Meridian Reports Further Robust Drill Results at Santa Helena & Cabaçal Deposits

LONDON, UK / ACCESSWIRE / November 14, 2023 / (TSX:MNO)(OTCQX:MRRDF)(Frankfurt/Tradegate:2MM) ("Meridian" or the "Company") is pleased to report further strong intercepts of shallow copper, gold, silver, and zinc mineralization at the Santa Helena mine ("Santa Helena"). New results include CD-351: 11.7m @ 1.3% CuEq from 27.0m, and CD-336: 30.7m @ 0.8% CuEq from 6.0m, including 5.7m @ 1.5% CuEq from 7.0m and 3.3m @ 1.2% CuEq from 33.3m ("Figure 1"). These drill holes are targeting a soil geochemical anomaly in the western sector of the deposit, up-dip from the historical resource envelope. Ongoing drilling continues to expand into open areas of open-pitable resource potential outside of the Santa Helena mine limits. A new satellite anomaly is emerging on the far south-east of the geophysical survey area, defining potential extensional targets, which remain open.

The Company's work on the main Cabaçal deposit continues to prove up robust intervals of gold and copper mineralization from infill and extensional drilling, with results including a 70.1m interval grading 0.9g/t AuEq. In addition, the Cabaçal deposit's environmental impact study for a maximum 4.5Mt p.a. mine throughput is expected to be submitted this month.

Further drill results remain pending at both Santa Helena and the Cabaçal mine area.

Highlights Reported Today

• Meridian reports further shallow base and precious metal intercepts at Santa Helena;
  • CD-351: 11.7m @ 1.3% CuEq (0.5% Cu, 1.4g/t Au, 7.9g/t Ag & 0.7% Zn) from 27.0m; including:
    • 5.4m @ 1.9% CuEq (0.6% Cu, 2.8g/t Au, 11.0g/t Ag & 0.4% Zn) from 27.0m;
  • CD-336: 30.7m @ 0.8% CuEq (0.3% Cu, 0.4g/t Au, 4.0g/t Ag & 1.1% Zn) from 6.0m; including
    • 5.7m @ 1.5% CuEq (0.7% Cu, 1.6g/t Au, 4.8g/t Ag & 0.5% Zn) from 6.0m;
• Step-out drilling at Santa Helena expands the across strike width of mineralization by up to 300%;
• Santa Helena's prospective trend re-emerges into the Alamo trend with new IP anomaly;
• Cabaçal infill and extension drilling continues to deliver robust gold and copper mineralization;
  • CD-361 (CCZ): 70.1m @ 0.9g/t AuEq (0.5g/t Au, 0.3% Cu & 1.2g/t Ag) from 11.2m; including:
    • 36.1m @ 1.3g/t AuEq (0.9g/t Au, 0.3% Cu & 1.4g/t Ag) from 38.0m;
    • 2.0m @ 7.8g/t AuEq (7.8g/t Au & 0.4g/t Ag) from 45.0m;
    • 4.1m @ 2.9g/t AuEq (0.8g/t Au, 1.5% Cu & 8.2g/t Ag) from 69.4m;
  • CD-333 (SCZ): 20.8m @ 1.4g/t AuEq (0.9g/t Au, 0.3% Cu & 0.7g/t Ag) from 43.0m; including:
    • 6.0m @ 3.3g/t AuEq (2.4g/t Au, 0.6% Cu & 1.3g/t Ag) from 45.8m; and
  • CD-346 (CNWE): 5.2m @ 4.4g/t AuEq (1.3g/t Au, 2.2% Cu & 6.1g/t Ag) from 95.7m.
• Cabaçal deposit's environmental impact study for a maximum 4.5Mt p.a. mine throughput expected to be submitted this month.

True width is considered to be 80 to 90% of intersection width.

Mr. Gilbert Clark, CEO, comments: "These strong results from Santa Helena further confirm the Cabaçal belt's prospectivity to host multiple open-pitable deposits of base and precious metals. Our drill results are pushing the mineralization's boundaries out further, locally increasing the width of the mineralized footprint up to 300%. The ongoing works on delineating the Santa Helena trend's untested upside has encountered a new open IP anomaly that projects towards the Alamo target area. We are also strongly encouraged by the ongoing drill results on the main Cabaçal Mine deposit that continues to deliver robust grades of in-pit mineralization. With the pending submission of Cabaçal's environmental impact study, the progression for a future granting of Cabaçal's Preliminary License in 2024 continues to track well. With a strong treasury, a premium VMS belt to develop, and a highly motivated team in place, we look forward to delivering further results and updates shortly.

Santa Helena Drill Program

Santa Helena is a Cu-Au-Ag & Zn VMS deposit located ~9km to the southeast of the Cabaçal Mine. It has over 10,000m of historical drilling and is one of a series of exploration targets along the 11km Cabaçal Mine Corridor. The Company commenced initial drilling in August 2023 as part of a verification program, to validate the historical data in line with NI43-101 requirements, and to initiate scout drilling for resource extensions defined by geophysics. The Company's compilation of historical drill data indicated that many past holes were not completely sampled, that reconciliation of surveyed drilled positions and mine workings suggested that the high-grade massive sulphide mineralization was only partially mined. and that extensions of near-surface mineralization to the east were also not integrated into the historical resource calculations¹. The Company has concluded that this historical resource area is considered open.

