Golden Cross Resources Limited engaged resource consultants H&S Consultants Pty Ltd. (HSC) to implement the review recommendations and undertake a revised mineral resource estimate (MRE) for the Copper Hill copper-gold project, in central New South Wales (NSW). The previous resource estimate for Copper Hill was undertaken in March 2015 following two prior estimates in 2011. Higher metal prices since 2015have a potentially positive impact on the economic viability of the lower grade envelope surrounding central higher grade areas of the Copper Hill deposit.

The April 2022 review also examined the rationale and outcomes of the 2015 resource estimate, with a view tore instating, if appropriate, most of the larger 2011 estimates, and components. Recommendations included changes in estimation methodology more consistent with the porphyry style of mineralisation, review of the database and readmission of holes that were previously excluded from estimation, and the influence of increased metal prices on the optimised pit shell used for reporting. Resources are constrained within a new optimised reporting pit shell, using revised parameters including metal prices and metal recoveries, and mining and processing costs, as inputs to Whittle 4X software.

Increased metal price inputs were partially offset by increased cost estimates. The revised MRE has been completed at a range of copper or gold cut-off grades. The 2022 MRE recognises areas where there are significant gold grades in areas where copper grades are below the selected cut-off.

A further 42Mt grading 0.13% copper and 0.28 g/t Au was estimated using cut-off criteria of >0.2 g/t Au and < 0.2% Cu, giving a total of 190Mt grading 0.28% Cu and 0.28 g/t Au. Using a 0.2% Cu only cut-off, the combined Measured, Indicated and Inferred resources based on the new resource estimate is 148Mt grading 0.32% Cu and 0.28 g/t Au containing470,000t Cu and 1,340,000ozs Au compared with the combined Indicated and Inferred resources of 87Mt @ 0.36% Cu and 0.32 g/t Au (310,000t Cu and 890,000ozs Au) reported by the previous 2015 estimate. At a 0.2% Cu only cut-off the 2022 MRE has 45% more tonnes than 2015, at ~10% lower grades due to the use of hard boundaries in 2015, but metal content is up 30% due to increased tonnes.

By applying combined cut-off grade criteria that includes gold blocks outside the blocks defined by copper cut-off, and not previously reported in 2015, the 2022. MRE has a further 21% more tonnes in the 2022 Pit than in the 2015 Pit, at ~3% lower grades, but15% more metal due to increased tonnes. The 2022 MRE Classification using combined cut-off criteria has 31% Measured, 39%Indicated and 30% Inferred material and includes 176Mt of sulphide mineralisation.

Oxide material in 2022 MRE is 5% of the total MRE tonnes. Copper is depleted by weathering in parts of the oxide zone, leaving residual gold with potential to be treated in a separate extraction process. Silver has been estimated for the first time and with grades that are higher than comparable copper-gold deposits, which are typically around 0.6 to 0.8 g/t silver.

Reporting Pit Shell Resources are constrained within an updated reporting pit shell, using revised parameters including metal prices and metal recoveries, and mining and processing costs, as inputs to Whittle 4X software to create a revised pit shell for constraining the new resource estimate. Increased metal price inputs were partially offset by increased cost estimates. Metal prices have risen since March 2015 when copper was USD 6,085 per tonne and gold was USD 1,470 per ounce, compared with current prices of approximately USD 8,000 per tonne for copper and USD 1,800 per ounce for gold.

As in 2015, optimistic input parameters were used to generate Whittle optimised pit shells. Exploration Target: A 3D representation of the resource blocks shows the resources lying within the reporting pit and blocks outside the pit, previously reported as unclassified material. While the material outside the pit shell cannot be reported as a Mineral Resource under JORC, this material can form the basis for an Exploration Target.

In this case, the material outside the pit shell defines the lower limit of the Exploration Target tonnage range, while an expanded estimation search (300x300x90m) was used to define the upper ton agelimit. The lower grade limits are based on the expanded search grade estimates, while the upper grade limits are the current MRE grades. The potential quantity and grade of this Exploration Target is conceptual in nature, there has been insufficient exploration in these parts of the deposit to estimate a Mineral Resource and it is uncertain if further exploration will result in the estimation of a Mineral Resource.

Previous drilling returned mineralised intercepts that are along strike from Copper Hill and deeper holes down dip/plunge below Wattle Hill, Copper Hill and Buckley's Hill. Further drilling is required to explore the continuity of the zones outside the current reporting pit. The timing of further drilling is dependent on funding and prioritisation of feasibility work, land access agreements, physical site access and contractor availability.

Comparison with Previous Estimates: A comparison of 2022 and 2015 MREs at 0.2% Cu only cut-off grade, shows an overall increase in tonnage of 45% in the 2022 model and a 10% decrease in grades; metal content has increased by 30% for both copper and gold. Measured resources now comprise 31% of total MRE tonnage. Compared with the 2015 Blue Sky pit shell, the updated 2022 XC3-41 pit shell represents a 21% increase in MRE tonnage at marginally lower grades at either 0.2% Cu or 0.2 g/t Au cut-off grades.

Net metal content has increased by 15% in the new pit shell.