Mr. Richard Young reports

I-80 GOLD SECURES FINANCING PACKAGE OF UP TO $500 MILLION TO ADVANCE DEVELOPMENT PLAN

i-80 Gold Corp. has secured a financing package of up to $500-million, comprising a royalty sale for $250-million and a gold prepayment facility for up to $250-million. The financing package marks a significant milestone in achieving the company's recapitalization plans. All amounts referenced herein are expressed in United States dollars unless otherwise stated.

The proceeds of the financing package, combined with the previously disclosed equity offerings completed by the company in the second quarter of 2025, represent over $800-million in funding to support i-80 Gold's objective of creating a mid-tier gold producer in Nevada. The final steps to complete the recapitalization plan targeting an overall amount of $900-million to $1-billion, include the company's plan to retire and replace its existing convertible debentures with new convertible debentures on terms more favourable to the company and the potential sale of a non-core asset. This is expected to fully finance phase 1 and phase 2 of the development plan, which is expected to increase annual production to approximately 300,000 to 400,000 ounces of gold from less than 50,000 ounces currently, driven by the company's three underground mines and one oxide open pit operation all located in Nevada.

Highlights

• Franco-Nevada Corp. commitment letter to provide $250-million in royalty financing, of which $225-million is expected to be available at closing.
• National Bank of Canada and Macquarie Bank Ltd. commitment to provide a gold prepayment facility for an initial advance of $150-million at closing, with an accordion feature for a further $100-million.
• The proceeds of the financing package will be used to advance the company's five gold projects through various stages of development, refurbish the Lone Tree plant, and finance resource expansion and infill drilling, as well as for working capital purposes.
• The proceeds of the financing package will also be used to extinguish the company's existing debt obligations of approximately $175-million.
• The company continues to advance the potential sale of a non-core asset and plans to replace the existing convertible debentures to complete the recapitalization plan.

"In 2024, we announced a three-phase development plan to increase production to more than 600,000 ounces of gold to provide a clear and achievable path to positioning i-80 Gold as a mid-tier gold producer, alongside a plan to recapitalize the company to support this growth strategy," said Richard Young, president and chief executive officer. "Since then, we have significantly derisked and advanced each asset, and we are now pleased to outline a clear financial path to fully fund phase 1 and phase 2. With Granite Creek underground in operation, we are positioned to advance Archimedes and Cove underground projects plus Granite Creek open pit through to operation, complete the refurbishment of our central Lone Tree plant and continue to invest in exploration."

Mr. Young added: "The financing package also provides flexibility to accelerate the feasibility study and permitting work for the Mineral Point open pit project -- our flagship asset and the final project planned in phase 3. With several feasibility studies in progress, we continue to identify opportunities to optimize the development schedule."

Franco-Nevada royalty

The company has entered into a commitment letter with Franco-Nevada for $250-million in financing in exchange for a 1.5-per-cent life-of-mine (LOM) net smelter return royalty, stepping up to a 3.0-per-cent LOM net smelter return royalty on Jan. 1, 2031. The royalty financing is subject to customary closing conditions and is anticipated to be completed on or about March 17, 2026. The royalty payable to Franco-Nevada pursuant to the royalty financing would apply to production from all mineral properties in the portfolio, including Granite Creek, Cove, the Ruby Hill complex and Lone Tree.

Upon closing of the financing package, $225-million of the royalty financing will be made available to the company, of which $25-million is required to be allocated to the advancement of technical and early stage permitting activities for Mineral Point in 2026. The remaining $25-million of the royalty financing is also expected to be made available in 2026 to further advance Mineral Point, following the expenditure of the initial disbursement toward the project. In total, the financing package allows the company to allocate $50-million to advance resource expansion and infill drilling, technical, and early stage permitting activities at Mineral Point in 2026.

Gold prepayment facility

The company has secured commitments for a gold prepay facility with National Bank and Macquarie, for an initial advance of $150-million at closing, with a $100-million accordion feature. Upon the closing of the financing package, the company will have access to $150-million, with the obligation to deliver 39,978 ounces of gold over a 30-month period beginning in January, 2028. The accordion feature provides access to an additional $100-million for a 24-month period upon closing of the facility, subject to customary conditions and lender approval. The company anticipates executing the accordion feature in the first half of 2027, at which point the number of additional gold ounces to be delivered will be determined. The company expects the total ounces to be delivered for the full $250-million facility to represent approximately 15 per cent of total gold output over the projected period of January, 2028, to June, 2030. Closing of the facility is subject to customary closing conditions and intercreditor arrangements and is anticipated to be completed by the end of the first quarter of 2026.

Further, i-80 Gold selected the facility with National Bank and Macquarie with a goal of transitioning the gold prepay into a corporate revolver following the completion of phase 1 to finance the development of Mineral Point. Mineral Point currently hosts the company's largest gold and silver mineral resources and is designed to be a large-scale oxide open pit heap leach project. Mineral Point represents phase 3 of the development plan and its preliminary economic assessment filed in Q1 2025 outlined a 17-year mine life with a LOM gold equivalent output of 282,000 ounces annually. Assuming development as contemplated in the preliminary economic assessment, Mineral Point is expected to drive company-wide gold output beyond a target of 600,000 ounces annually starting in 2032, representing a significant change in the company's output profile.

"The commitments from Franco-Nevada, National Bank and Macquarie, following a detailed due diligence process, underscore the quality of our asset base, the depth of our team and the credibility of our execution plan," said Ryan Snow, chief financial officer. "After a competitive process, in which multiple term sheets were received and considered by the company, the financing package represents a cost-competitive, low-dilution opportunity, while providing flexibility around the timing and the availability of capital to support our sequenced development plans across all three phases in our development plan. We are pleased to be working with long-term financial partners who are recognized in the mining sector and support our growth strategy."

Advisers

National Bank Capital Markets and SCP Resource finance LP are acting as advisers in connection with the royalty financing. ATB Cormark Capital Markets and National Bank Capital Markets are acting as advisers in connection with a senior debt facility which resulted in the gold prepay. Stikeman Elliott LLP and Dorsey & Whitney LLP are acting as legal advisers to the company in connection with the financing package.

Technical disclosure and qualified persons

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, chief operating officer, and Tyler Hill, CPG, vice-president, geology, for the company, each of whom are qualified persons within the meaning of National Instrument 43-101 -- Standards of Disclosure for Mineral Projects and Subpart 1300 of Regulation S-K.

About i-80 Gold Corp.

i-80 Gold is a Nevada-focused mining company committed to building a mid-tier gold producer through a new development plan to advance its high-quality asset portfolio. The company is the fourth-largest gold mineral resource holder 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 Toronto Stock Exchange (TSX: IAU) and the NYSE American (NYSE: IAUX).

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