Mr. Jim Coates reports

YUKON METALS BREAKS GROUND ON 5,000-METRE DRILL PROGRAM AT AZ AND BIRCH

Yukon Metals Corp. has started its 2026 exploration programs at the AZ and the Birch copper-gold properties in Yukon, Canada. These fully financed exploration programs will seek to advance porphyry and skarn copper-gold targets through drilling, geophysics, surface sampling and alteration mapping.

Highlights:

• Drill rigs are on site at AZ and Birch, with the first core produced at AZ on May 28, 2026;
• 3-D induced polarization geophysics in progress targeting porphyry zones at AZ;
• 2026 exploration plans: approximately 2,000 metres of diamond drilling is planned at AZ and 3,000 metres of diamond drilling at Birch; the programs also include geophysics, drone aeromagnetic surveying, surface geochemical sampling and alteration mapping to refine geological models and vector toward copper-gold targets;
• Yukon and first nation contractors engaged to perform majority of work as part of Yukon Metals' commitment to supporting local and community ventures.

"Seeing rigs turning at both AZ and Birch is exciting. We have first core in hand at AZ, a 5,000-metre program under way and highly compelling targets at both properties," said Jim Coates, chief executive officer of the company. "The Sumo property addition makes an already interesting belt even more intriguing -- more copper-gold-molybdenum targets, more district scale and more reasons to be optimistic about what this season's drilling is going to show us."

2026 exploration strategy

The company's 2026 exploration programs at AZ and Birch are intended to advance Yukon Metals' pipeline of high-priority copper-gold targets in Yukon. At AZ, work will focus on refining porphyry and skarn-style copper-gold targets supported by prior geochemistry, geophysics and technical work. At Birch, the program will build on the positive 2025 drill results, which included multiple skarn zones, including a 47.4-metre section grading up to 14 grams per tonne gold averaging 0.4 g/t of gold-bearing mineralization (see Dec. 8, 2025, news release) while integrating newly optioned district-scale targets at the Sumo property.

Results from the 2026 programs will be used to refine geological models, prioritize drill targets and determine next steps for each property. Further details regarding the scope, timing and results of the field programs will be provided as work progresses.

Diamond drilling will be completed by New Age Drilling Solutions, a Yukon-based contractor, in partnership with Vision Quest Drilling, a Kluane First Nations citizen-owned company. Camp support services for the exploration activities will be provided by Kagani, a Kluane First Nations citizen-owned enterprise, in partnership with long-standing Yukon-based exploration contractor Archer Cathro.

About AZ

AZ is a 13,110-hectare copper-gold property in western Yukon, approximately 36 kilometres south of Beaver Creek and six kilometres west of the Alaska Highway. The property hosts porphyry and skarn-style copper-gold targets associated with intrusive rocks and hydrothermal alteration.

Recent soil geochemistry and induced polarization surveys have outlined multiple copper targets, including the Southeast occurrence, where copper-molybdenum-gold-silver soil anomalies coincide with intrusive rocks and IP chargeability anomalies. Rock chip sampling has returned values up to 26 per cent copper (see Aug. 7, 2025, news release for a fulsome list of samples).

The 2026 AZ program will focus on advancing priority targets through 2,000 metres of diamond drilling, IP surveying, drone magnetic surveying, surface sampling and alteration mapping. This work is designed to refine the property-scale geological model, vector toward the most prospective zones of copper-gold mineralization and prioritize targets for follow-up drill testing.

About Birch property and district-scale expansion

Birch is a 7,000-hectare copper-gold property near Burwash Landing in southwestern Yukon, located close to the Alaska Highway. The property is prospective for porphyry and skarn-style copper-gold mineralization and hosts multiple copper-gold soil and rock anomalies.

Exploration has outlined a copper-gold soil anomaly extending up to 1,400 metres, with rock chip samples returning values up to 2.42 per cent copper and 14.1 g/t gold (see Oct. 12, 2024, news release for a fulsome list of samples). In 2025, Yukon Metals completed 1,685 metres of diamond drilling from four pad locations, with all holes intersecting mineralized skarn horizons.

The 2026 Birch program will focus on advancing priority targets through IP surveying, surface sampling, alteration mapping and approximately 3,000 metres of diamond drilling. This work is designed to refine the property-scale geological model, vector toward the most prospective zones of copper-gold mineralization and test priority targets for copper-gold mineralization.

About Yukon Metals Corp.

Yukon Metals is well financed and represents a property portfolio built on over 30 years of prospecting by the Berdahl family, the prospecting team behind Snowline Gold Corp.'s portfolio of primary gold assets. The Yukon Metals portfolio consists primarily of copper-gold and silver-lead-zinc assets, with a substantial tungsten, gold and silver component. The company is led by an experienced board of directors and management team across technical and finance disciplines.

Yukon Metals is focused on fostering sustainable growth and prosperity within Yukon's local communities while simultaneously enhancing stakeholder value. The company's strategy centres around inclusivity and shared prosperity, offering both community members and investors the chance to contribute to, and benefit from, its ventures.

The Yukon

The Yukon territory is an underexplored and minerally endowed district with a mining history dating back to the Klondike gold rush of 1898. With a progressive permitting regime, geopolitical stability and supportive government, it is well positioned to foster the next generation of mines. The Yukon is host to a highly experienced and conscientious local work force, fostered by a long culture of exploration coupled with deep respect for the land. Recent major discoveries with local roots such as Snowline Gold's Rogue project, Valley discovery, demonstrate the Yukon's potential to generate fresh district-scale mining opportunities.

Qualified person

The technical content of this news release has been reviewed and approved by Helena Kuikka, PGeo, vice-president, exploration, for Yukon Metals, a qualified person (as defined by National Instrument 43-101).

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