Benton Resources’ partner Homeland Nickel exits Great Burnt JV, Newfoundland

Benton Resources Inc. [TSXV: BEX] has received notice from Homeland Nickel Inc. that it will no longer participate in its joint venture with Benton on the Great Burnt property which encompasses the South Pond gold-copper deposit and the Great Burnt copper deposit (the GB property) in central Newfoundland.

As a result, and as of December 31, 2025, Homeland had been deemed to incur $2,201,071.93 (or 26.49%) in exploration expenditures while Benton had incurred $6,108,232.33 (or 73.51%). Homeland’s interest in the GB property will continue to be diluted as Benton completes further exploration expenditures. Benton is now calculating its updated spend from January 1, 2026, to March 31, 2026, which will further increase its interest in the GB property.

The company is planning an aggressive summer exploration program which will work toward delineating updated resources for both South Pond gold-copper deposit and the Great Burnt copper deposit. In addition, the company will continue to explore its vast land package at GB and GB south projects. This will include an airborne electromagnetic (EM), magnetic survey on the southern half of the project, follow-up prospecting, mapping, trenching and diamond drilling. The company will complete further soil sampling over areas that have seen little historical exploration. With continued successful results, the company will advance compilation, prospecting, mapping, ground geophysics, trenching and diamond drilling project wide. The company remains confident that additional copper and gold zones will be discovered.

On the northern portion of the project, recently received assay results from a small winter soil sampling program have returned very significant gold values in soils grading from trace up to 5.1 g/t gold. This immediate area is also host to multiple bedrock and float samples assaying to 896 ppb (parts per billion) gold and is located 330 metres southwest of float samples discovered in the fall of 2025 that assayed 12.0 g/t Au. The company will continue work in this highly prospective area outside of the known extents of the South Pond deposit.

Benton has a diversified, prospective property portfolio and holds large equity positions in other mining companies that are advancing high-quality assets. Whenever possible, Benton retains net smelter return (NSR) royalties with potential long-term cash flow.

Benton is focused on advancing its high-grade copper-gold Great Burnt project in central Newfoundland, which has a mineral resource estimate of 667,000 tonnes at 3.21% Cu (copper) indicated and 482,000 at 2.35% Cu inferred. The project has an excellent geological setting covering 25 km of strike and boasts six known Cu-Au-Ag zones over 15 km that are all open for expansion.

Further potential for discovery is excellent given the extensive number of untested geophysical targets and Cu-Au soil anomalies. Phase 1 and 2 drill programs returned impressive results including 25.42 metres of 5.51% Cu, including 9.78 metres of 8.31% Cu and 1.00 metre of 12.70% Cu. Drilling at the South Pond gold zone, approximately 7.5 km north of the Great Burnt copper-gold zone, has confirmed a robust gold-mineralized system over 2.5 km with results of 74.20 metres of 1.43 g/t Au and 43.75 mteres of 1.62 g/t Au, and is open for expansion in all directions.

In other news, Benton Resources. and Metals Creek Resources Corp. [TSXV: MEK] have jointly acquired through staking six potential natural white hydrogen projects in Newfoundland.