Stellar AfricaGold - Auger Drilling Commenced on Refined Drill Targets at the Zuénoula Permit, Côte D’Ivoire
Vancouver, BC – July 15, 2026 Stellar AfricaGold Inc. (“Stellar” or the “Company”) (TSXV: SPX, TGAT: 6YP and FSX: 6YP) is pleased to announce that a 10,000-meter auger drill program is now underway at the Stellar-MetalsGrove Joint Venture Zuénoula Gold Project, Cote d’Ivoire.
Highlights
- Ongoing technical review and interpretation of recent infill soil sampling results have refined the exploration focus at the Zuénoula Permit to the area of six drill targets within three principal
prospects: Fifty-Five, Central and South East.
- These targets will be progressively refined through additional infill soil sampling and auger drilling before advancing to Aircore (AC), Reverse Circulation (RC) and Diamond Drilling (DD) programs anticipated to begin in late 2026.
- New 200m × 50m infill soil sampling results from the Fifty-Five Prospect have extended Drill Target T1 to a strike length of approximately 3.3km. The program also returned a new peak soil assay of 1,324ppb Au (1.324g/t Au), further supporting the high prospectivity of the target area.
- The 10,000-metre auger drilling program has commenced and will test the highest-priority gold anomalous cluster areas encompassing Drill Targets T1 and T3–T5 within the Fifty-Five and Central Prospects.
- The Auger drilling program has been designed to drill an average depth of approximately 5 metres, targeting the upper saprolite horizon to evaluate the bedrock potential beneath the surface soil gold anomalies.
- A 200m X 50m infill soil sampling program is underway across Drill Target T6 within the South East Prospect, and a similar program is scheduled over Drill Target T2 in the northeastern extension of the Fifty-Five Prospect. These programs are designed to further refine drill target geometry and prioritise targets for follow-up auger drilling.
- Assay results have been received for 3,372 soil samples, with a further 343 samples pending assay. In parallel, 601 additional soil samples are being collected, while auger drilling comprising 503 holes at the Fifty-Five Prospect and 472 holes at the Central Prospect is underway.
About the Stellar-MetalsGrove Joint Venture Zuénoula Gold Project, Cote d’Ivoire.
The Stellar-MetalsGrove Zuénoula Gold Project is a joint venture exploration project between Stellar’s Ivorian subsidiary Aucrest SARL (“Aucrest”) and MetalsGrove Mining Ltd.’s subsidiary MetalsGrove CDI Pty Ltd (MetalsGrove) to advance Stellar’s 395.78 square kilometer early-stage exploration permit called Zuénoula in Côte d’Ivoire (see Figure 2 below). Pursuant to the joint venture agreement MetalsGrove, the project operator, may earn up to a 50% interest in the Zuénoula Gold Project by incurring US$3,000,000 in exploration expenditures and up to an 80% interest in the Zuénoula Gold Project by incurring a total of US$6,000,000 in exploration expenditures. (For further details of the Stellar-MetalsGrove Joint Venture Agreement see Stellar news release December 9, 2025.)
Stellar Management Commentary
Stellar President and CEO J. François Lalonde commented:
"The commencement of auger drilling represents an important milestone in the Joint Venture’s systematic exploration strategy at the Zuénoula Permit. Over the past 6 months, the project has been progressively advanced from regional reconnaissance through multiple phases of soil geochemistry, enabling the exploration team to refine its focus to three principal prospects and six drill targets. This disciplined approach is now delivering tangible drill-ready targets for the first phase of subsurface testing.
The continued expansion of drill target T1 to approximately 3.3 kilometres and the identification of a new peak soil assay of 1.324 g/t gold from the prospect area reinforces our confidence in the scale and prospectivity of the Zuénoula gold system. These results demonstrate that ongoing infill soil sampling continues to enhance our understanding of the Zuénoula project and improve the quality of drill targeting.
Importantly, the auger drilling program is expected to provide the first direct assessment of the bedrock potential beneath these extensive surface gold anomalies. Together with additional infill soil sampling planned over the remaining target areas, the results will be used to prioritise follow-up Aircore, Reverse Circulation and diamond drilling later this year. We believe the Zuénoula Permit continues to demonstrate significant potential for gold discoveries as our exploration progresses."
10,000-METER AUGER DRILLING PROGRAM COMMENCED; SIX DRILL TARGET AREAS TO BE TESTED
Stellar is pleased to announce that a 10,000m auger drilling program has commenced at its Zuénoula Permit in Côte d’Ivoire to test six drill target areas defined from multiple gold anomalies identified through the Company’s systematic soil geochemistry programs.