¹ Meridian Mining News Release of March 29, 2022.

The Company has completed twenty-two holes to date. Initial results from holes drilled along the main trend for resource verification were very positive, confirming high-grade massive to semi massive near-surface mineralization², including:

• CD-311: 19.1m @ 1.3% CuEq from 8.0m;
  • Including 4.9m @ 4.6% CuEq from 22.2m;
• CD-321: 23.1m @ 1.0% CuEq from 6.1m;
  • Including 3.6m @ 3.3% CuEq from 10.0m;
• CD-325: 14.9m @ 3.1% CuEq from 26.3m;
• CD-332: 5.8m @ 4.5% CuEq from 32.2m;
• CD-329: 6.8m @ 4.9% CuEq from 38.7m; and
• CD-335: 7.2m @ 4.0% CuEq from 35.5m.

The latest results ("Table 1") have continued to test mineralization in the vicinity of the historical mine area, but drilled to the south-southeast, targeting an area where infill soil sampling by Meridian Mining had returned gold in soil assay values up to 953 ppb Au, with coincident elevated base metals. This suggested that the folded VMS mineralized horizon was breaching the surface in a position poorly tested by drilling, in an area previously shown as a post-mineralization gabbroic intrusion on historical maps.

² Meridian Mining News Release of September 12, 2023.

Initial results have been returned from this position, with further assays pending. New intervals show the presence of significant widths of mineralization at shallow depths outside of the historical resource envelope, and include:

• CD-351: 11.7m @ 1.3% CuEq (0.5% Cu, 1.4g/t Au, 7.9g/t Ag & 0.7% Zn) from 27.0m, including 5.4m @ 1.9% CuEq (0.6% Cu, 2.8g/t Au, 11.0g/t Ag & 0.4% Zn) from 27.0m;
• CD-336: 30.7m @ 0.8% CuEq (0.3% Cu, 0.4g/t Au, 4.0g/t Ag & 1.1% Zn) from 6.0m, including:
  • 5.7m @ 1.5% CuEq (0.7% Cu, 1.6g/t Au, 4.8g/t Ag & 0.5% Zn) from 7.0m, and
  • 3.3m @ 1.2% CuEq (0.1% Cu, 0.3 g/t Au, 12.1 g/t Ag & 3.5% Zn from 33.3m;
• CD-340: 24.7m @ 0.5% CuEq (0.2% Cu, 0.5g/t Au, 2.3g/t Ag & 0.4% Zn) from 0.0m;
• CD-349: 4.4m @ 0.4% CuEq (0.2% Cu, 0.3g/t Au, 3.2g/t Ag & 0.2% Zn) from 0.0m.

These new intersections extend the cross-strike footprint of the mineralization up to 90m laterally beyond the historical resource limit - tripling the extent, with the prior model being limited by data and focused on the known more massive sulphide component of the mineral system ("Figure 2"). The results enhance the potential of the Company's objective to define resource additions supporting a low strip ratio satellite open pit development at Santa Helena, one of many targets along the mine corridor and broader Cabaçal Belt.

Assay results from the first phase of the program have provided confidence in the historical data and the position of the underground workings. Results emphasise the presence of good widths of high-quality mineralization amenable to evaluation for open pit extraction. The first results from this next stage in drilling show promise for the potential to add to the mineralization inventory beyond the previously defined limits.

Santa Helena's Expanding near-mine Exploration Corridor

The Company has continued its Gradient Array Induced Polarization survey ("IP survey") over the east-southeastern extensions to Santa Helena, into the Alamo property. This program has outlined a newly defined chargeability corridor, extending 2.0km from the limit of Santa Helena's historical resource. This geophysical target aligns with gold and base metal soil anomalies defined in past BP Minerals surveys, continuing to add valuable context to this target as an extensional corridor for Santa Helena-style mineralization. Extensions of the survey further to the southeast show a newly emerging chargeability anomaly on the limit of the survey area and remaining open.

The Company is pausing the geophysical program at Santa Helena for a period, to allow geological and geochemical reconnaissance to advance and support the prioritization of potential new exploration drill targets.

Cabaçal Project Development and Resource Definition Program

The Company continues with drilling and project development studies at Cabaçal ("Figure 3"). A phase of hydrogeological drilling has been completed as part of the program for environmental licencing. Some drilling has focussed on testing the lateral limits of the resource in the Cabaçal Northwest Extension ("CNWE"), with further results pending.

