Mr. Ryan Hrkac reports

NORTEC MINERALS COMPLETES BARKER BAY GOLD PROJECT ACQUISITION, EXPANDS LAND PACKAGE, REPORTS INITIAL EXPLORATION RESULTS AND NEXT STEP EXPLORATION

Nortec Minerals Corp. has completed the previously announced transaction to acquire a 100-per-cent interest in the Barker Bay gold project, located in the Kenora mining district of Northwestern Ontario.

Additionally, Nortec has staked approximately 2,670 hectares of additional mineral claims adjacent to Barker Bay gold project, thereby expanding the project to approximately 4,670 hectares. Nortec has now secured a broad structural and geological corridor within the Eagle-Wabigoon-Manitou greenstone belt, a prolific Archean gold district in Northwestern Ontario.

The Eagle-Wabigoon-Manitou greenstone belt is host to several significant gold deposits, including the one-million-plus-ounce Cameron Lake deposit (Seva Mining), Dryden Gold Corp.'s Gold Rock project, noted for its exceptional 53,700 grams per tonne Au (gold) over 0.55 metre (drill hole TN-11-049) drill intercept.

"The Barker Bay projects hosts known mineralization, several historical mine workings and multiple untested gold-bearing shear zones extending over a strike length of more than 10 kilometres. The property is a surprising anomaly in that despite high-grade historical sampling and past development, it has seen minuscule exploration and never been drill tested," stated Ryan Hrkac, chief executive officer.

Q1 2026 ground magnetic survey results

During Q1 2026, a ground-based magnetic (mag) survey was conducted over a 500-metre strike length where significant gold-in-soil anomalies were discovered along the Barker Bros. mine trend. The survey identified several discrete magnetic anomalies, including multiple targets closely aligned with mapped shear structures and felsic-mafic contacts. These juxtaposed magnetic highs and lows may be indicative of hydrothermal alteration (mag low) and sulphide mineralization (mag high), which supports the presence of an orogenic gold mineralizing system.

Importantly, several of the strongest magnetic anomalies coincide with elevated gold-in-soil values identified during a 2021 soil survey, therefore reinforcing the presence of a continuous, structurally controlled gold system. These overlapping data sets provide high-confidence targets for trenching, channel sampling and subsequent drilling.

Q2 2026: airborne geophysics and surface testing to commence

In May subject to the spring thaw, Nortec plans to initiate a drone-based high-resolution magnetic and lidar (light detection and ranging) survey on those initial structural corridors previously identified by gold-in-soil anomalies and the Q1 2026 ground-based mag survey. These surveys will refine the company's structural understanding, refine drill targets and expand target coverage beyond the Barker Bros. mine trend.

Following completion of the mag/lidar survey, the company will proceed directly to bedrock trenching and channel sampling, with initial efforts focused on high-priority targets identified along the Barker Bros. mine trend. These programs will guide the design of Nortec's planned maiden drill campaign at Barker Bay.

"In 2026, having completed the 100-per-cent purchase of Barker Bay, expanded the land position to 4,700 hectares and generated new geophysical data that provides compelling targets, Nortec is entering an important growth phase at Barker Bay. The alignment of magnetic anomalies with strong gold-in-soil results along a historical high-grade trend is exactly the kind of targeting confidence we look for heading into trenching and drilling. We are excited to advance this newly consolidated project with the first modern exploration ever carried out on the property," commented Ryan Hrkac, chief executive officer.

Qualified person

The scientific and technical information in this news release has been reviewed, verified and approved by Neil Pettigrew, MSc, PGeo, a qualified person under National Instrument 43-101, and a consultant to Nortec.

About Nortec Minerals Corp.

Nortec is a mineral exploration company focused on identifying gold and copper properties with high discovery potential and advancing those projects to create outsized shareholder value. Property holdings comprise:

• Pearl gold project, located in Nevada, U.S., a past-producing high-grade gold mine, under option.
  • Drilling at the Columbia zone has intersected mineralization, including 2.27 g/t gold over 38.1 m (hole YU21-02) and 11.96 g/t gold over 3.05 m (hole YU22-11).
• Barker Bay gold project, located in Northwestern Ontario, Canada, having historical (turn-of-the-century) mine workings and no exploration/drilling.
  • High confidence gold in soil anomaly along 700-plus m of the Barker Bros. mine trend;
  • Several gold-in-soil values above 0.2 g/t.
• A total of 100-per-cent interests in two exploration stage critical mineral (zinc) projects, namely the Sturgeon Lake VMS and the Mattagami River zinc properties, both located in Ontario, Canada. Additionally, the company holds a 16.4-per-cent interest in the Tammela gold in southwest Finland.
• Additional information can be found on the company's SEDAR+ profile and its website.

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