Ongoing interpretation of recently completed infill soil sample results (Table 1) has further enhanced the Joint Venture’s understanding of the Zuénoula Permit, enabling exploration activities to be focused on three principal prospects: Fifty-Five, Central and South East (Figure 1),where increased confidence in the continuity and distribution of gold anomalism has led to the definition of six drill targets, which will be systematically evaluated through the current auger drilling program before advancing to Aircore (AC), Reverse Circulation (RC) and Diamond Drilling (DD) from late 2026.
Figure 1. Planned Auger Drill Lines Over Gold Anomalous Contours Across Six Drill Targets within the Fifty-Five, Central and South East Prospects at the Zuénoula Permit.
Recent 200m × 50m infill soil sampling has further refined the Company's priority drill targets within the Fifty-Five and Central Prospects. At the Fifty-Five Prospect (Figure 2), the T1 drill target has been extended to approximately 3.3km from 2.0km strike length previously, while a new peak soil assay of 1,324ppb Au (1.324g/t Au) has been identified. At the Central Prospect (Figure 3), the refined T3, T4 and T5 drill targets will be tested with the planned auger drilling program.
Figure 2. Planned Auger Drill Lines Over Gold Contours Across the 3.3km-long T1 Drill Target within the Fifty-Five Prospect, Zuénoula Permit
Figure 3. Planned Auger Drill Lines Over Gold Contours Across the T3-T5 Drill Targets within the Central Prospect, Zuénoula Permit
Auger Drilling Program
The planned 10,000-meter auger drilling program has commenced following successful meetings with local authorities, including mines department and various community representatives. The initial program will focus on the highest-priority gold anomalous clusters identified from systematic soil geochemistry around the areas of Drill Targets T1 and T3–T5 within the Fifty-Five and Central Prospects, providing the first direct assessment of potential bedrock-related gold mineralisation beneath the surface geochemical anomalies. Results from this program will be used to refine subsequent drill targeting and guide follow-up exploration.
The auger drilling program has been designed to an average depth of approximately five metres, targeting the upper saprolite horizon where residual gold geochemical signatures are expected to be best preserved. Drilling through the complete weathering profile will provide important geological and regolith information while enabling evaluation of the relationship between surface soil anomalies and the potential underlying saprolite-hosted mineralisation.
A selective sampling strategy has been adopted to maximise geological information while maintaining analytical efficiency. Holes located within priority drill target areas will be sampled as continuous 2m composite intervals throughout the entire hole, together with an additional bottom-of-hole (BOH) sample collected from the upper saprolite horizon. Outside the priority target areas, only the BOH sample will be collected. This approach is expected to provide a better understanding of vertical gold distribution within the weathering profile and improve interpretation of the relationship between surface geochemical anomalies and potential bedrock mineralisation.
Continuing soil sampling
Infill soil sampling at 200m × 50m spacing will continue to support target refinement across the Zuénoula Permit. The current program is focused on Drill Target T6 within the South East Prospect, with a further campaign planned over Drill Target T2 in the northeastern extension of the Fifty-Five Prospect. These programs are designed to improve anomaly definition, refine drill target geometry and assist in prioritising targets for future auger and follow-up AC, RC, or DD drilling.
Next Phases of Work
The Joint Venture plans the following next phases of exploration programs to advance the identification of new potential drill targets and refine existing potential drill targets for drill testing:
- Auger drilling:
- Fifty-Five Prospect: 503 holes.
- Central Prospect: 472 holes.