Intersection highlights from recent results from infill drilling include:

• CD-361 (CCZ): 70.1m @ 0.9g/t AuEq (0.5g/t Au, 0.3% Cu & 1.2g/t Ag) from 11.2m, including:
  • 36.1m @ 1.3g/t AuEq (0.9g/t Au, 0.3% Cu & 1.4g/t Ag) from 38.0m;
    • 2.0m @ 7.8g/t AuEq (7.8g/t Au & 0.4g/t Ag) from 45.0m;
    • 4.1m @ 2.9g/t AuEq (0.8g/t Au, 1.5% Cu & 8.2g/t Ag) from 69.4m;
• CD-333 (SCZ): 20.8m @ 1.4g/t AuEq (0.9g/t Au, 0.3% Cu & 0.7g/t Ag) from 43.0m; including:
  • 6.0m @ 3.3g/t AuEq (2.4g/t Au, 0.6% Cu & 1.3g/t Ag) from 45.8m; and
• CD-346 (CNWE):5.2m @ 4.4g/t AuEq (1.3g/t Au, 2.2% Cu & 6.1g/t Ag) from 95.7m.

CD-361 locally included some unexpected heavily disseminated coarse chalcopyrite mineralization at shallow levels (1.9m @ 2.0% Cu, 0.1 g/t Au & 5.7g/t Ag from 11.2m), within the broader mineralized halo, in areas historically not sampled in past BP programs. This is extending again the near surface upside of the deposit largely ignored by the historical program.

The Company's environmental consultant, Sete Soluções e Tecnologia Ambiental, is finalizing the environmental impact study for submission to statutory authorities, expected to be presented this month. This represents an important step in advancing the permitting with studies supporting an expanded production scenario beyond PEA assumptions of up to 4.5Mt p.a.

On behalf of the Board of Directors of Meridian Mining UK S

Mr. Gilbert Clark
CEO and Director
Meridian Mining UK S
Email: info@meridianmining.co
Ph: +1 778 715-6410 (PST)
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Technical Notes

Samples have been analysed at SGS laboratory in Belo Horizonte. Samples are dried, crushed with 75% passing <3 mm, split to give a mass of 250-300g, pulverized with 95% passing 150#. Gold analyses are conducted by FAA505 (fire assay of a 50g charge), and base metal analysis by methods ICP40B and ICP40B_S (four acid digest with ICP-OES finish). Visible gold intervals are sampled by metallic screen fire assay method MET150-FAASCR. Samples are held in the Company's secure facilities until dispatched and delivered by staff and commercial couriers to the laboratory. Pulps and coarse rejects are retained and returned to the Company for storage. The Company submits a range of quality control samples, including blanks and gold and polymetallic standards supplied by Rocklabs, ITAK and OREAS, supplementing laboratory quality control procedures. Approximately 5% of archived samples are sent for umpire laboratory analysis, including any lots exhibiting QAQC outliers after discussion with the laboratory. In BP Minerals sampling, gold was analysed historically by fire assay and base metals by three acid digest and ICP finish at the Nomos laboratory in Rio de Janeiro. Silver was analysed by aqua regia digest with an atomic absorption finish. True width is considered to be 80-90% of intersection width. Assay figures and intervals are rounded to 1 decimal place. Gold equivalents for Cabaçal are calculated as: AuEq(g/t) = (Au(g/t) * %Recovery) + (1.492*(Cu% * %Recovery)) + (0.013*(Ag(g/t) * %Recovery)), where:

• Au_recovery_ppm = 5.4368ln(Au_Grade_ppm)+88.856

• Cu_recovery_pct = 2.0006ln(Cu_Grade_pct)+94.686

• Ag_recovery_ppm = 13.342ln(Ag_Grade_ppm)+71.037

Recoveries based on 2022 metallurgical testwork on core submitted to SGS Lakefield

Copper equivalents for Santa Helena are based on metallurgical recoveries from the historical resource calculation, updated with pricing forecasts aligned with the Cabaçal PEA. The metal equivalent formula s presented as a copper equivalent rather than a zinc equivalent, based on the Companies current assessment of the metal balance after the past zinc-focussed extraction. CuEq% = (Cu% * 89%Recovery) + (0.67Au(g/t) * 65%Recovery) + (0.318Zn% * 89%Recovery)) + (0.009Ag(g/t) * 61%Recovery)). Recovery formulas will be updated with future testwork programs.

The Gradient Array IP survey is being conducted using the Company's in-house team, utilizing its GDD GRx8‐16c receiver and 5000W‐2400‐15A transmitter. Data is processed by the Company's independent consultancy Core Geophysics. Geophysical and geochemical exploration targets are preliminary in nature and not conclusive evidence of the likelihood of a mineral deposit.

Qualified Person

Mr. Erich Marques, B.Sc., MAIG, Chief Geologist of Meridian Mining and a Qualified Person as defined by National Instrument 43-101, has reviewed, and verified the technical information in this news release.

FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS

Some statements in this news release contain forward-looking information or forward-looking statements for the purposes of applicable securities laws. These statements address future events and conditions and so involve inherent risks and uncertainties, as disclosed under the heading "Risk Factors" in Meridian's most recent Annual Information Form filed on www.sedarplus.ca. While these factors and assumptions are considered reasonable by Meridian, in light of management's experience and perception of current conditions and expected developments, Meridian can give no assurance that such expectations will prove to be correct. Any forward-looking statement speaks only as of the date on which it is made and, except as may be required by applicable securities laws, Meridian disclaims any intent or obligation to update any forward-looking statement, whether as a result of new information, future events, or results or otherwise.

Table 1: Results Reported

Santa Helena