Montero Mining and Exploration Ltd. is reporting the assay results of surface geochemical sampling undertaken within areas of interest on the Avispa property. Company geologists collected lithological samples from the San Salvador River valley and from reverse circulation (RC) drill chip piles from drilling sites completed by BHP and Quantum Pacific Exploration Chile (Quantum) on the Avispa property. Some samples returned anomalous copper and molybdenum values which require further investigation and supports Montero's belief the Avispa project area has been only cursorily explored for potential concealed copper molybdenum porphyry deposits beneath surficial sediments and gravels.

Avispa is located about 40 km to the west of the supergiant Chuquicamata copper porphyry deposit in an area currently being explored by major mining companies. It is situated within the defined north-south trending Palaeocene–Eocene Cu-Mo porphyry belt and 40 km north of BHP's Spence Cu-Mo mine and KGHM/South32's Sierra Gorda Cu-Mo mine. Avispa is 20 km east of the extensive north-south trending Caliche Nitrate belt hosting the nearby Maria Elena and Pedro de Valdivia Nitrate-Iodine mines operated by SQM.

Avispa project has an extensive cover of sedimentary and evaporite salt deposits underlain by gravel deposits of Miocene age. These sediments overlay and partially cover Cretaceous volcanics and sediments which are intruded by the target Palaeocene monzodiorite and diorite porphyries and Cretaceous andesitic and diorite porphyries that potentially host copper porphyry mineralization. The extensive Quaternary and Miocene sedimentary cover at Avispa only allows for geochemistry, structural mapping, remote sensing techniques or, more costly geophysical surveys and drilling to help target Cu-Mo porphyry mineralization in the underlying Cretaceous rocks.

The San Salvador River valley located along the southern boundary of the property provides a window into the Cretaceous geology below the Quaternary and Miocene rocks. The river valley is some 120-160 m below the Miocene plateau and exposes the underlying Cretaceous volcanics and sediments as well as providing information on the thickness of the Miocene sedimentary overburden. Montero conducted detailed mapping and of these rocks along this valley and its tributaries.

A total of 37 grab samples of rock types exposed along a transect were sampled and subjected to 4 acid digest and 48 element ICP-MS assays. Copper was anomalous in 7 locations returning values of >100 ppm Cu with the highest value of 476 ppm Cu coming from sample of Cretaceous andesite volcanic rock. Molybdenum showed anomalous values of > 5 ppm Mo and in 3 locations highly anomalous values of >10-25 ppm Mo were obtained.

The latter values were obtained from altered Cretaceous andesite volcanic rock. The Company completed sampling of rock chips piles from previous RC drilling site at Avispa. The origin of the RC drill chips piles is unknown and it assumed they are mixed and originated from an unknown depth at each drill site.

A total of 48 grab samples from drill chip piles were submitted for 48-element analysis by 4 acid digestion followed by ICP-MS analysis. The results for copper and molybdenum analysis are provided in Figures 5. The highest copper concentrations of >100 ppm Cu were obtained from the area of intense drilling. In contrast the highest molybdenum anomalies of 10-25 ppm Mo were collected from 3 BHP RC drill hole sites.

The lithological sampling in the San Salvador area and the drill chip sampling confirmed the occurrence of altered, intrusive rock as part of the underlying geology, from which several grab samples returned anomalous copper and highly anomalous molybdenum concentrations. For reference, exploration geochemical results during the exploration of BHP's Spence deposit south of Avispa reported anomalies up to 100 ppm Cu and 5 ppm Mo (Cameron and others 2004, 2009) in surface gravels. Similarly, EMSA/Codelco reported anomalies of up to 43 ppm Cu and 7 ppm Mo in gravels at their Pampa las Torres property east of the Chug Chug prospect.

To assist the Company in defining potential porphyry drill targets, management has engaged Fathom Geophysics to evaluate all current project data with the objective of identifying potential vectors to buried porphyry-type Cu-Mo deposits. The results of this work are expected in Quarter 3 2022 and will be integrated into the targeting program for an eventual initial drilling program at Avispa.