- Soil Sampling:
- Fifty-Five Prospect NE: 200m x 200m 343 samples (pending assay results)
- South East Prospect: 200m x 500m, 601 samples (sampling underway)
Table 1. Zuénoula PR750 – Soil Samples Assays Above 70 ppb Au WGS-84 UTM Zone 29N
| Sample ID | Zone | East | North | Au ppb (FA) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| KN2826 | WGS84 29N _ | 827401 | 842999 | 1,324 |
| KN1566 | WGS84 29N _ | 829900 | 847800 | 1,242 |
| KN2654 | WGS84 29N _ | 828550 | 843001 | 968 |
| KN0551 | WGS84 29N _ | 827300 | 842600 | 583 |
| KN2504 | WGS84 29N _ | 829350 | 843001 | 575 |
| KN2724 | WGS84 29N _ | 828250 | 843200 | 415 |
| KN2110 | WGS84 29N _ | 828551 | 837800 | 344 |
| KN1364 | WGS84 29N _ | 827303 | 838804 | 297 |
| KN2011 | WGS84 29N _ | 827950 | 839201 | 278 |
| KN2399 | WGS84 29N _ | 827750 | 837400 | 275 |
| KN1487 | WGS84 29N _ | 828499 | 840199 | 272 |
| KN0741 | WGS84 29N _ | 829299 | 842800 | 263 |
| KN2341 | WGS84 29N _ | 828550 | 838200 | 263 |
| KN2824 | WGS84 29N _ | 827350 | 843000 | 250 |
| KN2164 | WGS84 29N _ | 828600 | 840000 | 246 |
| KN2249 | WGS84 29N _ | 828399 | 838402 | 245 |
| KN2093 | WGS84 29N _ | 827999 | 837599 | 238 |
| KN2090 | WGS84 29N _ | 827799 | 837599 | 213 |
| KN2547 | WGS84 29N _ | 830150 | 843800 | 205 |
| KN0955 | WGS84 29N _ | 827102 | 832199 | 200 |
| KN2226 | WGS84 29N _ | 828251 | 838600 | 190 |
| KN2754 | WGS84 29N _ | 829449 | 843399 | 190 |
| KN0670 | WGS84 29N _ | 826299 | 842001 | 189 |
| KN2302 | WGS84 29N _ | 828750 | 839001 | 178 |
| KN1930 | WGS84 29N _ | 828901 | 842600 | 173 |
| KN2197 | WGS84 29N _ | 828549 | 840600 | 155 |
| KN0276 | WGS84 29N _ | 827600 | 835800 | 148 |
| KN2736 | WGS84 29N _ | 829200 | 842401 | 146 |
| KN0089 | WGS84 30N _ | 169324 | 836993 | 144 |
| KN1338 | WGS84 29N _ | 827700 | 837399 | 143 |
| KN3242 | WGS84 29N _ | 828500 | 831800 | 143 |
| KN2753 | WGS84 29N _ | 829549 | 843400 | 139 |
| KN3150 | WGS84 29N _ | 830700 | 833200 | 136 |
| KN1901 | WGS84 29N _ | 827200 | 842600 | 134 |
| KN0793 | WGS84 29N _ | 828697 | 843798 | 131 |
| KN1095 | WGS84 29N _ | 825906 | 834994 | 130 |
| KN0768 | WGS84 29N _ | 827901 | 843399 | 128 |
| KN2703 | WGS84 29N _ | 829450 | 843200 | 126 |
| KN2515 | WGS84 29N _ | 828398 | 844001 | 121 |
| KN1257 | WGS84 30N _ | 169802 | 840202 | 118 |
| KN2558 | WGS84 29N _ | 829251 | 842800 | 111 |
| KN2867 | WGS84 29N _ | 826850 | 842398 | 110 |
| KN2167 | WGS84 29N _ | 828453 | 839997 | 109 |
| KN2234 | WGS84 29N _ | 827951 | 838802 | 109 |
| KN2058 | WGS84 29N _ | 827250 | 837801 | 107 |
| KN0802 | WGS84 29N _ | 829700 | 843601 | 105 |
| KN2907 | WGS84 29N _ | 826400 | 842200 | 103 |
| KN2510 | WGS84 29N _ | 829005 | 843008 | 98 |
| KN2091 | WGS84 29N _ | 827850 | 837599 | 96 |
| KN1470 | WGS84 29N _ | 828499 | 839993 | 95 |
| KN2098 | WGS84 29N _ | 828250 | 837601 | 94 |
| KN3326 | WGS84 29N _ | 828100 | 831201 | 94 |
| KN1762 | WGS84 29N _ | 830100 | 844600 | 92 |
| KN2266 | WGS84 29N _ | 826651 | 839000 | 92 |
| KN2628 | WGS84 29N _ | 829749 | 843799 | 91 |
| KN1699 | WGS84 29N _ | 829100 | 842600 | 90 |
| KN2672 | WGS84 29N _ | 827151 | 842799 | 85 |
| KN1423 | WGS84 29N _ | 827496 | 838597 | 84 |
| KN2809 | WGS84 29N _ | 827450 | 843200 | 84 |
| KN0783 | WGS84 29N _ | 829504 | 843399 | 80 |
| KN2030 | WGS84 29N _ | 828452 | 839399 | 80 |
| KN2404 | WGS84 29N _ | 828050 | 837400 | 80 |
| KN0708 | WGS84 29N _ | 829100 | 842599 | 79 |
| KN1112 | WGS84 29N _ | 826699 | 834999 | 79 |
| KN3182 | WGS84 29N _ | 830301 | 832601 | 78 |
| KN0749 | WGS84 29N _ | 828301 | 843001 | 77 |
| KN0045 | WGS84 29N _ | 828001 | 831999 | 72 |
Qualified Person
The technical information contained in this release has been reviewed and approved by Mr. Lijun Yang, a current member of the Australian Institute of Geoscientists (MAIG) and Managing Director of MetalsGrove Mining Limited. Mr. Yang is independent of Stellar AfricaGold Inc.
