Mr. Robert Eadie reports

STARCORE ADVANCES EXPLORATION AT KIMOUKRO GOLD PROJECT IN COTE D'IVOIRE

Starcore International Mines Ltd. has provided an update on the local geology of its Kimoukro project, located within the prolific Fetekro-Oume greenstone belt in Ivory Coast.

The Kimoukro project is a fully permitted exploration project located at the western border of the Fetekro-Oume greenstone belt (FOGB) in central Ivory Coast, 30 kilometres south of the capital, Yamoussoukro. The FOGB is a highly prospective Birimian-aged terrane, stretching approximately 280 kilometres north-northeast-south-southwest, and is known for hosting multimillion-ounce gold deposits, including the Lafigue mine at its northern edge and the Bonikro and Hire mines. The latter are located 30 kilometres south of the project and share similar geological characteristics. Yet, the perspective area of Kimoukro is underexplored.

The Fetekro-Oume greenstone belt is made-up by Paleoproterozoic basalts and andesites and volcano-sedimentary sequences, bounded by granitic-gneissic basement rocks. The belt is structurally complex and was deformed in greenschist-facies metamorphism conditions during the compressional and transpressive events of Eburnean orogeny; late-stage deformation was accompanied by emplacement of felsic (granitoid) intrusions.

At a regional scale, the prominent tectonic trends and the shape of the FOSZ (Fetekro-Oume shear zone) are highlighted by regional geophysics and remote sensing. The main structural features are referred to N30 degrees E oriented western splays of the Brobo-N'Zi shear zone, and a number of higher-order, anastomosing structures. At the latitude of the Kimoukro project, the FOGB is about 20 kilometres wide, trends north-south to north-northwest, and shows bending and rotation of the tectonic fabric of about 35 degrees to the west, with flexure trending as northwest-southeast regional lineaments; a number of intrusions of different size are present. .

As a result, the greenstones and sedimentary cover are affected by extensive shear, folding and thrusting, providing favourable conditions for gold mineralization, which is locally enhanced by ductile-to-brittle shear and fracturing, especially around late-stage intrusions.

Local geology

The Kimoukro project lies in low land near the Bandama river; most of the area is covered by recent alluvial sediments, which are mostly clay, with pockets of sand and gravel material that are locally anomalous in gold.

The alluvial cover has a maximum thickness of about 20 metres while it is only one metre to three metres thick in the central area of the permit, disappearing to the east, where latisoils occur. Alluvial sediments obviously truncate the original laterite soil profile; residual and dismantled cuirass are reworked in the alluvial.

The geology of the Kimoukro project consists of deformed metasedimentary rocks interlayered with volcanic sequences, representing a deepwater succession common to the Toumodi-Oume region. A preliminary bedrock geology map is based on data collected from artisanal mineworks and sporadic outcrops, results of auger drilling, IP (induced polarization) and ground magnetic survey. The central portion of the permit is dominated by a package of highly sheared, fine-grained metasediments exhibiting north-northwest-to-north-trending foliation. The metasediments package includes dark shales, banded siltstone and claystone of mafic composition; the interlayered rocks are amphibole-rich metabasites and felsic siltstones. On the western side, basaltic and fine-grained andesitic rocks are present, while the northeastern portion hosts a granitoid intrusion (monzogranite to tonalite), with its contact zones showing evidence of mylonitization and widespread mineralization. Additionally, a second granitoid body is exposed in the southwestern part of the permit. A network of felsic dikes, including rhyolite and microgranite, crosscuts the sedimentary sequences, displaying northwest, north-northwest and northeast trends. Hematite, sericite and silica alteration occur in the contact halos of the felsic intrusions and dikes.

Structural geology

The structural framework of the Kimoukro project reflects the progressive deformation associated with the Eburnean orogeny. The area is characterized by steeply dipping, north-northwest-trending foliation planes, interpreted as a product of intense shearing and transpressive tectonics.

Metamorphism in the area is within the greenschist facies, and primary bedding of metasediments has been largely transposed into the dominant foliation fabric, which dips steeply westward. The structural environment is interpreted as a steeply dipping monocline, potentially forming the western flank of a larger (kilometre-scale), faulted synclinorium. Subsequent tectonic accidents occurred in the area, noticeably, multiple intrusions of granitic bodies, causing local perturbation to the tectonic grain with folding, fracturing and dike emplacement.

All the granite bodies show limited deformation, except near their contact zones, where shear bands are evident. Extension and shear quartz veins are consistent with progressive shear deformation associated to the intrusive emplacement. This deformation event is tentatively correlated to the high-angle crenulation of quartz veins parallel to the metamorphic layering. This implies two events of deformation and veining, developed under a different tectonic regime. Although the field evidences only identify progressive deformation, which can result from progressive reorientation of the local stress field, this multistage evolution is tentatively ascribed to separate events, at least at local scale, named D1 and D3, the latter coeval to the granitoid intrusions, which correlate to regional descriptions in literature.

