Commencement of Drilling at the Virgo project

Arc Minerals (LSE: ARCM), an exploration company forging partnerships to discover and develop Tier 1 copper deposits, is pleased to announce the commencement of an exploration drilling programme over its PL135/2017 and PL162/2017 licences at its Virgo Project within the highly prospective Central Structural Corridor of the Kalahari Copper Belt ('KCB') in the Republic of Botswana.

Highlights

• On 30 May 2024, the Company reported on the results of an encouraging Induced Polarisation Survey which confirmed potential drill targets along two distinct trends of high chargeability close to the interpreted redox contact.
• A large, previously unknown anomaly of high chargeability and low resistivity was also detected at depth.
• This c.3,000m maiden exploration drilling programme will comprise a combination of Reverse Circulation and Diamond Drill holes to test these anomalies.

Nick von Schirnding, Executive Chairman of Arc Minerals, commented:

"I am very pleased that drilling is now underway at our Virgo Project. This will be a busy and exciting period for the Company and I look forward to reporting back on the results from these activities."

This maiden exploration drilling programme follows up on the previous work carried out by the Company which included a scout drilling programme (see announcement dated 25 January 2024). The scout drilling programme confirmed the interpreted geological formations within the licence areas. The recent IP survey in the PL135/2017 licence, announced on 30 May 2024, also assisted in locating the potential drill hole collar positions for this drilling programme.

At the PL135/2017 licence, a combination of Percussion and Reverse Circulation ('RC') drilling will be used to pierce through the overlying Kalahari sand cover to rapidly reach the target formation(s), before extending these holes with Diamond Drilling ('DD') through these formations and down to the unknown anomaly at depth. Five holes for 930m of Percussion/RC and 1,320m of DD drilling, totalling 2,250m is planned for this programme.

At the PL 162/2017 licence, initially three holes for 750m of Percussion/RC drilling is planned. Two holes will test a soil geochemical anomaly trending for 5km along the south-western margin of the licence boundary, whilst the third will test an interpreted syncline in the north-eastern part of this licence.

Further updates will be provided when the results from this drill programme are received.

Qualified Persons

Background on the Virgo Licences

PL 135/2017 Licence

The Company's PL135/2017 prospecting licence is surrounded on three sides by the prospecting licences of Khoemacau Copper Mining Limited ("Khoemacau"), who have recently been acquired by MMG for c.$1.9 billion.

This PL135/2017 licence is located towards the south-eastern margin of the Kalahari Copper Belt occupying a similar geological setting to that recently drilled by Khoemacau at their recent Mawana Fold Discovery and the Zone 9 exploration target, where economic grades of copper mineralisation has already been intersected by drilling. These discoveries are located at the north-western and south-eastern margins of the Company's prospecting licence, respectively.

Khoemacau's Mawana fold discovery has defined a possible economic zone of copper mineralisation that appears to trend towards and into the Company's PL 135/2017 licence (Figure 1.). The Company's recent scout drill holes intersected anomalous grades of copper mineralisation close to this apparent trend and confirmed an east-west trending DKF-NPF contact position approximately 5km long running through the licence.

A map of the licences is available here:

Appendix A - Glossary of Technical Terms