Mr. Yang is a Qualified Person under National Instrument 43-101.
About Stellar Africagold Inc.
Stellar AfricaGold Inc. is a Canadian precious metal exploration company focused on precious metals in North and West Africa, with active programs in Morocco and Côte d’Ivoire. Stellar’s principal exploration projects are its advancing gold discovery at the Tichka Est Gold Project in Morocco, and its early-stage exploration Zuénoula Gold Project in Côte d’Ivoire which is operated in Joint Venture with MetalsGrove Mining Ltd subsidiary, MetalsGrove CDI Pty Ltd.
The Company is listed on the TSX Venture Exchange symbol TSX.V: SPX, the Tradegate Exchange TGAT: 6YP and the Frankfurt Stock Exchange FSX: 6YP.
The Company maintains its head office in Vancouver, BC and has a country office in Marrakech, Morocco.
QA/QC
JORC Code, 2012 Edition – Table 1
Section 1- Sampling Techniques and Data
| Criteria | JORC Code Explanation | Commentary |
|---|---|---|
| Sampling | • Nature and quality of sampling (e.g. | All soil samples collected on Zuénoula PR- |
| Techniques | cut channels, random chips, or | 750 have been analysed for gold by fire assay |
| specifci specialized industry standard | at Bureau Veritas laboratory in Abidjan, Côte | |
| measurement tools appropriate to the | d’Ivoire. | |
| minerals under investigation, such as | ||
| down hole gamma sondes, or | Soil Sampling Stages | |
| handheld XRF instruments, etc.) These | • Stage 1: Initial, permit-wide, broad- | |
| examples should not be taken as | spaced soil sampling on 1000m x 1000m | |
| grid | ||
| limiting the broad meaning of | ||
| • Stage 2: Gold anomalous clusters and | ||
| sampling. | ||
| trends defined by multiple anomalous soil | ||
| • Include reference to measures taken | ||
| samples (+20ppb Au) are then infilled with | ||
| to ensure sample representivity and | soil samples collected on 400m x 400m | |
| the appropriate calibration of any | grid | |
| measurement tools or systems used. | • Stage 3: Coherent gold soil anomalies are | |
| • Aspects of the determination of | then infilled with soil samples collected on | |
| 200m x 200m grid | ||
| mineralisation that are Material to the | ||
| • Stage 4: Higher density 200m x 50m soil | ||
| Public Report. | ||
| sampling to sharpen definition of gold soil | ||
| anomalies | ||
| In cases where ‘industry standard’ work | • Stage 5: Augering of coherent gold soil | |
| has been done, this would be relatively | anomalies | |
| simple (e.g. ‘reverse circulation drilling | • Stage 6: Drill testing of gold soil and auger | |
| was used to obtain 1 m samples from | anomalies. | |
| which 3 kg was pulverised to produce | ||
| SOIL SAMPLING PROCEDURES | ||
| a 30 g charge for fire assay’). In other | ||
| • MGA has contracted the experienced | ||
| cases, more explanation may be | ||
| consulting group SEMS Exploration |
| required, such as where there is | Services (SEMS) to conduct all soil | |
| coarse gold that has inherent sampling | sampling | |
| • Up to four sampling crews may be active at | ||
| problems. Unusual commodities or | ||
| any one time | ||
| mineralisation types (e.g. submarine | ||
| • The MGA Exploration Manager was onsite | ||
| nodules) may warrant disclosure of | ||
| at the start of the field program to instruct | ||
| detailed information. | ||
| the sampling crew on the Standard | ||
| Sampling Procedure required by MGA | ||
| • MGA provided SEMS Exploration Services | ||
| with an Excel table listing the designated | ||
| sample point locations using WGS-84 UTM | ||
| zone 29N coordinates | ||
| • Each soil sample is collected from within | ||
| 20 metres of the designated sample point, | ||
| with the actual sample point then | ||
| recorded | ||
| • At each sample point: 1) the organic rich | ||
| soil is brushed away, 2) a 40cm deep hole | ||
| dug and the sample collected by taking a | ||
| channel-cut along the bottom 20cm of the | ||
| hole, 3) 1000g of the minus 2mm sieved | ||
| fraction of each sample is collected from | ||
| the sample point, 4) gold is determined by | ||
| fire assay (LDL 2ppb) | ||
| • Duplicate samples are collected every | ||
| 20th sample, certified reference material | ||
| (CRM) inserted every 20th sample, and | ||
| blanks inserted every 20th sample. | ||
| • Samples are stored at the secure SEMS | ||
