Aton reports new surface sampling results from the Zeno and Semna regional target areas

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Aton reports new surface sampling results from the Zeno and Semna regional target areas

Vancouver, British Columbia, July 31, 2023: Aton Resources Inc. (AAN: TSX-V) (“Aton” or the “Company") is pleased to update investors with the latest results from surface sampling programmes at its Zeno and Semna regional target areas, at the Company’s 100% owned Abu Marawat Concession (“Abu Marawat” or the “Concession”), in the Eastern Desert of Egypt.

Highlights:

• A total of 106 selective grab samples were collected from Zeno and the Semna regional prospect areas;
• The Semna regional samples were taken in a wide and previously unsampled area to the southeast of the historic Semna gold mine, which has been heavily exploited by artisanal miners in recent times, and the Zeno samples were taken from new artisanal workings where newly and/or more deeply exposed mineralised structures had previously been sampled at or near surface;
• 34 samples were collected from the Zeno prospect area, and returned assays including 36.20 g/t Au, 15.30 g/t Au and 14.15 g/t Au. 3 more samples also returned assays greater than 10 g/t Au, and a further 3 samples also returned assays greater than 5 g/t Au;
• 72 samples were collected from the Semna regional prospect area, and returned assays including 25.70 g/t Au, 16.55 g/t Au and 15.20 g/t Au. 4 more samples returned assays greater than 10 g/t Au, and a further 6 samples returned assays greater than 5 g/t Au;
• The structural orientations and style of mineralisation at both prospects bear similarities to those observed at the nearby Semna gold mine;
• This sampling programme significantly expands the area of mineralised veins and structures in the broader Semna-Zeno area.

“We are very pleased with another set of impressive sampling results from the Semna and Zeno areas, which significantly expands the area of known mineralisation, as well as helping us to better understand the distribution of the mineralisation and its structural controls. The entire Semna-Zeno regional area is a very high priority target for us, and we have now started RC drilling at Semna, and expect to start drilling at Zeno in the middle of August” said Tonno Vahk, Interim CEO. “We continue to push ahead, and remain firmly on track to submit our application for the mining licence at Abu Marawat in the coming weeks. We were also pleased to have recently attended the very successful Egypt Mining Forum in Cairo, and would like to congratulate our partners at the Ministry of Petroleum and the Egyptian Mineral Resources Authority for organising and hosting such a great event which will surely aid in the development of the mineral exploration and mining sectors in Egypt. We are already looking forward to next year’s event!”

Abu Marawat regional sampling programme

The Company has recently undertaken several surface sampling programmes, as part of its preparation and planning activities for the ongoing regional RC exploration drilling programme started in May 2023 (see news release dated May 19, 2023), and also to guide future exploration activities. Samples from the surface sampling programme have returned assays up to and including 67.5 g/t Au from Abu Gaharish, 54.9 g/t Au from Bohlog, and 27.6 g/t Au from Semna (see news release dated May 29, 2023), and 104.5 g/t Au from Zeno (see news release dated June 26, 2023).

Figure 1: Geological map of the Abu Marawat Concession, showing the location of Zeno

Discussion of results

Zeno

Sampling was undertaken at the Zeno prospect area, located approximately 12 km north of the Rodruin mineral deposit and 4 km west of the old Semna gold mine (Figure 1). Artisanal miners have been very active in the general Zeno area in the previous 3 years, and have excavated numerous open pit and underground workings on what Aton believe to be potentially very high grade gold mineralised veins and structures. Previous surface sampling by Aton of visible gold and iron oxide bearing quartz veins returned assays including 117.5 g/t Au, 100.5 g/t Au, 72.3 g/t Au, 56.5 g/t Au and 48.3 g/t Au (see news release dated May 30, 2018), and more recently 104.5 g/t Au, 67.1 g/t Au and 43.0 g/t Au (see news release dated June 26, 2023).

Aton has recently completed a follow-up programme of selective grab sampling at Zeno, in areas previously sampled in 2018 (Figure 2), but which have recently been exploited by artisanal miners. A total of 34 samples were collected from recently mined veins and structures, or from excavations that were previously sampled at a higher level or along strike. Selected results from the recent sampling programme are shown in Table 1, and full assay results are presented in Appendix A.

Table 1: Selected surface sampling results from Zeno

Figure 2: Zeno prospect – sample location plan (recent imagery showing artisanal mining activity)

The mineralisation has been worked extensively in both ancient and recent times in the Zeno area and appears to consist predominantly of narrow (typically <2m) quartz veins and quartz veined shear zones, typically hosted within grey to pinkish coarse grained granodiorites. Some of the individual veins and workings can be traced for 300m or more. Previous sampling has indicated that the mineralisation is hosted within both the quartz veins and their altered and sheared wall rock. In places the veins appear to pinch and swell with some of the underground workings reaching up to 5m width in places (see news release dated May 30, 2018).

