TSX-listed Allied Gold Corporation has provided an update on exploration at the Kurmuk mine, in western Ethiopia, highlighting exploration progress and the expansion of the mineralised zones within this highly prospective 30 km by 50 km gold camp.

As commissioning and the start of operations at the mine advance, with first ore to the grinding circuit expected imminently and first gold expected shortly thereafter, the company is now focused on extending mine life and identifying additional higher-grade orezones.

Exploration has initially focused on extensions to the two initial openpits, Ashashire and Dish Mountain, and on advancing nearby targets that could become additional mining areas providing further operational flexibility.

Allied Gold explains that the Kurmuk mine is planned as a conventional openpit and agitated leaching operation with a life-of-mine production of at least 240 000 oz/y gold, averaging about 300 000 oz/y in the initial four years.

Exploration this year has delivered down-dip and strike extensions to the mineralised zones at the Dish Mountain and Ashashire openpits, confirming the potential to expand the current proven and probable mineral reserves of 2.7-million ounces.

Allied Gold says Dish Mountain continues to demonstrate incremental resource growth potential, with recent drilling successfully extending known gold-bearing zones and identifying favourable geological targets.

The company says the 1 600 m by 500 m deposit remains open at depth and laterally, offering opportunities to further expand the mineralised footprint and pit limits.

It adds that Ashashire continues to deliver exceptional high-grade gold results, including 13.86 m at 10.07 g/t gold, with higher-grade mineralisation extending about 750 m along strike below the current pit extents.

The deposit remains open at depth and along strike, offering significant exploration upside and strong potential for both open-pit expansions and an underground mineral resource.

Allied Gold says ongoing drilling and next year’s resource update position both Dish Mountain and Ashashire as contributors to future mineral resource growth and value creation.

Moreover, the company notes that the 9 km Tsenge Trend, which is significantly longer in strike length than either Ashashire or Dish Mountain, is emerging as a significant growth opportunity, with multiple high-grade gold discoveries highlighting substantial resource potential.

As the Kurmuk mine initially takes advantage of higher-grade mining phases at Ashashire and Dish Mountain, thereby driving higher production in the initial years, Allied Gold says these new high-grade zones are aligned with the exploration objective of finding and developing additional sources of higher-grade material to sustain higher production levels for longer.

The company notes that resource modelling is progressing at the high-grade Hiccup Hill zone, the most advanced among similar high-grade targets along the Tsenge Trend, while positive results at Kiftet, Setota and Bumblebee point to multiple high-grade zones along Tsenge, thereby providing good potential for meaningful additional upside and operational flexibility to help sustain a long-term production profile of 300 000 oz/y.

An initial mineral resource estimate for Kiftet and Hiccup Hill is expected by the first half of 2027, along with exploration activities to confirm and extend the other high-grade zones along the trend.

During this year, the company began advancing work at regional targets at its Kurmuk mine, obtaining encouraging high-grade results at Urchin and the Western Prospects, while other large, underexplored gold anomalies at Agu, Ahushu and Dul Mountain are planned to be advanced progressively starting late this year.

Allied Gold says it believes these targets are highly prospective and the upcoming work provides opportunities to potentially define material new deposits within trucking distance to the processing plant, expanding the resource base which could potentially support additional mill feed; extend mine life; and support long-term strategic production targets.

OUTLOOK

Allied Gold explains that the focus for exploration at the Kurmuk mine is evolving from deposit-scale zone definition and extension to nearby priority targets such as Tsenge, which are demonstrating near-term, higher-grade resource discovery potential.

Going forward, the company says exploration will continue to prioritise these near-term opportunities with increasing sequential focus on new targets, including Agu, Ahushu and Dul Mountain, along with continued evaluation of Urchin and Western prospects.

While advancing these exploration targets, initial drill target development data will be collected over the new Azali and Agazen targets located in the southern and northern portions of the property, respectively, and over the eastern half of the property, where limited exploration has been carried out.

Since October 2025, 149 holes totalling 28 003 m of drilling have been completed, with a focus on extending known zones at depth and along strike and on exploring new targets.

The company notes that gold mineralisation requiring follow-up has been intersected at all targets drilled, namely Ashashire, Dish Mountain, Tsenge, Urchin and the Western prospects.

Allied Gold notes that scout and infill drilling along the Tsenge Trend is ongoing and likely to extend into 2027 while core and reverse circulation drilling is being carried out to test near-surface gold-bearing zones proximal to Dish Mountain.

Drilling is being carried out along the proximal projected strike of the Ashashire trend, with a focus on untested gold-in-soil anomalies.

Additionally, induced polarisation geophysical surveys capable of imaging to a depth of 400 m are scheduled to start along the Tsenge Trend and over portions of the Ashashire deposit late this year.

At Tsenge, Allied says the goal is to define larger, stronger zones of sulphidation and quartz veining; at Ashashire, the goal is to define the system's extents and potentially identify extensions of the higher-grade portions.

The company adds that follow-up drilling at Urchin, and trenching and follow-up drilling at the Western Prospects, are proposed for 2027.

Exploration, including drill testing, is expected to be initiated at Agu and Ahushu in 2027, following an initial field review planned for October.

Allied Gold says the results to date and near-term planned activities demonstrate progress toward the company's five- year exploration objectives for Kurmuk outlined in its November 2025 exploration update, including its objective of growing mineral resources to more than five-million ounces.

The company says it also continues to focus on identifying and developing higher-grade ore sources to increase operational flexibility, sustain higher production levels for longer and support its objective of extending mine life beyond 15 years.