| field compound in Zuénoula prior to | ||
| transport to Bureau Veritas in Abidjan of | ||
| gold analysis. | ||
| Drilling | • Drill type (e.g. core, reverse | • No drilling results are included in this |
| Techniques | circulation, open-hole hammer, rotary | release. |
| air blast, auger, Bangka, sonic, etc.) | ||
| and details (e.g. core diameter, triple or | ||
| standard tube, depth of diamond tails, | ||
| face-sampling bit or other type, whether core | ||
| is oriented and if so, by what method, etc). | ||
| Drill Sample | • Method of recording and assessing | • No drilling results are included in this |
| Recovery | core and chip sample recoveries and | release. |
| results assessed. | ||
| • Measures taken to maximise sample | ||
| recovery and ensure representative | ||
| nature of the samples. | ||
| • Whether a relationship exists between | ||
| sample recovery and grade, and | ||
| whether sample bias may have | ||
| occurred due to preferential loss/gain | ||
| of fine/coarse material. |
| Logging | • Whether core and chip samples have | • Soil samples are comprehensively logged |
|---|---|---|
| been geologically and geotechnically | for a range of parameters including colour, | |
| logged to a level of detail to support | soil horizon, sample weight, slope, | |
| appropriate Mineral Resource | dominant grain size (clay, silt, sand), | |
| estimation, mining studies and | general topography, residual or | |
| metallurgical studies. | transported, proximity to artisanal | |
| • Whether logging is qualitative or | workings, other ground disturbances such | |
| quantitative in nature. Core (or | as field plowing, and general land use | |
| costean, channel, etc.) photography. | (grassland, plantation, crop, etc.). | |
| • The total length and percentage of | ||
| the relevant intersections logged. | ||
| Sub-sampling | • If core, whether cut or sawn and | • No sub-sampling of the 1000g soil |
| Techniques | whether quarter, half or all core | samples is undertaken prior to the sample |
| and Sample | taken. | arriving at Bureau Veritas laboratory |
| Preparation | • If non-core, whether riffled, tube | • At Bureau Veritas, the entire 1000g sample |
| sampled, rotary split, etc. and | is pulped prior to the laboratory taking a | |
| whether sampled wet or dry. | 50g split for lead collection fire assay | |
| • For all sample types, the nature, | determination of gold concentration. | |
| quality and appropriateness of the | ||
| sample preparation technique. | ||
| • Quality control procedures adopted | ||
| for all sub-sampling stages to | ||
| maximise representivity of samples. | ||
| • Measures taken to ensure that the | ||
| sampling is representative of the in- | ||
| situ material collected, including, for | ||
| instance, results for field | ||
| duplicate/second-half sampling. | ||
| • Whether sample sizes are appropriate | ||
| to the grain size of the material being | ||
| sampled. | ||
| Quality of | • The nature, quality and | • MGA uses Bureau Veritas, an |
| Assay Data and | appropriateness of the assaying and | internationally accredited assay laboratory |
| Laboratory | laboratory procedures used and | located in Abidjan, Cote d’Ivoire. |
| Tests | whether the technique is considered | • Assay results for all samples presented in |
| partial or total. | the announcement were determined by fire | |
| • For geophysical tools, spectrometers, | assay (Lab Code: FE450, LDL 2ppb), which | |
| handheld XRF instruments, etc., the | is a total gold extraction method for | |
| parameters used in determining the | analysis. | |
| analysis, including instrument make | • The lower detection limit (LDL) of 2ppb is | |
| and model, reading times, calibration | considered appropriate for greenfields, | |
| factors applied, and | early stage, exploration soil sampling | |
| their derivation, etc. | • Fire assay gold is considered one of the | |
| • Nature of quality control procedures | most reliable assay techniques for gold | |
| adopted (e.g. standards, blanks, | analyses. | |
| duplicates, external laboratory | ||
| checks) and whether acceptable | ||
| levels of accuracy (i.e. lack of bias) | ||
| and precision have been established. | ||
| Verification of | • The verifciation of significant | FIRE ASSAY ANALYSIS |