Challenger Exploration Limited announced an update on its operations in Ecuador and Argentina. CEL has completed the first 14 diamond core holes for 1,950 metres in its second drilling program at Hualilan. The first five holes have been submitted for assay with results from hole GNDD-016 to be submitted this week. Additional core holes are being logged, photographed, and sampled in pace with drilling. The company has received the results from petrography of a suite of core samples from the 2019 drilling campaign. The key findings are: gold mineralisation appears to be associated with pyrite which is readily observable in the drill core. mineralisation consists of a prograde skarn assemblage of hedenbergite (pyroxene) + andradite (garnet) + minor wollastonite. early sphalerite is low Fe (yellow) suggesting oxidising fluids, evolving to higher Fe (probably as fluids become rock buffered). copper and lead are associated with the sphalerite (zinc) and gold/silver mineralization appears to be associated with pyrite and is a later mineralising event. · the gold occurs on a 10-30-micron inclusions in pyrite and hedenbergite. This suggests a distal zinc rich skarn evolving in a more proximal gold rich skarn. Follow-up petrography of the prograde sulphide assemblage is ongoing to confirm this pyrite-gold association. CEL has contracted Geofisica Argentina to conduct a conventional ground-based IP Survey to define extensions to the sulphide dominant mineralisation and assist with drill targeting. This survey will initially be undertaken over the Cerro Norte then expanded over the entire Hualilan Project once it is demonstrated that it successfully images the mineralisation. This staged approach will keep the cost of the survey below USD 35,000 until results are proven. The survey has been designed specifically to provide high resolution coverage down to a vertical depth of approximately 300 metres given the current foreign historical resource at Hualilan is all located within 125 metres of surface. The company expects Geofisica Argentina on site at Hualilan towards the end of next week with the survey expected to take 3 weeks to complete. The company intends to continue drilling at Hualilan using one rig from next week until it receives the results of the geophysical survey following which it will recall a second to focus on resource extension and testing of the geophysical targets at Cerro Norte. CEL has received the first assays from its program of surface mapping and sampling conducted on the Colorado V concession as part of its due diligence. This mapping involved traverses along the two major creeks in the northwestern sector of the Colorado V concession, spot sampling near the top of the main adit and in the immediate mine area. The reconnaissance was conducted on approximately one third of the Colorado V concession area with mapping and sampling ongoing and a further 40 assays due back In the next 2 weeks. The mapping identified four zones of porphyry styler mineralisation which coincided with the gold and copper in soil anomalies identified in the Goldking soil data. Highlights include: · outcrops of mineralized diorites, dacites and metamorphic rocks covering 1 kilometre of Lobster creek. These outcrops contain pyrite + chalcopyrite + pyrrhotite and molybdenite as well as different hydrothermal alteration patterns including (phyllic and likely potassic). It includes samples CV-12(0.54 g/t gold and 224 ppm copper and CV 14 (1.1 g/t gold and 383 ppm copper). a series of outcrops of altered diorites showing moderate to strong biotite ­ magnetite alteration covering 500 metres in La Mora Creek. This zone corresponds to a series of six underground panel samples which returned consistently high grades of gold and copper over the first 16 metre interval of the main Goldking Adit (samples C.V.U.R-0+30 to 46). This adit contains a 300-metre exposure of porphyry style mineralisation which is currently being sampled via rock saw channel samples so as to remove any possible sample bias. The Company's operations are unaffected by the Coronavirus. CEL has two drilling rigs (temporarily reducing to one rig next week) operating at the Hualilan project in Argentina with an IP/resistivity survey set to commence in the next week as planned. In Ecuador, surface and underground mapping/sampling in the newly acquired Colorado V and El Guaybo 2 concessions is ongoing as is logging and assaying of the 21,500 metres of drill core at Colorado V. The company's operational model of employing a fully self-sufficient team of high-quality local based geoscientists at each project has the advantage of not only being far more cost effective but it is robust during the current period of travel restrictions. It does not rely on expensive FIFO expatriates. As outlined in the company's Half Yearly Financial Report CEL, has assembled an experienced local team to progress both the Hualilan Gold Project and El Guayabo Gold/Copper Project. Accordingly, the temporary suspension of inbound travel by foreigners into Ecuador, restrictions on Ecuadorian citizens re-entering Ecuador from March 16, and the two-week suspension of travel between provinces in Ecuador, announced yesterday, will not impact the company's operations. The only planned work utilising non-Ecuadorian staff was a review of the drill core and mineralized underground/surface exposures at Colorado V by an international porphyry expert and CEL's Exploration Manager Dr. Stuart Munroe. Both departed site on March 15. Any additional travel restrictions imposed in Argentina will also not impact current and planned activities at the Hualilan Gold Project. The company recently appointed two full-time Argentinian geologists based in San Juan and has received applications from a number of other high-quality local candidates. The company intends to appoint a third full time geologist based in San Juan from these applications. This will allow the current Hualilan drilling program to be managed 100% out of CEL's office in San Juan in avoiding any impact from the 1-month travel restriction announced by the Argentine government on March 15.