Accordingly, the Kimoukro area has undergone multiple deformation phases:

• D1 event characterized by tight folding and thrusting and development of pervasive foliation, which reworked the original layering. Progressive quasi-coaxial deformation observed in shear bands, pervasive S-C (simple cubic) structures; there is no sufficient evidence yet to univocally separate the two events;
• First mineralization event with development of quartz veins consistent with progressive layer-parallel shear; likely occurred during progressive shear; no evidence for reworking early systems;
• D3 event -- development of a prominent north-trending shear corridor in transpressive regime, anastomosing shear zones develop and local stress is reoriented; room is made for syntectonic intrusion emplacements;
• Intrusion of granitoids and second gold veining event -- tentatively late D3 deformation event; rise and emplacement of felsic intrusions and dikes, with associated mineralized veins; northwest- and northeast-trending structures provided space accommodation for the intrusions; local trend of the veins is variable, reflecting local stress field orientation, with northwest to north-northwest preferential trend in the Kimoukro permit.

Quartz veining occurs in the foliation planes throughout the permit; however, it is particularly associated with late-stage shear deformation, displaying varying structural styles depending on the host rock. Within metasediments, veins and silicified material often exhibit ductile deformation, stretching and boudinage along shear planes; whereas, in felsic dikes, brittle behaviour prevails and veins are mainly extensional. Granitic bodies are crossed by both extensional veins and shear bands and veins. The regional foliation of the greenstones is affected by non-coaxial folding and crenulation, deviating by approximately 35 degrees west from the regional trend. Shear veins within mylonitic zones along the granite-tonalite contacts have been progressively deformed and transposed while extensional veins continue to form, indicating a protracted mineralizing event related to or enhanced by the intrusion's emplacement occurred during late-stage tectonic events.

Mineralization

The gold mineralization at Kimoukro is both primary and secondary; the secondary mineralization is hosted in laterite and some sandy-gravel alluvial deposits. The primary gold mineralization is structurally controlled and associated with both shear quartz veins and intrusion-related systems. Extensive artisanal mining further supports the presence of significant gold mineralization especially in the deformation zones surrounding the granite-tonalite contacts.

The in-soil gold anomaly encompasses two kilometres by 600 metres over 50 parts per billion gold and more than 1,300 metres by 400 metres over 200 parts per billion gold in the central part of the permit. Another continuous anomaly zone, 600 metres by 400 metres greater than 50 parts per billion gold, is found in the alluvial sediments southwest of the permit and it is open to the west and northwest.

Grab rock samples from artisanal mineworks returned 0.5 gram per tonne to 1.5 grams per tonne gold with peaks of 18 grams per tonne gold in mylonites at the contact with the granite-tonalite intrusive. The general trend of the mineralization is north-northwest-south-southeast to north-south over the permit, while, in the artisanal mining zone, most veins trend N130 degrees. The mineralization is open to the east side.

The primary mineralization occurs in quartz veins of different nature. Shear veins millimetre size to greater than 0.5 metre wide (smoky quartz or quartz plus carbonate plus albite plus pyrite plus or minus gold veins), are usually parallel to the tectonic shear in contrast to extensional veins. The latter often are progressively deformed and reworked in shear zones, which are thought to be coeval with mylonitic shear at the southern contact of the granite-tonalite intrusive. The mineralization style is generally sulphide-poor, with pyrite less than 0.5 per cent, except for local pockets of massive sulphides in mylonitic shists. Free gold is visible at the edge of sulphides or in quartz and quartz-carbonate veins. Associated mixed sulphides (galena, sphalerite and chalcopyrite) indicate the magmatic contribution to the mineralization. Preliminary geochemical data indicating anomalous concentrations of base metals, including copper, zinc, molybdenum and tungsten, particularly near the granite contact, also suggest magmatic-hydrothermal overprint on gold deposition. The alteration associated to mineralization include hematite, sericite, albite and carbonate.

Among several exploration targets represented by exposed or worked veins, the deformation and alteration halos around the granite-tonalite contact are obvious perspective targets for further exploration.

The mineralization styles at Kimoukro align with key gold systems observed throughout the Fetekro-Oume belt, reinforcing its potential as a major gold-bearing structure within this prolific region. The geological characteristics of the Kimoukro project highlight its strong potential for further discovery, positioning it as a key target within the expanding gold exploration landscape of Ivory Coast.

Qualified person

The scientific and technical disclosure in this news release has been supervised and approved by Dr. Riccardo Aque, PhD, Eurogeol, a qualified person as that term is defined in National Instrument 43-101. He is independent of the company.

About Starcore International Mines Ltd.

Starcore is engaged in precious metal production with focus and experience in Mexico. While this base of producing assets has been complemented by exploration and development projects throughout North America, Starcore has expanded its reach internationally with the project in Ivory Coast. The company is a leader in corporate social responsibility and advocates value-driven decisions that will increase long-term shareholder value.

We seek Safe Harbor.