Of the 34 samples taken during the current programme 6 (18% of the samples) returned assays greater than 10 g/t Au (see Table 1), 9 (26%) returned assays greater than 5 g/t Au, and 28 in total (82%) returned assays greater than 1 g/t Au.

The current sampling programme has confirmed that gold is hosted in both quartz veins and their surrounding altered and sheared wall rocks in typically narrow zones, that sometimes pinch and swell. In some locations multiple veins were observed to coalesce together and anastomose, returning higher grades of gold mineralisation where the shearing is more intense.

The veins are typically steep, and occur in multiple orientations, however there appears to be a dominant orientation striking approximately east-southeast to east-northeast throughout the area, with the veins and shear zones generally dipping between about 60° to sub-vertically to the south. There are also a number of approximately north to north-northeast striking structures and veins that generally dip to the east, one of which previously returned a gold grade of 104.5 g/t Au (see news release dated June 26, 2023). A different north striking structure returned a grade of 36.20 g/t Au during this phase of sampling, and Aton plans to drill these potentially high grade structures during the upcoming RC drill programme.

The current sampling programme has considerably expanded the mineralised area and understanding of the mineralisation at the Zeno prospect. It has also confirmed the presence of multiple high grade gold bearing veins and structures, up to several hundreds of metres long, throughout the general area. The style and structural setting of the Zeno mineralisation bears distinct similarities to that at the Semna gold mine, approximately 4 km to the east.

Semna (regional)

An additional programme of selective grab sampling and mapping was completed in the regional Semna area, where extensive exploitation of mineralised veins and structures has again been carried out by artisanal miners in recent years. The area sampled in the current programme is located between 1.5 km – 4 km southeast of the old British-era Semna gold mine (Figure 1), and had been largely been previously unsampled by Aton.

A total of 72 samples were collected in the current programme (Figure 3). In addition, 2 QAQC samples, one blank and one duplicate sample, were inserted into the sample run sent for assaying. Selected results from the sampling programme are shown in Table 2, and full assay results are presented in Appendix A.

Table 2: Selected surface sampling results from the Semna regional area Figure 3: Semna regional area prospect – sample location plan The mineralisation worked in recent times in the Semna regional prospect area appears to consist predominantly of narrow (typically <1m) quartz veins and quartz veined, carbonate altered shear zones, typically hosted within dark green fine grained diorites. The veins and shear zones mapped and sampled are predominantly moderate to steeply dipping to the southwest, and returned assays up to 25.70 g/t Au (AHA- 45601). Other north-south striking structures, reminiscent of the Zeno and main Semna gold mine areas, returned assays of up to 16.55 g/t Au (AHA-45586). Some of the individual veins and workings can be traced for 200m or more with minor apparent strike slip offsets. This sampling programme has indicated that mineralisation is hosted within both the quartz veins and their altered and sheared wall rocks.

Of the 72 samples taken in the current programme 7 (10% of the samples) returned assays greater than 10 g/t Au (see Table 1), 13 (18%) returned assays greater than 5 g/t Au, and 42 in total (58%) returned assays greater than 1 g/t Au.

The current sampling programme has considerably expanded the area of known mineralisation away from the historic Semna gold mine, and has confirmed the presence of multiple previously unidentified high grade gold bearing veins and structures, up to several hundreds of metres long, throughout the regional Semna area.

Sample processing and analytical procedures

Samples were collected in the field by Aton’s exploration teams. The selective grab samples were collected manually, and were mostly, but not entirely, collected in situ, with some samples collected from the artisanal miners’ residual rock dumps and ore piles, for example.

The samples were weighed and crushed to -4mm onsite at the Rodruin sample prep facility, and split to a nominal c. 250-500g sample size. The coarse crushed reject samples are retained onsite.

The c. 250-500g dried, crushed and split samples were shipped to ALS Minerals sample preparation laboratory at Marsa Alam, Egypt where they were pulverised to a size fraction of better than 85% passing 75 microns. From this pulverised material a further sub-sample was split off with a nominal c. 50g size, which was shipped on to ALS Minerals at Rosia Montana, Romania for analysis. The reject pulps were returned from ALS, and are also retained onsite.

Samples were analysed for gold by fire assay with an atomic absorption spectroscopy (“AAS”) finish (analytical code Au-AA23), and for silver, copper, lead and zinc using an aqua regia digest followed by an AAS finish (analytical code AA45). Any high grade gold samples (>10 g/t Au) were re-analysed using analytical code Au- GRA21 (also fire assay, but with a gravimetric finish).

Appendix A: Surface sample results