is anticipated in late 2027.

"We have made excellent progress in advancing the Lone Tree Plant refurbishment as planned since a construction decision was made in the first quarter of 2026," said Paul Chawrun, executive vice-president and chief operating officer. "Engineering, procurement, staffing, early works activities and demolition have all progressed as expected. The start of demolition marks an important project milestone, and we remain on schedule for commissioning in late 2027. We continue to view this refurbishment as a manageable and low-risk project with comparatively low labour hours and materials. Hatch Ltd. began substantial engineering work approximately three years before commencement of the refurbishment. Additionally, we have an experienced management and owner's team with a strong track record in the construction, commissioning and operation of autoclave facilities at some of Nevada's largest gold mines. Advancing the plant refurbishment is a key step in executing our development plan and achieving our goal of creating a mid-tier gold producer."

Early works activities and demolition

Early works activities continue to advance on schedule. Safety systems and training programs are in place, and health and safety teams have mobilized to site to further advance emergency preparedness and response planning. Contractor onboarding and mobilization are also progressing well. Predemolition equipment and building cleaning have been completed, and environmental testing is nearing completion. No material requiring special handling has been encountered to date. Major demolition activities commenced on schedule in mid-June and will extend into the fourth quarter of 2026. Lighting upgrades have also been completed throughout the plant.

Engineering design and procurement

Hatch has expanded its global and site-based engineering and procurement teams to support the Lone Tree refurbishment. Procurement activities remain on schedule, with approximately 50 per cent of procurement packages, by value, awarded as of mid-July. Detailed engineering is approximately 30 per cent complete as of mid-July and continues to progress in line with the company's planned construction and commissioning schedule.

Project capital

Project costs incurred to date remain in line with the December, 2025, engineering study and the company's 2026 guidance of between $140-million and $160-million in expenditures. The total capital cost estimate of $430-million, inclusive of contingency of approximately 12 per cent, owner cost and capital spares, is supported by extensive engineering reviews, operating assessments and trade-off studies.

Permitting

The plant is permitted for the existing operational components in use. Normal-course design and environmental permit applications were submitted in the first quarter of 2026 as planned. Several permits have been received to date and additional permits are pending. Various construction activities are scheduled to commence in the second half of 2026 upon the anticipated approval of the associated permits. Major construction is anticipated to commence in the fourth quarter of 2026.

Scope of work

The scope of refurbishment work at Lone Tree includes a combination of new and improved design components and the replacement of some existing infrastructure. This work is aimed at modernizing the plant to improve process efficiency and operating flexibility and to meet new environmental compliance standards, including the refurbishment and upgrade of the existing autoclave to a modern pressure oxidation (POX) circuit. A press release describing the plant design, refurbishment work and capital costs was issued on Dec. 18, 2025.

Coming milestones

Coming plant refurbishment milestones include:

• Commencement of construction -- Q4 2026;
• Completion of detailed engineering -- by end of Q1 2027;
• Filtration plant completion -- early Q4 2027;
• First gold pour -- by year-end 2027.

About the Lone Tree plant

The Lone Tree plant is a legacy asset with existing infrastructure, strategically situated as a centralized processing hub for the company's underground gold projects and located immediately adjacent to Interstate 80. Based on 85-per-cent plant availability, the plant is expected to process approximately 2,250 tonnes per day with a total annual throughput of approximately 825,000 tonnes. Using integrated POX and carbon-in-leach (CIL) circuits, the plant is designed to be capable of processing both refractory (sulphide) and non-refractory (oxide) mineralized material. Oxide material will bypass the POX circuit to be processed solely in the CIL circuit after grinding. This flexibility allows the treatment of mineralized material to be optimized with the lowest cost and highest recovery rate. i-80 Gold is one of two gold companies in Nevada with an autoclave processing plant (the other being owned by Nevada Gold Mines Inc., a joint venture between Barrick Mining Corp. and Newmont Corp.).

Technical disclosure and qualified person

The technical information contained in this press release has been prepared under the supervision of and has been reviewed and approved by Paul Chawrun, PEng, executive vice-president and chief operating officer of the company, who is a qualified person within the meaning of National Instrument 43-101, Standards of Disclosure for Mineral Projects, and S-K 1300. Mr. Chawrun has verified the scientific and technical information disclosed in this press release.

About i-80 Gold Corp.

i-80 Gold is a Nevada-focused mining company committed to building a mid-tier gold producer through a fully financed, three-phase development plan to advance its high-quality asset portfolio. The company is one of the largest mineral resource holders in the state with a pipeline of high-grade multistage projects strategically located in Nevada's most prolific gold-producing trends. Leveraging its central processing facility following an anticipated refurbishment, i-80 Gold is executing a hub and spoke regional mining and processing strategy to maximize efficiency and growth. i-80 Gold's shares are listed on the NYSE American (symbol: IAUX) and the Toronto Stock Exchange (symbol: IAU).

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