Sihayo Gold Limited announced the early results of follow-up drilling in progress on the Company's Sihayo Starter Project (the "Project") in North Sumatra, Republic of Indonesia. The current program is the second stage of a drilling program targeting extensions to known deeper high-grade gold mineralisation located below the planned Sihayo pit. Drilling in progress at Sihayo is the second phase of a drilling program that follows-up on the encouraging gold intercepts previously reported from the Stage 1 drilling program in 2022.

These programs aim to test for extensions to deeper zones of gold mineralisation beneath the planned open pit on the Sihayo resource. These are characterised by locally high gold grades defined by historic drilling and confirmed by recent drilling. These deeper zones fall within the Inferred Mineral Resource category and are not included in the current Ore Reserve estimate due to insufficient drilling data being available to accurately define their extent and geometry.

The holes are located on the southern end of the proposed Sihayo pit shell. A total of ten holes for 3,486m has been completed in the follow-up drilling program using two man-portable diamond drill rigs. Drilling commenced in late November 2022 and continues with a further six to eight holes for around 2,500m remaining to be drilled in the current program.

This program is expected to be completed in the second quarter of 2023. Strong jasperoid intercepts with encouraging gold results were received in four of the first five holes (SHDD646, SHDD647, SHDD648a, and SHDD650a) assayed in the current drilling program. These intercepts occur well below the planned pit shell and support the potential for an expanded below-pit higher-grade gold resource.

Three of the first five holes returned moderate- to high-grade gold intercepts, confirming the continuity and extension to high-grade gold mineralisation intersected in the Stage 1 program and from historic drilling. Mineralisation extends for at least 200 - 250m down-dip of the known gold resource and remains open to the south and beneath the planned starter pit. The high-grade gold mineralisation is open in several directions, and with additional drilling, there is potential to establish continuity of some of the currently discrete resource blocks resulting in larger coherent zones of high-grade mineralisation.

This additional drilling may also result in the discovery of a higher-grade feeder zones beneath the Sihayo deposit. Updated resource modelling of the higher-grade gold resource will commence soon and is expected to be completed in SECOND QUARTER OF -CY2023. Assays are pending from a further five holes (SHDD651 - 655) with an additional eight holes planned.

Visual logging confirms strong jasperoid intercepts in holes SHDD651, SHDD652 and SHDD653. Results from these holes are expected within the next month and will be reported accordingly. The Company released an updated Mineral Resource and Ore Reserve statement for the Sihayo and Sambung gold deposits earlier this.

The Company also identified an opportunity to improve the overall metallurgical recoveries on the fresh and transition ore types within the Sihayo deposit by introducing a High pH Leaching step prior to carbon-in-leach ("CIL") gold extraction. An extensive metallurgical test work program incorporating 72 transition and fresh samples was undertaken to assess the High pH Leaching opportunity. The results of this test work were previously outlined in the announcements "Further Metallurgical Test Work Results" dated 23 September 2021, "Significant Results from High pH Leaching Test Work" dated 31 January 2022, and "High pH Pre-Leaching Test Work Demonstrates Potential for Significant Uplift in Recoveries" dated 5 July 2022.

Results from the High pH Leaching CIL test work indicated the potential to increase overall metallurgical recoveries for the Sihayo Starter Project from 71.2% (as assumed in the 2022 Feasibility Study Update ("2022 FSU")) to approximately 80 - 85%. These results have the potential to significantly transform the Sihayo Starter Project through higher gold production from existing Ore Reserves. Higher metallurgical recoveries from High pH Leaching may unlock additional known and yet to be defined high-grade mineralisation located beneath the Sihayo pit, which is not currently included in the current Ore Reserve due to the low metallurgical recoveries previously assumed.

The high-grade zones below the planned Sihayo pit are largely underexplored and were previously tested by a relatively low density of drilling. This is therefore a high priority for follow- up drilling following the metallurgical test work program. The recently completed program of first phase of follow-up drilling was designed to infill and extend selected zones within the deeper high-grade Mineral Resource.