Mr. Keith Boyle reports

NEW FOUND GOLD DECLARES COMMERCIAL PRODUCTION AT HAMMERDOWN GOLD MINE

New Found Gold Corp. has declared commercial production at its 100-per-cent-owned Hammerdown gold mine, located in central Newfoundland, Canada.

Commercial production was defined based on meeting three criteria on a sustained basis over 60 consecutive days. The criteria consist of throughput at the Pine Cove mill of at least 600 tonnes per day (tpd; 85 per cent of the 700 tpd nameplate capacity of the mill), gold recovery of at least 80 per cent and feed grade of at least 80 per cent of the mine plan head grade, as outlined in the Hammerdown preliminary economic assessment (PEA).

With the three criteria met, the milestone of commercial production was achieved on Aug. 19, 2026, with average throughput of approximately 748 tpd, 87.7-per-cent gold recovery and average feed grade of 2.92 grams of gold per tonne (g/t Au) over the 60 consecutive days.

"Achieving commercial production at Hammerdown on schedule is a major milestone for New Found Gold and the next step toward becoming Canada's next mid-tier gold producer," stated Keith Boyle, chief executive officer of New Found Gold. "This achievement could only have been reached through the hard work and dedication of our operations team; to each and everyone of you I send my sincere gratitude. With commercial production under way at Hammerdown, we will continue to focus on delivering solid gold production, while advancing our flagship Queensway gold project to production."

Hammerdown produced a total of 9,140 ounces of gold in the first eight months of 2026, including 1,989 ounces of gold in August, 2026. The average realized sale price over the first eight months of 2026 was $6,271 per ounce of gold (/oz Au; approximately $4,532 (U.S.)/oz Au). Additional information related to Hammerdown production will be included in the company's third quarter 2026 financial statements.

Health and safety

During the ramp-up period, the mine and mill has recorded zero lost-time incidents after a total of over 262,049 person-hours worked in 2026.

Human resources

New Found Gold has a total work force of 445 people at Hammerdown and Pine Cove as of July 15, 2026, comprising 94 employees and 351 contractors. The company has created 65 new jobs to date at Hammerdown and Pine Cove, and has hired all key positions. Over 90 per cent of the new hires are from NL and 60 per cent of the work force live within an hour's drive of their place of work.

PEA summary

The PEA returned an after-tax net present value at a 5-per-cent discount rate of $199.2-million (M) at the base case gold price (variable price deck: long-term price of $3,475 (U.S.)/oz Au averaging $3,656 (U.S.)/oz Au) and an after-tax NPV 5 per cent (net present value, 5-per-cent discount rate) of $415.1-million at the upside gold price of $5,000 (U.S.)/oz Au (see the New Found Gold news release dated Feb. 26, 2026). Average life of mine cash costs and all-in sustaining costs (AISC) are $2,149 (U.S.)/oz Au and $2,429 (U.S.)/oz Au, respectively.

The PEA outlined a 13-year open pit project commencing in 2026, including one year of stockpile rehandling in 2038. With sorting, a total of 3.2 million tonnes of mineralized material at an average grade of 2.89 g/t Au will be processed with total gold recovery of 251,300 ounces of gold.

Next steps

The construction of the crusher and sorter are progressing on schedule for anticipated completion in Q4 2026. Once operational, this equipment is expected to reduce crushing costs and allow for delivery of higher-grade material to the mill.

Diamond drilling of the inferred mineral resource below the current stage one pit at Hammerdown is being completed in preparation for an updated mineral resource estimate in 2027.

Grade control drilling is ongoing in the Hammerdown open pit and is currently being modelled for use in refining grade control.

As previously announced, the company plans to convert and expand Pine Cove from the current 700 tpd flotation-leach-Merrill-Crowe circuit to a 1,400 tpd gravity-carbon-in-leach (gravity-CIL) circuit, with the permit amendment to convert the circuit to gravity-CIL received and the permit to expand to 1,400 tpd to be applied for in due course (see the New Found Gold press release dated July 6, 2026). The circuit conversion is progressing on schedule and on budget with an anticipated completion date of Q4 2027.

With commercial production declared at Hammerdown, the company anticipates a run rate of 20,000 to 25,000 oz Au produced per year at an AISC of approximately $2,500 (U.S.)/oz Au, in line with the PEA. The company plans to provide annual guidance for Hammerdown in due course.

Qualified person

The scientific and technical information disclosed in this press release was reviewed and approved by Keith Boyle, PEng, CEO and a qualified person as defined under National Instrument 43-101. Mr. Boyle consents to the publication of this press release by New Found Gold. Mr. Boyle certifies that this press release fairly and accurately represents the scientific and technical information that forms the basis for this press release.

About New Found Gold Corp.

New Found Gold is an emerging Canadian gold producer with assets in Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada. The company holds a 100-per-cent interest in its flagship asset, the Queensway gold project, as well as Hammerdown. With commercial production declared at Hammerdown, the company remains focused on advancing the fully financed phase 1 of its flagship Queensway to production.

The company's portfolio is further strengthened by its district-scale land package at Queensway, covering more than 110 kilometres of strike length across two highly prospective faults zones, and a strong shareholder base, including renowned mining investor and cornerstone shareholder, Eric Sprott.

On Aug. 26, 2026, the company's shares began trading on the Toronto Stock Exchange under the symbol NFGC, to align with its stock symbol on the NYSE American LLC.

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